What is mountain climbing?

Mountain climbing is an adventure sport pursued across the world. A trekking or mountain guide helps Amateurs scale the mountains. Be it the world’s highest mountain Mount Everest or the second highest Karakoram range, many of the mountaineers couldn’t have made it without the help of trekking guides.

How it works:

Trekking guides are trained in climbing and surving in high altitudes. They are responsible for taking clients to the top of the mountains and bringing them back safely.

Often there might be more than one trekking guide in an expedition depending on the difficulty level.

What it involves

Mountaineering can be tough and intense, and one of the biggest challenges of the job is braving harsh climates and terrain. Not only do you need to be prepared for all emergencies, including avalanches, which are fairly common. but you should be willing to put others’ needs in front of your own. As a guide your job is to ensure your client’s safety, which can be a huge responsibility. Mountain climbing and guiding may not be financially rewarding. The profession has high demand in particular seasons. In India, usually, winters and early summers are busy because it is a good weather for trekking. Except for a few parts, the rainy season is a dry spell.

Did you know?

  • Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, were the first to reach the summit of Mount Everest – the world’s highest mountain – on May 29, 1953.
  • Bachendri Pal became the first Indian woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest in 1984.
  • Arunima Sinha, an amputee mountaineer, scaled Mount Everest on May 21, 2013 with a prosthetic leg.
  • In 2014, Pooma Malvath made history as the youngest person ever to scale Mount Everest at 13.

What to study:

To get started in this career, you need to get certified as a mountaineer from a government-recognised institute

Where:

  • Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand Advance Mountaineering Course (AMC) and Method of Instruction (MOI).
  • Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering and Winter Sports. Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir AMC and Adventure Courses.
  • National Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports, Dirang. Arunachal Pradesh: Courses in mountaineering, mountain terrain biking, and paragliding.
  • Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Darjeeling. West Bengal: AMC MOI, Search and Rescue, and Rock climbing.
  • Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports, Manali, Himachal Pradesh: Basic Mountaineering (26 days) and AMC (28 days)

Abroad

  • Australian School of Mountaineering, Katoomba: Training courses in mountaineering, abseiling, canyoning and rock climbing
  • Alpine Ascents International, Seattle, Washington, the U.S.: Beginner, Intermediate and International Mountaineering courses.
  • International School of Mountaineering, the U.K: Courses in alpine mountaineering and ice climbing.

 

Picture Credit : Google