An enterprising mountain guide
Mingma Gelu Sherpa is a young yet promising tourism entrepreneur in Nepal. Born in February 1979 in Makalu-5 of Sankhuwasabha district in eastern Nepal, he is the director of Seven Summits Adventure Pvt Ltd – a trekking and mountaineering operator.
Though he started education in his early age by enrolling at the Himalayan Deurali Secondary School in Makalu VDC, he couldn’t summit the peak of education. Rather, he went on to conquer Mt Everest – the highest peak on earth – not once but a staggering eight times
Mingma started working at a young age of 14 when he realized that his future is in reading mountains, not the books. He initially started as a kitchen boy and helper for expedition teams. He started working with great enthusiasm and acquired the necessary knowledge and skills through experience. He also underwent necessary trainings. Soon he started guiding groups both in Nepal and foreign countries. He hogged the limelight when he reached the summit of Mt Everest in 2002.
“It was a memorable day for me; I felt proud being a Sherpa. I achieved the greatest success by conquering the highest mountain on earth,” said Mingma.
But he was not the end of his adventurous journey. In fast it was the beginning. He reached the summit of Mt Everest a year later – this time with his elder sister Lakpa Sherpa and younger sister Ming Kipa Sherpa (15) who received Guinness World Records for becoming the youngest person to climb Mt Everest.
Between 2002 and 2011, Mingma reached the summit of Mt Everest eight times. “The most memorable one was the summit of 2003 when I was accompanying my two sisters to the Everest summit,” he added.
Apart from Mt Everest, Mingma has climbed numerous peaks. He is the first Nepali to climb Mt Elbrus – the tallest mountain in Russia. He has also climbed other peaks like Makalu, Cho Oyu and Mera, among others.
Mingma got married with Pemba Lucky Sherpa at the age of 15. The Sherpa couple is blessed with three children – two daughters and a son. They currently live in Dhumbarahi of Kathmandu. He established Seven Summits Adventure in 2010. Currently, the company has five permanent staff members.
While working as a mountaineering guide, Sherpa received offer to settle down in many countries. But he chose to not leave his country. “I felt that I should use my knowledge, skills and experience in Nepal. Thus I opened a company in Nepal,” he said, adding that he also felt he should provided employment to unemployed youth of Nepal.
Comparing climbing style of 2002 and 2013, Mingma said things have changed a lot over these years. “We didn’t have sophisticated technology and equipment back in 2002. Now there are modern equipment that make climbing easier,” he said, adding that his company has all the modern equipment required for mountaineering. “We should be very careful as safe descent after a successful summit is very important.”
Saying that he is satisfied with whatever he has achieved from mountaineering sector, Mingma said he plans to open ski resorts in Nepal to introduce and promote a new adventure tourism product. “There are many areas in Nepal that hold huge prospects for skiing. We plan to open ski resorts there and bring more adventurous tourists to the country,” Mingma said, adding, “Our plan, however, will take off only if there is political stability in the country.”