- NET Web Desk
Bachendri Pal – the first Indian woman to scale Mount Everest is all set to lead a 10-member women’s team on a 5-month long expedition from the frontier state of Arunachal Pradesh to Ladakh along the Himalayan ranges.
Titled ‘FIT@50+ Women’s Trans Himalayan Expedition’, the expedition is slated to commence on March 8, 2022 from Arunachal Pradesh. It will cover around 4,625 kilometres across about 37 mountain passes, incorporating of – 17,320 feet Lamkhaga Pass, and will culminate in Drass area of Ladakh by the first or second week of August. This will be one of the toughest expedition, informed Pal.
Comprising of 3 women Everest summiteers, retired professionals & homemakers, this expedition will be organized by Tata Steel Adventure Foundation.
Its worthy to note that the expedition was supposed to take-off in May 2021, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 surge.
“The expedition will inspire and motivate women of all age groups to include fitness activities in their daily lives to stay healthy,” the legendary Indian mountaineer told PTI.
The objective behind the expedition is to send out a message that life does not end at 50 and “we must enjoy it by keeping ourselves fit,” she said.
Pal said it was an all women expedition, signifying women’s empowerment, and 8th March has been chosen for the kick-off as it’s the international women’s day.
However, the team has recently undergone a week-long pre-expedition training at Uttarkashi, informed the PTI report.
“The team would be accompanied by two male supportive members for co-ordination and cooking purposes.” – added Pal.
The 10-member team will commence their journey from Arunachal Pradesh’s Pangsau Pass, near Indo-Burma border and will then make their way through the state passing Thungri and cross over to Assam. The earlier plan was to take trails through Bhutan. However, the entry in Bhutan continues to remain closed due to pandemic, Pal said.
From there, the expedition will briefly pass through West Bengal and cross over Sikkim and cover Chitrey, Kala Pokhari and Sandakphu. It will then move into Nepal, where the route enters Dhaulagiri range and covers Salpa Pass, Lamajura Pass and also crosses Thorang la (17,769 ft) around Annapurna Massif.
From western Nepal, the trail goes from Jumla and enters Kumaon district in Uttarakhand at Dharchula. The expedition will then cross Lamkhaga Pass (17,320 ft) one of the toughest passes, which connects Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh with Harshil of Uttarakhand. Traversing to Himachal and then will trek through Spiti to cross Kaza, Kibber and cross Parang La (18,307 ft).
The expedition will conclude in the Leh-Ladakh region where the team will cross Namshang La (15,900 ft) and finish at Tiger hill in Drass region of Kargil district (16,607 ft).