THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Watching the world below from the summit at 6,470 metres above sea level was a surreal experience, say the two 29-year-old Malayali men who recently braved extreme winter conditions to scale the Mera Peak in Nepal. Vivek Premachandran and Ashwin Gopinath Menon, hailing from Thiruvananthapuram and Palakkad, respectively, are lost for words to describe their jubilation, before terming it “on-cloud-nine moment”.
Based on their interaction with the veteran Sherpa mountaineers, the friends claim they were the first civilian Malayalis ever to climb Mera Peak — about 2,000m shorter than Mount Everest — in winter.
Ashwin, who heads a marketing company in Bengaluru, and his associate Vivek have been bound by the brotherhood rooted in wanderlust. Their passion took them on many offbeat expeditions in the Western Ghats and the northeast, where they trekked 2,000m peaks in Arunachal Pradesh. They wanted to push the limit, and did research on various peaks, mountaineering and trekking communities.
And then, the duo say, they zoomed in on the peaks in Nepal. They were fascinated by the legendary mountaineering skills of the Sherpas. Soon, they jotted down a trekking bucket list comprising peaks in Nepal — Lobuche (6,119m), Mera Peak (6,470m), Imja Tse (6,160m) and Chulu East (6,584m). Trekking expeditions to these peaks do not need certification and are considered ideal for amateurs. Ashwin and Vivek zeroed in on Mera Peak near the Solukhumbu region. From Bengaluru, they flew to Kathmandu via Delhi on February 14.
The expedition started on February 16. It took them 21 days to scale the peak and return to the base camp.
“We booked a trekking team and started communicating with Sherpa guides as we started preparations in December. We were assigned a veteran named Dorchi Sherpa,” says Vivek. “Dorchi has climbed many mountains, including Mount Everest, multiple times. A junior guide from his village also joined us on the fourth day.”
Weather conditions were extreme, the duo says, adding that only people with high endurance levels would be able to pull off such expeditions. As they gained altitude, the duo had to face temperatures as low as 30 degrees Celsius, and gusts blowing at about 80km per hour.
“We wore normal trekking boots till the base camp. But, the boots got wet due to a snowstorm, and the climb got quite taxing until we managed to get special snow boots from the base camp,” recalls Ashwin. The intense training regimen helped a lot, the duo say. “We started training in December, along with our research,” says Vivek. “We ran with 5kg weights on our chests for 5km to 8km twice a day. We also did yoga, breathing exercises and strength training. We used to burn 1,000 to 1,500 calories a day. No smoking, no drinking, no sugar.
“We mostly ate protein-rich food such as chicken and eggs. We also bathed in water with loads of ice cubes so as to prepare for the freezing conditions.”So, what’s the next mission? “Mount Everest,” the trek-mates chorus.
Travel Diary
Destination: Summit of Nepal’s Mera Peak at 6,470m
No. of days: 21
Weather conditions -30 degree Celsius
Winds at up to 80km per hour
Snowstorms
Food
Breakfast: Omelette, tsampa porridge (a Tibetan dish made of roasted barley flour)
Dinner: Yak soup, rice, daal, sauted potatoes, leafy veg saag
During treks: Chocolate bars, dry fruits, coffee