Age is just a Number

We’ve often heard the phrase ‘age is just a number’, but there are people who swear by it as they do not let it come in their way of fulfilling their dreams. One such woman is Sangeeta Bahl who at 53 scaled Mount Everest, becoming the oldest Indian woman to do so. But that’s not all, so far, she has climbed six of the highest peaks in the world, in her quest to conquer the tallest summits in every continent.

This isn’t the first time that Bahl attempted to scale Mount Everest. She tried last year as well but had to abort her mission after her health worsened due to altitude sickness. Not someone who gives up, she tried again, and this time, made it to the top. Sangeeta breaks the record of Premlata Agarwal who climbed Mount Everest in 2011, at the age of 48

Sangeeta Bahl, a 53-year-old former model and entrepreneur from Jammu and Kashmir, has become the oldest Indian woman to conquer Mount Everest. Bahl, who currently resides in Gurugram, was felicitated at the Indian embassy in Kathmandu. She scaled the peak with the help of two Sherpas. Her husband Ankur Bahl, who climbed Mt Everest in 2016, was also welcomed at the Indian embassy in Kathmandu.

“I just returned to Kathmandu after my epic climb to Mount Everest,” she wrote on Facebook. “Wish to thank each one of you who have supported me through your prayers, wishes and constant goodwill.”

Bahl’s mission also had a message: she carried a banner to the peak advocating early detection of breast cancer in women, and funding for the same. This was her second attempt to scale the mountain. She abandoned the first expedition after suffering from high-altitude sickness. Her husband scaled Mt Everest two years ago to the date, on May 19, 2016.

“Last year, when I made my first attempt to scale Mt Everest, we were evacuated after my health deteriorated. My husband Ankur Bahl, who had scaled Mt Everest on May 19, 2016, kept talking about achieving this feat and it was he, who motivated me to try again. Reaching the summit was a dream come true and it was like starting my childhood once again at this age. I have climbed five highest peaks of five continents but reaching the top of the world has a completely different feeling,” said Bahl

A Miss India finalist in 1985, Bahl, who is the founder of Impact Image Consultants in Gurgaon, worked in the aviation industry apart from designing a uniform for some of the airlines in India and abroad. It was in 2011 that the professional thought about mountaineering and climbed Mt Kilimanjaro (5895 M) with her husband. Two years later, Bahl climbed Mt Elbrus (5642 M), Europe’s highest peak before becoming the third Indian woman climber to climb Mt Vinson (4897 M) in Antarctica in 2014. The same year, Bahl tried to scale Mt McKinley in North America before she suffered a knee injury. One year later, Bahl scaled Mt Aconcagua (6962 M), the highest peak of South America. “Initially, when I applied for a mountaineering course at the Himalayan Institute of Mountaineering, Darjeeling, my application was rejected as I was above 40 years. My husband, who has scaled the seven highest summits of each continent, would help me train. Incidentally, I climbed Mt Everest on the same date as my husband did two years ago,” said Bahl