First Sherpa to Climb The Seven Summits

Everest News reports that next week 43-year-old Lakpa Rita Sherpa will become the first Sherpa to climb the Seven Summits, the highest mountains on the seven continents. Lakpa, who immigrated to the U.S. in 2000 and now lives in Washington, did the peaks in the reverse order of most climbers since he first climbed Mount Everest in 1990 and is jetting off to Africa on February 7 to attempt 19,340 foot Mount Kilimanjaro, one of the easier ones. “No Sherpa has had the opportunity to do this,” he says, “and I am lucky to have the chance.”

Lakpa told Ted Alvarez with The Daily Dirt Backpacker Magazine Blog that the reason no Sherpa has climbed the Seven Summits before is because "...completing the Seven Summits is very expensive. Lots of Sherpa people don't have enough money to pay for it. Even in Nepal, it's hard to find a climbing sponsor. But I guided on Everest, Aconcagua, McKinley, and Vinson, and Alpine Ascents paid for my expenses on Elbrus. I am lucky."

After summitting Everest, Lakpa guided it ten more times. His second summit was Denali or Mount McKinley in Alaska in 2000. In 2001 he climbed Aconcagua, the 22,841-foot high point of South America. The next six years he spent guiding the peak, reaching the summit 22 more times. In 2004 he ascended remote Mount Vinson in Antarctica. In 2008 Lakpa climbed Mount Elbrus in Russia and lowly Mount Kosciuszko in Australia with his wife Fur Dikee Sherpa.

All that remains in Lakpa Rita Sherpa Seven Summit quest is the long slog up Africa’s high point. “It could be easy or maybe difficult,” he says. “I don’t know. I haven’t been there.” Next Friday, February 13, is summit day. Then he’ll know.

Read more about Lakpa Rita Sherpa and his Seven Summits at Everest News.

Photograph above: Next week Lakpa Rita Sherpa will become the first Sherpa to climb The Seven Summits.

Photograph courtesy Nepal Seattle Society