India
Aged Indian couple creates history by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro together
Ravi Kishore Mallapragada's childhood hobby of climbing small hills in Visakhapatnam became an obsession for him as he recently climbed Gilman's Point in Kilimanjaro along with his wife Sowdamini. The 61-year-old Ravi and 57-year-old Sowdamini made history as they climbed the world's highest single-free standing mountain above sea level. The couple proved that age doesn't matter for enjoying adventures.
Ravi was around six when he first climbed a hill
Ravi was around six when he first climbed a hill. From then, whenever his friends or family visited his place, he used to take them to Dolphin's Nose and other nearby hills. Even after moving to Saudi Arabia for work, he used to make use of the weekends and travel around the dunes to engage in multiple adventure sports.
Sowdamini turned into a travel enthusiast after her marriage
Sowdamini turned into a travel enthusiast after getting married to Ravi, a mathematics professor at Yanbu Industrial College, Saudi Arabia. The lady who works at a government school in Visakhapatnam as an elementary teacher, shares that although she's still scared of many adventure activities, she ends up enjoying every bit of it of her experiences when her husband pushes her into them.
The couple has traveled to several countries together
The couple has traveled to several countries including Nepal, Singapore, Jordan, Cambodia, Thailand, Japan, UAE, Sri Lanka, and Egypt. They are also a fan of adventure sports and love bungee jumping, submarine rides, hot air balloon rides, scuba diving, and paragliding.
A YouTube video inspired Ravi to consider trekking
In 2018, Ravi began thinking of what he would do after his retirement. This was when he chanced upon a YouTube video of a vlogger from Andhra Pradesh who shared his experience of climbing Mount Everest. As the vlogger mentioned that if you eat and sleep well during the trek, it's an easy process, Ravi knew that it wouldn't be easy considering his age.
My wife's willpower took me to the top: Ravi
Following this, the couple enrolled in Rock Training Institute, Andhra Pradesh. In 2020, Ravi finalized the Kilimanjaro trek. However, it got delayed until 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He didn't want Sowdamini to accompany him on the climb as he was concerned about her health. However, she insisted on planning the trip and both eventually made it successful.
The couple completed the trek in 11 hours
While the team took six-seven hours to reach Gilman's peak, the couple completed the trek in 11 hours. "Despite the extreme mountain sickness including vomiting, headache, and losing our appetite, we made it," Sowdamini told The Better India.
The couple has cancelled the idea of climbing Mount Everest
According to the Rock Climbing Institute data, Ravi is the second man from Andhra Pradesh to reach the peak at the age of 61 and Sowdamini is the first woman from the state to reach the peak at the age of 57. However, the couple has canceled their plans to climb Mount Everest owing to their age but they will continue exploring places.
