Be-cause, for cause, of course.

I fell in love with the mountains from the first sight and from the first summit. I hiked in Polish and Slovakian Tatra as a student and every time I was leaving, I was also planning the new routes and peaks I would take the following year.

Traversing a barrier of 4000 m above sea level and the land of thin air (first time in Peru) was a memorable experience, a mixture of hardship and joy, topped up with stunning views. The strong impression stayed with me and materialized as a desire to meet with adventure: adventure for a purpose.

The opportunity came in 2017 when I joined a group of 30 Women High on Adventure (WHOA) to climb Kilimanjaro (5895 m). The mission of this travel agency, based in the USA, is to organize events all over the world and support local women. Our trip covered the costs of the hike for 2 Tanzanian girls and gave us a chance to donate to the primary school in Moshi and spend a day with the kids.

Later, with the same company I did trekking to Everest Base Camp (5464 m) and this is where I got to know Nepalese boys and girls working as guides, porters and our companions on the journey. This time WHOA selected the local guide company that hires women. As hard as this work can be, for a woman, getting a job means independence; working with/for tourists is a window to the world. It was also eye-opening experience for me.

In July I will attempt to climb Mt Stok Kangri (6134 m) as support for collecting money for children with sight and hearing impairments. The trekking, although non-technical, is quite demanding and requires a purpose and a good stamina. The first one I have already have; to the letter you could contribute to, if you like. By supporting my cause, you reinforce my endurance :-)

Photo by Aksveer – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, wikimedia