In 1951, along with Hillary, Lowe was a member of the first New Zealand expedition to the Himalayas. On that expedition, Earle Riddiford and Edmund Cotter made a first ascent of 7,242m Mukut Parbat in Garhwal, India, a feat which earned New Zealand two places on the 1951 British reconnaissance of Everest. Riddiford and Hillary took up this offer. The following year, Lowe went with them to Nepal as a member of the 1952 expedition to Cho Oyu aiming to explore physiology and oxygen flow rates. With Eric Shipton, the three New Zealanders explored the region around Everest.