Scaling a mountain is no child's play you say? Think again. Proving against all odds, six year old Advait Bhartiya set a record, by becoming the youngest mountaineer from Maharashtra to scale the base camp to Mount Everest. The 13-day expedition that began late last month, saw Advait reach the base camp which is located 17,593 feet above sea level.
When asked what was the toughest part of the climb, he said it was the day they left from Namche Nazaar in Nepal, their single highest climb in a day on the entire trip. It is also the last civilised area before the ascent. The perky boy also added, "I want to climb Mt Kilimanjaro next." His mother Payal, who is an avid trekker herself, said, "Initially, I had planned to go to the base camp alone but Advait insisted on joining me. I told him that he could join if he managed to train and prepare for it. For the next month, his training including climbing 100 floors daily."
She said the boy completed his first 5-km run before he turned three, and is presently into swimming and parkour. When asked if he aspires to be the youngest to scale Everest, his mother said, "He wants to do that. But that is a lot more dangerous than reaching the base camp." Currently, the record for the youngest person to trek to the Everest base camp is held by Delhi-based Harshit Saumitra. On October 17, 2014, the then five year old reached the base camp and trekked ahead to Kala Patthar Peak at 18,519 ft, becoming the youngest person to reach there.
