Ajeet and Deeya Bajaj are the first Indian father-daughter team to have climbed the world’s highest peak, Mount Everest. In a country where the girl child is often neglected, the Bajajs would like to spread the message that any girl, if given the right opportunities, can reach the highest summits. The inspiration for many Guinness World Records, Everest attracts adventurous climbers and records continue to be broken on its legendary slopes. TOI tracked Ajeet and Deeya’s progress in this blog as they created history. See a blow-by-blow account below how they achieved this monumental feat.

Watch: Ajeet and Deeya Bajaj recount their Everest experience in an exclusive chat with TOI

May 19, 2018

Update at 12.15pm

Hello all,

Deeya and I are on our way back to Kathmandu from the Base camp.

And I also want to proudly share an incident with you.

I write this with tears of joy and sheer paternal pride. On 17th May, the day after Deeya and I summited Mt Everest, a young climber from India attempting Mt Everest got critically ill with severe HACE ( High Altitude Cerebral Edema ).

Our Sherpa team-led by ace climber and our Sherpa Sirdar Nina Nuru immediately swung into action and evacuated him through treacherous terrain and got him down to our Advance Base Camp at midnight.

While I coordinated the rescue effort with our excellent Sherpa team and Sirdar and team leader Shekhar ( an Incredible Indian), Deeya stayed up all night and kept him alive by monitoring his vitals, administering oxygen and injecting dexamethasone.

The next morning, along with Aditya Kulkarni, a rock star climber and photographer from Mumbai, Deeya organised the rescue team with the excellent Sherpa team and evacuated him by yak to Base Camp.

He was immediately evacuated to Kathmandu by Shekhar and team and is now hopefully out of danger!

I am proud of Deeya as a mountaineer but more than that I am proud of her as a human being … We climb, ski, kayak, dive together! We are adventure buddies and while I love her as my daughter ….

And yes, I do remember my promise to share pictures, which I shall soon. Just not been able to transfer it from the cards to the computer.

Jai Hind!

May 18, 2018

Update at 6.50pm

Hey all,

We are back at the base camp.

Getting sorted 🙂

Will share a lot more soon.

May 17, 2018

Update at 12.30pm

Spent the night at North Col. It’s a very different feeling from all the other times we spent at North Col. The first time was when we were doing the acclimatisation hike then there was apprehension mixed with doubt whether we will be able to pull this off. The next time we came here was on our way to the attempt. Then it was apprehension mixed with excitement, nervousness but we were upbeat about taking on the challenge ahead and now it is a sense of relief for having achieved our goal safely and gratitude to Sagarmatha for letting us pay our obeisance. We plan to leave North Col and reach ABC by the afternoon. We will spend the night at ABC.

May 16, 2018

Update at 7.15pm

Hi all!! Reached North Col at 4pm after an exhilarating but tiring 19 hours … decided to stay put at North Col tonight … will be back to Base Camp tomorrow and will share some amazing photographs then.

Jai Hind!

Update at 10.30am

Hello again,

We are thrilled and delighted to have summitted early this morning. We saw the most amazing sunrise from the top of the world. Unfortunately, we still can’t share any pictures yet but would do so at the earliest possible opportunity.

We are now at Camp 3 and will head to North Col today. We are very tired, but fine, and would decide whether to go down to the Advance Base Camp or not after we reach North Col.

Unfurling the tricolour at the top of Everest was a goosebump-inducing experience. Will share a lot more soon.

Jai Hind!

Update at 5am

Good morning everyone, from the top of the world. Deeya and I summited with Sagarmatha’s blessings. Deeya at 4.30 am, I followed fifteen minutes later.

More later.

Jai Hind

May 15, 2018

Update at 9.35pm

Hello everyone. This is probably our last update before we summit.

We are packed and ready to go.. The weather is clear and we have been given the go ahead for the attempt.

We are excited and upbeat. We may not be able to call before we get back at North Col.

We will go very slow and it may take about 9 hours to reach the summit .. and then about 7 hours back to North Col

We need your wishes

Thank you

Update at 4.30pm

Hello everyone. We have a very important update.

We just reached camp 3 … Tired but excited. Cell phone coverage even at 27,000 feet … Amazing!! We plan to rest for a while and when we get up in a few hours, we will be told if we can make the attempt tonight … We will start trekking at night so that we can try and summit at dawn and come back to North Col while it’s still day light … We don’t want to trek back late evening … here’s hoping weather holds up and we can attempt to achieve our goal .

Thanks for your support and wishes.

Update at 10.15am

Good morning, world. We are up and bright and feeling great.

We are heading towards Camp 3 at 27390 feet/ 8300 m.

Once there, which is around noon, we will decide the next step.

The decision would depend on the weather, how we are doing, climbers from the other side etc. etc.

Thanks for your support.

Will keep you posted.

