At 02:39  Armstrong opened the hatch and began his descent to the lunar surface. After describing the surface dust as "very fine-grained" and "almost like a powder", Armstrong stepped off Eagle's footpad six and a half hours after landing. Aldrin joined him, describing the view as "Magnificent desolation."
About seven minutes after stepping onto the Moon's surface, Armstrong collected a soil sample and stuck it in his pocket. This was to guarantee there would be some lunar soil brought back in case an emergency required the astronauts to abandon the EVA and return to the lunar module.
Armstrong said that moving in the lunar gravity, one-sixth of Earth's, was "even perhaps easier than the simulations... It's absolutely no trouble to walk around". The astronauts reported that they needed to plan their movements six or seven steps ahead. The fine soil was quite slippery.
The astronauts planted a specially designed U.S. flag on the lunar surface, in clear view of the TV camera. They then deployed the EASEP, which included a passive seismograph and a laser ranging retroreflector. Then Armstrong loped about 120 metres (390 ft) from the LM to snap photos at the rim of Little West Crater while Aldrin collected two core tubes. He used the geological hammer to pound in the tubes - the only time the hammer was used on Apollo 11. The astronauts then collected rock samples using scoops and tongs on extension handles.
 

The astronauts then concluded their work and began to make their way back to the LM.

Surface Operations