Mahabubabad: Young mountaineer Bhukya Yashwanth Naik (19) is all set to go on a trekking expedition to Mount Everest’s base camp along with two others from Andhra Pradesh. He is the only person from Telangana who underwent a 15-day training at camp in the Himalayas near Kashmir organised by the Hyderabad-based mountaineering coaching institute Transcend Adventures.
Yashwanth earlier scaled the highest peaks of both the Europe and African continents (Mount Elbrus in Russia and Mount Kilimanjaro). He also climbed Mount Yunam in Himachal Pradesh and one more mountain in Ladakh.
Speaking to ‘Telangana Today’, the tribal boy from a remote thanda in the district said he would fly to Kathmandu on Sunday evening. “I gained knowledge on the equipment and gear required, based on the height of the mountains. I successfully qualified for all the tasks as well which made me eligible to summit Mt Everest. Now, we are planning to reach the Mount Everest Base camp,” he said.
“Trekking to the Everest base camp is also not going to be an easy thing, but it’s not a technical climb and if one is fit enough, mentally and physically, it can be achieved in 10 to 14 days,” he said. This is a hard and tough trek and the peak elevation is 5,364 meters (17,598 feet) above the sea level. The trek is often described as the trek of a lifetime,” he said.
Yashwanth, who hails from a poor family, said he had pooled money from different sources including Essar Software Solutions Pvt Ltd MD Ram Nayak for this expedition, and urged philanthropists to help him conquering the Mount Everest as he was planning to scale the highest peak in the world in August this year.