Hambirrao Kunjir: 6111m above Numb but Alive!

” SUMMIT DAY “

Date – 25th September, 2021

Location – Camp 1 (5137m)

Summit Height – 6111m

Having ginger lemon tea early morning before summit is considered good. It was 12:30 a.m. in the morning when the alarm rang and it was time for me along with other team members to get ready for the summit, temperature had just started to drop when we had to ascend for the final climb, it was around 1°C.

The summit team along with the technical team started the trek at 1:00am, a long distance had to be covered as Camp 2 wasn’t setup due to the unavailability of water up there, so it was going to be to take more time for the summit.

Intially while walking everyone had the same strength and hyped up enthusiasm as it was just the start and everybody were very excited for the summit. As we were gaining the height the energy it started consuming is way more than I can even explain .

It was around 5769m when everyone started to feel the chilled cold winds as the temperature up there dropped to a -5°c. My hand and toes started feeling numb, no sensation which are also symptoms for Ice-burn hopefully nobody had to go through any iceburns. Some fingers of mine haven’t yet come to normal still feeling the chills i.e no sensation at all at the tip of the finger.

The entire climb from Camp 1 was a 60-65° vertical climb which is very tiring. The heart starts beating faster due to the low O2 level in such atmosphere and then eventually the breath gets heavy.

While summiting a peak there is technically no rest for out body until and unless we don’t return to the camp because we can’t let the body get cooled down so even if one is tired he/she has to stand compulsory and the hands and legs movement shouldn’t stop once the muscles are relaxed it’s very difficult to get back on track. Finally after a 2½-3hrs walk it was time for a break.

As I removed my bottle from the rucksack I noticed the water was already frozen! Hopefully everyone carried chocolates so that was the only source of energy. It was around 3:45am and we were at a height of 5790m in the morning when the temperature had further dropped to – 10°c water had been frozen what could I expect more bad to happen! Ate chocolates and ascended further for the climb.

After reaching at a height of 5870m the climb seemed for difficult and exhausting but the summit was up there and the white pole was clearly visible which gave us more energy each one was tired and it was already 4:15-4:30am.

The remaining 240m felt like a 24km marathon. Walking pace decreased with every step we took. And finally after a tiring walk, there it was….. the summit was now just 100m away. It was now 5:30am when the sunrays had turned red as they are before sunrise.

Exhausted, I already slowed down and was taking only 2to 3 steps and waiting again that’s how much my body signaled me to take rest but if you’re a climber and the summit is visible to you I don’t think you’ll stop until you reach there and so did I, somehow managed to reach the top at 6:03 am and successfully summited Mount Yunam at a height of 6111m.

And when I reached up there what I saw is beyond I could ever write! I fall short of words to describe the rising sun and the healing rays of sun and the scenic beauty that I achieved by climbing with determination. I felt on top of the world where nature communicated with me and the moment I felt this couldn`t get more beautiful and worth the climb. I felt as if I experienced Heaven on this morning that made a very very special place in my heart that beat a extra beat every mini second that day!

Today I proudly tell you that me along with 5 other members summited Mount Yunam. Reaching the top is the best achievement I have and also experienced the sunrise at such a great height. #1 in the list many more summits yet to conquer.

जिथं जाणार तिथं भगवा फडकवणारच🚩

ज्या सह्याद्री नी मोठं केलं त्या मुळे आज हिमालयात यशस्वी झालो🙏

|| जय शिवराय जय हिंद जय महाराष्ट्र ||

Regards, SAI TEAM ✌️

A blog by Hambirrao Kunjir (Pune,Maharashtra)