Invincible: Mingma Sherpa, the grand old man of climbing
Local belief has it that Sherpas of Nepal acquire mountaineering skills by birth. For them, climbing is child’s play and their climbing skills is unmatched by other people.
Most of the climbing records on Earth belong to the Sherpas. Until May this year no Nepali had scaled all the 14 peaks in the world above 8,000 meters. Mingma Sherpa is one such a famous name who has carved a niche for himself as a professional climber.
He became the world record holder following his successful ascent of Mt Kanchanjunga in May this year, making him the first Nepali to complete the golden slam of mountaineering.
“During my initial days as a climber, I never imagined that one day I will achieve this feat. Climbing all the mountains above 8,000 meters is a tough in itself. However, being the first Nepali to do so has made me more proud,” said an exuberant Mingma, who was felicitated for his hard-earned triumph by President Ram Baran Yadav on Friday.
The journey to the top however began with many hardships and struggle for this flamboyant climber. Born in Sankhuwasabha in 1978, he spent his childhood herding yaks and playing with friends. “I never thought I will become a professional climber. Back then, life was all about mischief and fun,” said Mingma.
He achieved this rare feat without repeating the mountain he climbed once without a sponsor. He still vividly recalls his childhood days filled with economic hardship. “My parents had a difficult time upbringing me along with six brothers and two sisters.”
However, life had something special in store for him as he grew up. He started mountaineering 13 years ago in his early youth. The journey that began with a humble role of a porter in the beginning gained momentum in 2000 when he made his first ascent of a peak higher than 8,000 meter by climbing Mt Makalu.
After a climbing spree, Mingma took a break from mountaineering in 2004. “The break was primarily due to financial constraints,” said Mingma. “However, my love with the mountains began again in 2010 when in April that year I scaled Mt Annapurna and began the second innings of my climbing career”.
The decision to make a mountaineering comeback was a masterstroke from the champion climber because 13 months after Mt Annapurna summit he succeeded in climbing all the 14 peaks in the world above of 8,000 meters. “It was a difficult journey overall because among the 14 peaks 8 are in Nepal, 5 are in Pakistan and one is in Tibet. This made the journey expensive, time consuming and also mentally challenging,” shared Mingma. “The whole journey was a learning experience for me. While climbing, I had the opportunity to be at the top places on the planet with very friendly and loving people,” recalled the climber.
Asked which mountain among the 14 was the most difficult to climb, he said Mt K2 of Pakistan.
“K2 is almost impossible to climb. I found Kanchanjunga in eastern Nepal and Nanga Parbat in Pakistan the most beautiful ones,” said Mingma.
Mingma, who now lives in Kapan in the Capital with his wife and nine-year-old son is hoping to climb mountains till he reaches 50 years of age.
Posted on: 2011-07-17 07:32
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