Well, here is a first; or as I would like to think, a first of documented history. Saray N’kusi Khumalo, an e-commerce executive from South Africa becomes the first African woman to reach the highest point on Earth, the peak of Mount Everest. That is some 8,850 meters (29,035 feet) above sea level.
No mean feat by any stretch of the imagination I might add. However, let us pause for a second and appreciate the journey behind the success. For Khumalo, there were other three failed attempts to reach the peak of Mt. Everest. She failed to reach her goal for various reason such as deadly earthquake and bad weather in the past.
The organizer of her expedition and the government of South Africa took to social media to congratulate Khumalo for her success.
“With her birth in Zambia, Rwandan bloodline and now in South Africa, this sister of Africa has achieved her goal of becoming the first black woman from Africa to summit Mount Everest,” wrote her expedition organizer Summits with a Purpose on Facebook.
The government of South Africa took to Twitter and said: “Congratulations to iMbokodo (strong woman) Saray Khumalo for being the first Black African Woman to reach the top of the world by conquering Mount Everest. Bosso ke wena! (you’re the boss in Sesotho).
On her website, Khumalo dedicated her achievement to all the daughters of Africa. But by now, one would expect that there have been a number of African women who have reached the top of Mt. Everest. Perhaps Khumalo achievement is just the first to be documented.
Mira Acharya, a local tourist official in Nepal (the home country of the peak of Mount Everest) told the press that indeed Khumalo scaled to the top of the mountain. However, she gave no comments with regards to whether or not she is the first African woman to reach the very top.
On the other hand, Mingma Sherpa of the Seven Summit Trek hiking agency told Reuters that indeed Khumalo was the first African woman to reach the very top of Mt. Everest. So based on that, Khumalo bags the title of the first African woman to reach the top of Mt. Everest.
Though the title of the first African to reach the top of Mt. Everest goes to Sibusiso Emmanuel Vilane from South Africa. He made the long, cold, and tasking journey to the top in 2003.
14 of the highest mountains in the world are found in Nepal, and the mountain climbing season starts in May every year. You will find hundreds of mountain climbing enthusiasts making a trip to Nepal to reach some of these peaks.