Bangladeshi mountaineer Babar Ali to embark on Everest, Lhotse expedition
I always like to do challenging and new things, so I am going to take this attempt to climb Lhotse along with Everest on the same expedition, Babar says.
Chattogram's Babar Ali is set to embark on an expedition to Mount Everest, the world's highest peak, and Mount Lhotse, the fourth-highest mountain.
Located on the Nepal-Tibet border, Mount Everest is 29,028 feet high. Climbing Mount Everest is undoubtedly a daunting task. The attempt to climb Mount Lhotse, which is 27,940 feet high, on the same expedition makes the task even more challenging.
No one from Bangladesh has ever attempted to climb Everest and Lhotse on the same expedition before. Babar has been preparing himself for this challenge for the past several years by climbing various peaks in the Himalayas.
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The details of the expedition were announced at a press conference organised by the mountaineering club "Vertical Dreamers" at Chittagong Press Club today (30 March).
The event was presided over by Farhan Zaman, the coordinator of the expedition. Shihab Uddin, former president of Vertical Dreamers, and Ahmed Noor Faisal, managing director of Visual Networks Ltd, the patron organisation, also were present at the programme.
"…I always like to do challenging and new things, so I am going to take this attempt to climb Lhotse along with Everest on the same expedition," Babar said.
Everest Pharmaceuticals is the sponsor of Babar. Besides, many social organisations and individuals have come forward to support the mountaineer.
At the end of the press conference, the national flag was handed over to Babar.
Babar's journey into mountaineering began in 2014. He started trekking in 2010, and he has been climbing various mountains in Chittagong Hill Tracts ever since. He is a founding member of the Vertical Dreamers.
Over the past decade, he has climbed various peaks in the Himalayas with this club.
In 2017, he completed his basic mountaineering training from the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering in Uttarkashi, India.
In 2022, Babar became the first Bangladeshi to climb Mount Ama Dablam (22,349 feet), one of the most technical peaks in the Himalayas.
Babar will leave for Nepal on 1 April to start the expedition. After completing the necessary paperwork and purchasing various equipment, he will leave Kathmandu for Lukla. After a week's trek, he will reach the base camp. The main expedition will start from here, according to the press conference.
"If the weather is favourable, the summit can be reached in the third or last week of May," said Farhan Zaman, coordinator of the expedition.
Babar Ali is a doctor by profession and a mountaineer by passion. He was born, raised, and educated in Chattogram. He received his MBBS degree from Chittagong Medical College. He is currently working on public health.
