"On Mount Everest, I was not Samina Baig. I was representing Pakistani women."

Tired, cold, hungry and roughly 800 feet from Mount Everest's summit, Samina Baig had only one thought in mind:

"I have to reach the top," Baig said. "I was very clear about that."

As it is for every serious mountaineering aficionado, reaching the summit of Everest, the world's highest mountain at 29,029 feet, was a dream. But for Baig, 25, who hails from remote Shimshal village in Pakistan's Upper Hunza Valley, there was something more.

As the first Pakistani female to reach the top of Everest, she would be sending a message to fellow citizens in a country often criticised for its subjugation of women and where, in the most commonly known example, a teenager named Malala Yousafzai was shot by Taliban extremists in 2012 for demanding that girls be allowed to receive an education.


"On Mount Everest, I was not Samina Baig," said the mountaineer whose home region is known for its high literacy rate, tolerance and gender equality. "I was representing Pakistani women. I was thinking that if I don't make it, how am I going to encourage other women? I had to do it."

On May 19, 2013, at 7:40 am, Baig stood on top of the world, one of fewer than 400 women from across the globe - of various ages, nationalities and socioeconomic backgrounds - to reach Everest's summit.

Since then she has climbed to the top of the highest mountains on the five other continents: Denali in Alaska, Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Elbrus in Russia, Aconcagua in Argentina and Vinson in Antarctica, as well as Carstensz Pyramid in Oceania.

Her expeditions were funded through private donations and by mountaineering friends in New Zealand, according to Baig's older brother, Mirza Ali Baig, a professional mountain guide. It took years to save for the Everest climb, Baig said.

Today, Samina Baig travels throughout Pakistan spreading a simple but poignant message.

"I want to tell the women in Pakistan that if I am from Pakistan and I can climb mountains, they can climb their own mountains, because everyone has their own mountains in their lives," Baig said during a recent visit to California. "They can work hard, they can overcome their challenges and they can reach their goals."

That is a strong testament coming from a woman who grew up in a one-room house with no electricity, indoor plumbing or telephone. The family used firewood for cooking and heating. But Baig's parents, a farmer and a homemaker, ensured that all their children - four sons and two daughters - went to school.

Baig's first conquest was Chashkin Sar, a nearly 21,000-foot mountain near her village. The community was so proud of her success that she said they renamed the mountain "Samina's Peak."

But the ultimate quest was always Everest, Baig said. She and her brother spent months climbing mountains, camping in glaciers and running in the hills of the Pakistani capital of Islamabad in preparation for the Everest expedition that would last two months. They practiced lifesaving techniques, such as what to do in the event of an avalanche or if one of them fell into a crevasse.

At Everest's famous Yellow Band, a geological feature of sedimentary rock that is light yellow, Baig slipped and got quite a scare. But she was harnessed and able to recover.

"It was not easy," she acknowledged. "I used to feel very tired, very cold and hungry but ... I never felt I'm going to quit. My focus was, I have to reach the top of Mount Everest."

With just 800 feet or so to go, Mirza Ali Baig said he intentionally turned back so that his sister could conquer the peak alone to prove that "if you give opportunity to your sisters, daughters, wives, they can achieve their goals."

At home Baig has become quite a sensation, and on trips around the world, she and her brother have embarked on a mission to dispel certain stereotypes about Pakistani women.

"For those who think that women in Pakistan are always oppressed, that they don't have opportunity ... (Samina) is just one example," Mirza Ali Baig said.

Pakistan's ambassador to United Nations, Maleeha Lodhi, echoed the sentiment, noted that Baig epitomised the confidence and determination exhibited by many Pakistani women who have "broken the glass ceiling" that often holds women back.

Baig said she hopes the fervor will continue to spread until her message fully resonates that "you can achieve anything. Just believe in yourself and just work hard."

Los Angeles Times