Abbotsholme Staff conquer Himalayan Peak!

  • 10 years ago
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Abbotsholme_HimalayasOver the Easter Holidays, a group of Abbotsholme Outdoor Education staff travelled to the Himalayas to climb Lumba Sumba which is 5762 metres high.

The expedition was the brain wave of current OEd staff member Paul Vardy, after he and Helen Caunce had spent some time working in a local village school only five days away from the peak.

The ascent was not without difficulty: poor weather, a lack of real time (once the mountain was located) and awful snow conditions meant a long and technical alpine ascent.

The journey took four weeks in total, and on April 22nd, Lumba Sumba (a mountain that has never been climbed before) was conquered for the first time by Rory Sellar, Head of OEd at Abbotsholme School, David Barker and Paul Vardy (OEd staff) who are current members of the OEd Abbotsholme staff team. A fourth member Phil Booth, has also worked for the school in the past, and who also made it to the top. Other team members included Helen Caunce (another full time member of the OEd team), and Andy Vardy also reached high points on the mountain.

Lumba Sumba is an isolated peak near the Nepal Tibet boarder, the nearest big Mountain of Kangchenjunga is perhaps the most famous landmark. Its isolation and the scant information available made just finding a suitable base a challenging task, this coupled with the unseasonal amount of snow and short time window made this technical ascent a remarkable achievement in the window available.

Steve Fairclough, Headmaster for Abbotsholme School stated, “Congratulations to all the climbers involved in this tremendous achievement, and it is fantastic that Abbotsholme Outdoor Education staff have been the first to climb this Himalayan Peak.”

“They are a fantastic example to our pupils, with the courage and dedication they have shown throughout the expedition.”

“To know that these talented and inspiring members of staff are teaching and developing pupils’ outdoor education, bushcraft and survival skills at Abbotsholme is fantastic for the pupils benefitting from their experience, and a great asset to Abbotsholme, which has been a pioneer in outdoor education within the school sector for a number of years.”

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