'After 10 Years Of Various Expeditions Together,we Both Knew Everest Was Something That We Wanted To Do'

This interview is not about just adventure tourism but about life and its varied essence. Padma Shri Ajeet Bajaj, founder, Snow Leopard Adventures and his daughter Deeya Bajaj are the first father-daughter team from India to have successfully scaled Mount Everest. That's big news indeed. But what's bigger is their spirit, the aim to spread the word that the girl child is powerful and that the word conquer can never be used in conjunction with Mother Nature

- Reema Lokesh

Ajeet Bajaj

What triggered this decision to go ahead as a team to scale the highest peak in the world?

Deeya and I have been going on expeditions together since she was very young. The first major expedition we did together was when she was 14- sea kayaking in Greenland. After 10 years of various expeditions together, we both knew Everest was something that we wanted to do. Doing it together not only seemed like the logical option- but of course the more fun and meaningful option as well.

What was the training involved at all levels - physical, mental and emotional ?

There was a lot of training involved. We dedicated a year solely focused on climbing Everest. While we were in Delhi we would spend about three hours everyday doing some form of cardio (running, cycling, swimming and cross trainer) and resistance training. We also did four practice expeditions before going. Two in Ladakh, one in Nepal and one in France. These expeditions were vital as we focused on technical skills and also ensuring that Deeya and I were on the same page mentally.

What was the most defining moment of the journey? Was there any time that you decided to not go further and return may be ?

There was no time that we decided to go back, but there were definitely times where I was worried especially because I was climbing with my daughter. There was particularly a bad storm that we encountered on our way up to camp 2, the winds speeds were high and our tent was shaking violently through the night. I was afraid that the tent would either tear or be blown off the mountain. At that point I thought if the weather conditions remained this way, there would be no way we could make it up to the summit. Thankfully, by 5 am in the morning the wind died down and we could continue climbing up.