GILGIT: Norwegian female climber Kristin Harila, 36, started her attempt to climb five 8,000-metre high peaks in Pakistan, including the world’s second highest peak K2 and Nanga Parbat, in two months.

She has arrived in Pakistan as part of her campaign to beat the time record of ascending all the 14 above 8,000-metre peaks across the world in six months.

Five of the 14 above 8,000m peaks in the world, including K2 (8,611m), Nanga Parbat (8,126m), Gasherbrum-I (8,080m), Broad Peak (8,051m), Gasherbrum-II (8,035m), are located in Pakistan.

According to Karrar Haidri, secretary of Alpine Club of Pakistan, Kristin Harila along with nine other members of her team, including seven Nepalese and one each from China and Japan, has departed Nanga Parbat base camp to conquer Nanga Parbat(8,126m).

Kristin Harila aims to scale five highest peaks in two months

Mr Haidri said that Kristin Harila was professional athlete from Norway.

In May 2021, she set a world record becoming the fastest woman to climb Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world, and Lhotse in Nepal in less than 12 hours.

Her success in previous expeditions and summit attempts have inspired her to embark on her latest challenge, ‘Bremont 14 Peaks’, a monumental effort to become the first woman in history and the second person ever to climb all 14 peaks above 8,000m in just six months.

Kristin Harila hopes to match or surpass Nepali adventurer Nirmal Purja and his groundbreaking 2019 record of six months and six days. She climbed Makalu in Nepal last month. That was her sixth 8,000m summit in just 29 days, beating out Nepali adventurer Nirmal Purja’s 31 days in 2019 for the fastest time to summit that many 8,000m peaks.

This is the second phase of her campaign wherein she will be attempting to summit Pakistan’s all the above 8000-metre peaks in two months.

The team members of ‘Bremont 14 Peaks Women Too’ include Nepal’s Chhiring Namgel Sherpa, Pasdawa Sherpa, Sanu Sherpa, Nima Gyalzen Sherpa, Ningma Dorje Tamang, Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, China’s Tseng Ko-Erh and Japan’s Naoko Watanabe.

After Nanga Parbat, they will attempt K2, then Broad Peak and finally Gasherbrum-I and Gasherbrum-II.

Published in Dawn,June 19th, 2022