Two Nepali Women Make History on Mount Everest

This spring season on Mount Everest, two Nepali women climbers, Purnima Shrestha and Phunjo Zhangmu Lama, achieved remarkable feats, etching their names in Everest history.

Shrestha Scales New Heights with Third Summit in One Season

Purnima Shrestha shattered records by summiting Mount Everest an unprecedented three times in a single season. This marks her fourth summit of the world’s highest peak overall. Shrestha’s incredible accomplishment makes her the first woman to climb Everest three times within one season.

Previously, Shrestha had successfully summited Everest on May 12th and 19th this year. The climber, hailing from Gorkha, Nepal, is a seasoned mountaineer with experience conquering numerous peaks worldwide, including K2, the world’s second-highest mountain, which she scaled in July 2023. Notably, Shrestha has already summited seven of Nepal’s 8,000-meter giants, starting with Manaslu in 2017. Her pursuit continues as she aims to conquer all fourteen 8,000-meter peaks globally.

Lama Makes Everest Summit in Record Time

Phunjo Zhangmu Lama, also from Gorkha, Nepal, secured her own historic achievement by becoming the fastest woman to climb Mount Everest. Lama completed the astonishing climb from base camp to summit in an incredible 13 hours and 31 minutes on May 12th. This shatters the previous record held by Hong Kong’s Tsang Yin Hong, who summited in 25 hours and 50 minutes.

Lama’s feat marks a significant advancement in the ever-evolving world of women’s mountaineering. Both Shrestha and Lama’s accomplishments inspire future generations of female climbers and showcase the exceptional talent emerging from Nepal’s mountaineering community.