You might have seen many people climb up the Himalayan mountains and wanted to try out being a mountaineer yourself. But how prepared are you for it?
Watching reality shows or reading up mountaineer novels is not enough to train you for what’s up ahead. There is so much you need to think about when becoming a mountaineer – and to educate you on the matter, we decided to consult experts like Yousef Hamed Al Refaie about it.
Yousef Hamed Al Refaie is a highly acclaimed Kuwaiti adventurer, mountaineer, and explorer who is known to be the youngest man, the 24th worldwide and first Middle East and Arab to ever complete the Volcanic Seven Summits Challenge.
In 2015, Al Refaie decided to start his mountaineering career with the Volcanic Seven Summit Challenge with Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Two years later, he summited the Elbrus in Russia and the following year, Mount Giluwe in the continent of Oceania, part of the mountain range in Papua New Guinea. In 2019, it was the Ojos Del Salado in Chile, Damavand, Iran, and then Sidley, Antarctica in 2021.
Currently, Al Refaie aims to complete the Seven Summits and the Seven Deserts of the world. Simultaneously, he also worked for scientific research with Kuwait Institute to contribute to science in isolated places. Al Refaie hopes to use his example to inspire people to leave their comfort zones and explore the world around them. And though it may be hard, he has shared essential things one must consider before seriously taking on the hurdles of being a mountaineer.
The Weather is Unpredictable
This is pretty obvious to many people, but for mountaineers, this can change the whole course of their plans. But that does not mean that you sit back in your room and wait for good weather to come by for you to go outside. If anything, you must be prepared to spend half of your trips in bad and lousy weather.
Do Not Underestimate Climbing a Mountain
The hard truth is that climbing a mountain will always be hard. So when you are at the bottom, looking up at the top, make sure you prepare yourself for the difficulty it will present to you and remind yourself of why you wanted to do this in the first place.
There Will Be Times When You Will Want to Take a Step Back
Many people tend to forget that the summit is only half the journey – and you will need to come back down. When you think about that, you will wish you had stayed at home, so make sure you are aware of this before starting your journey.
You Will Need to Have Strong Relationships With Your Partner
When traveling with your partner, you must ensure they have your back because you entrust them with your life throughout this journey. And it is during tough times when these bonds become stronger over time.