Mountain climbers are an adventurous bunch, the sort to see a giant spire of rock poking out of the ground and decide they’re going to the top of that where it’s really cold and the air is thin.
It’s a dangerous pastime as not everybody who treks up the mountain makes it back down alive, but if people can make it up Mount Everest – the tallest mountain in the world – then we ought to be able to make it up anywhere.
Of course, there are others who basically die up there and have their bodies left on the mountain without being rescued, because the rescuers aren’t going to put their own lives in serious jeopardy just to go looking for your cold corpse.
If Everest is too gnarly for your liking then you might want to find a slightly smaller mountain to climb, and even better, if there’s one which nobody has ever ascended before.
It might be shorter than Everest but are you seeing an easy way up this thing? Because I’m not. Credit: Getty Stock Photo
Luckily one such mountain exists, Mount Kailash. Located in Tibet, Mount Kailash is a couple of thousand metres shorter than Everest, but nobody’s ever made it up the mountain.
However, there are two big reasons why this is and why you ought to put down that Tibetan travel brochure.
Firstly, Kailash is in a pretty difficult to reach part of the world, and the physical challenge of getting there and actually climbing the thing is seen as almost impossible.
Steep slopes, almost vertical surfaces and constant snow cover basically rule it out from a climbing perspective – you’d need to be Spider-Man to get up there.
Plus, the high winds and harsh weather only add another set of dangers for potential climbers.
The mountain is also a site of pilgrimage for four religions and climbing it is forbidden. Credit: Getty Stock Photo
Despite these dangers, there have been attempts to climb up Mount Kailash, but groups turn back in part because of the first reason – and also when they learn the second reason nobody’s ever been up there.
The mountain is considered a sacred site for four religions, Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism and Bon.
While Kailash is a site of pilgrimage for these religions, actually climbing it is forbidden and prospective groups hoping to reach the peak often look elsewhere when they learn this.
Climbing a mountain is an impressive achievement, but Mount Kailash isn’t the peak for you to prove your worth on.
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