Wasfia conquers Kilimanjaro

Bangladeshi adventuress Wasfia Nazreen has conquered Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa.

bdnews24.com
Published : 6 Oct 2011, 11:14 AM
Updated : 6 Oct 2011, 11:14 AM
Dhaka, Oct 6 (bdnews24.com)—Bangladeshi adventuress Wasfia Nazreen has conquered Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa.
'Bangladesh on Seven Summits', a campaign supported by the country's Liberation War Museum, in a media statement on Wednesday said she reached the summit Uhuru Peak, 5895 metres or 19,341 feet above sea level, at 7:29am local time on Monday.
Mt. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa and fourth highest of the Seven Summits, which are the highest points of each continent.
The statement, signed by the campaign's public relations manager Korvi Rakshand, said that Wasfia's team climbed the mountain through the second toughest approach, out of the six to seven routes to the summit of Kilimanjaro.
They were met by severe thunderstorm and heavy snowfall on the summit night which is an anomaly in the African continent, the statement added.
Like her previous expedition in July this year to the highest point of Europe, Mount Elbrus, Wasfia used a female guide this time too. Mountain Guides International (MGI) guide Meredith Riley led Wasfia and her team in this journey, the statement said.
'Bangladesh on Seven Summits' is a campaign celebrating the 40 years of Bangladesh's independence. The campaign is a "tribute to those women and men, who through sheer resolve overcame enormous ordeal for the birth of the nation.
The young adventuress has received the full support and encouragement of the volunteer wing of JAAGO Foundation, Volunteer for Bangladesh. This is the first time a Bangladeshi has initiated such a campaign.
THE SEVEN SUMMITS PLAN
Following her plan to climb the seven summits of the world, she has completed her second challenge — Kilimanjaro.
In December she plans to climb Aconcagua, the highest peak of South America at 22,841 feet, located in the Argentinean Andes.
Denali or Mount McKinley in Alaska, United States, is the highest peak in North America, at an altitude of 20,320 feet, is also on Wasfia's list and she plans take on this infamous peak around June-July 2012.
In April-May 2012, Wasfia will try to beat the highest point of the world. If she succeeds, she will be the third Bangladeshi to have conquered the Everest.
A mere 750 miles from the South Pole, in the harsh cold of Antarctica, Vinson Massif stands at 16,066 feet. In Feb 2012, Wasfia will try to brave the sub-zero temperatures to put a Bangladeshi flag on top of it.
The last on her list will be Puncak Jaya, also called the Carstensz Pyramid, a mountain in the western central highlands of Indonesia.
At 16,024 feet, Puncak Jaya is the highest mountain in Oceania and the highest island peak in the world. Wasfia will go there in Sep-Oct 2012.
"This one is also dangerous, as just reaching the base-camp requires overcoming a lot of red-tapes, climbing its hard rock surface requires a lot of technical skills," she said.
Wasfia said while she does need sponsorship for climbing the mountains on all continents, she would prefer that the sponsors are Bangladeshi.
"So that there is a national ownership in this achievement," she explained. "I would put big foreign companies as the last resort," she added.
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