Female record-setter wants to be an inspiration
KATHMANDU, Nepal — The most successful female climber of Mount Everest who just returned from her ninth ascent of the highest peak said she wants to be an inspiration to all women so they too can achieve their dreams.
Lhakpa Sherpa was guiding some 50 climbers with her brother when she scaled the 29,035-foot peak last week, breaking her own record for the most climbs by a woman.
“If an uneducated woman who is a single mother can climb Everest nine times, any woman can achieve their dreams,” Sherpa said in Kathmandu on Wednesday, where she and Kami Rita, who climbed Everest for the record 22nd time, were honored by the tourism community.
Sherpa, 44, never got a chance to get formal education because she had to start earning a living by carrying climbing gear and supplies for trekkers.
She said she wants to return next year for yet another climb.
“People who are 70 years old are still climbing Everest, I am nowhere there,” she said, adding that she was still healthy and fit.
Her most recent climb was the toughest, she said, adding there was lot of wind and snow and her group had to wait a few days to get to the summit.
She said she’s looking forward to seeing her three children back in Connecticut, where she works as a dishwasher at the Whole Foods Market in West Hartford.
Some 340 foreign climbers and their Sherpa guides are attempting to scale Everest this month and many succeeded in the past week during good weather. Teams have to end their attempts by the end of this month as weather conditions deteriorate.