First Indian to Climb Mt. Everest and Reach the South Pole

July 9, 2016 Unknown Wizards Valli Sarvani No comments

Meet the first Indian to successfully scale Mt. Everest, ascend the South Pole and finish two tours of duty at the Siachen glacier. Arjun Kumar Thapa, a 34-year-old Havaldar in the Gorkha Regiment earned this title.

Thapa achieved this feat on May 20 of this year. He was part of the 30-member Indian Army Massive Everest Expedition: 2016.

His previous feats include travelling to the South Pole with an eight member team in 2011. The team covered a distance of 1170 km in 50 days of skiing.

Thapa compares the two experiences and says that even though both are glaciers, the two challenges are totally different. His journey to the South Pole was on a flatter terrain. Since it has a gradual slope, there is no problem of oxygen. However, his journey to the peak of Everest has more obstacles. He said that the icefalls like the Khumbu icefall were particularly hard to overcome.

Thapa is the second person in his family to serve in the army. His father served too. He himself has a one year old son. He thanks his two army postings to Siachen glacier, the highest battlefield in the world. He said that those postings prepared him for what he faced on the Everest and at the South Pole. His previous stints on the Southern Glacier in Siachen happened first from 2006-2008 and then later at the Siachen Battle School from 2013-2015. He was posted along with his battalion. His team opened the Bhim to Shiyagra Complex route at Siachen Glacier in 2012.

Speaking of his experiences, he said that living at a glacier for so long automatically brings mental and physically toughness. He calls it a great preparation for any hardships.

Thapa has future plans too. He wants to be the first Indian man to complete The Three Poles Challenge.