May 14, 2018

Update at 5.50pm

Hey all! We have reached Camp 2 at 25000 feet, and would you believe it, our cellphone sprang into life at this altitude!!Imagine, catching a mobile signal at this altitude! We caught some Chinese network! We are still amazed!

We have now settled down in our tents. We have our oxygen masks on. The sun is still out and the weather is good.

We cannot keep the flaps of the tent open as the wind brings in the snow already on the mountains …

We are tired but happy.

Very exciting days ahead!

Will keep you posted!

Update at 3pm

Hello again, everyone. Here’s an update.

We are heading towards camp 2 at 7500 m (24,750 feet). The plan thereafter will be decided in consultation with the expedition leader.

Will try and keep you posted. Thanks

Update at 7am

We spent the night at North Col and we both are absolutely fine. Used bottled oxygen for the first time since the start of the expedition. What a difference it makes at this altitude!

Today’s plan would depend on what the expedition leader says based on the group’s general health, weather and a lot of other logistics. Will keep you posted.

May 13, 2018

Update at 5pm

Hi. We have reached North Col … All good so far. We had a long hard trek today. We will be at North Col for one or two nights. Beyond this, we would start using bottled oxygen. Will keep you updated as and when possible.

May 12, 2018

Update at 5.30pm

Both Deeya and I are at Advance Base Camp today … Ambient temperature is about -5 degrees centigrade … Nights it goes down to -15 degrees C … inside our tent is quite cosy and warm … Sun is shining bright … We plan to go to North Col/ Camp 1 tomorrow … North Col is at 23030 feet/ 7020m … we are both feeling fit and fine

May 11, 2018

Update at 4.05pm

Hi again,

Deeya and I reporting from the Advance Base Camp. Made it quicker than we had anticipated. We are both fine and completely fit. The mood is positive and we just had our lunch in the midst of the mighty Himalayas. We should be here at least two days.

Update at 11.50am

Hi everyone. We have started our trek from the interim camp to the advanced base camp (ABC), which is at 21,300 ft (6492m). This will take longer than yesterday.

We are both feeling strong.

Will try and share updates once we reach.

May 10, 2018

Update at 6.15pm

Hello. Reporting from the Interim Camp, folks.

We reached this camp after a 4-hour trek today. Felt easier than it was last time, for we are better acclimatized. We will be spending the night here.

We are now relaxing and enjoying some chai with our sherpa friends.

The weather reports are good and we are excited and eager to move on tomorrow to the ABC. Tomorrow’s will be a longer trek.

Will try and keep you posted as and when possible.

Thanks for all your wishes.

Update at 9.55am

Hi everyone.

We are about to start from the Base Camp. All excited. The weather is great. Sharing two pictures just before we moved.

May 9, 2018

Update at 9.30pm

Hi again everyone. Deeya and Ajeet reporting 🙂

The weather reports are good and we have decided to start the climb from the base camp tomorrow morning. We are all sorted, planned and packed.

From now on, the updates would be sporadic, for there is no Wi-Fi once we leave this place. But we would try and share our progress report as and when we switch on the satphone.

We are really excited and looking forward to tomorrow morning and the days ahead.

Jai Hind!

Update at 1pm

Hi all. Ajeet here. We are looking at Mt Everest — a mother Goddess, one of the natural wonders of the world. We realise how small, insignificant we human beings are in the larger scheme of things. We have to approach the mountain with a huge amount of respect and humility. We can never conquer mountains or nature. Mother Nature is supreme.

Update at 8.45am

Hello everyone. We are rested and ready to take on the challenge ahead… we are waiting at the base camp and ready to leave at short notice if the good weather window opens up. At the base camp, it’s all good and the mountains look stunning. They seem to acquire a different hue as the day progresses. Will keep you all posted.

The past couple of days at base camp have been all about resting and relaxing. This picture is of the amazing Nima Nuru – our Sherpa sardar. He’s climbed Everest 20 times. We are so honoured and excited to have such an amazing person on the mountain with us!

May 7, 2018

Update at 10am

Hello everyone, We are at 17,000 feet today. We plan to wait here a few days for a good weather window before we head up again. This practice is pretty normal during climbs. Accurate weather forecasts available these days helps us plan a lot better. So, we are resting and recovering from our acclimatisation hike to the North Col that took us to 23000 feet.

We did it without using bottled oxygen. Next time we are there, it will no longer be an acclimatisation trek but it will be on our way up to camp 2 and camp 3. We will be on oxygen then.

We are both doing well and spending our time looking around and suffering from SOS (Scenic Overdose Syndrome) 🙂

We also keep ourselves occupied playing UNO and even chatting with friends and family as the camp has wifi. Will share more pictures soon.

May 5, 2018

Update at 3pm

A view captured during the acclimatization trek to the Advance Base Camp and North Col …

Here are some pictures of the acclimatization trek …

A look at the route to the top of Everest

May 4, 2018

Update at 10.20pm

Hi guys. We are back, now at the Base Camp. We are all doing very well and as promised, here are some pictures from the North Col camp.

The route to ABC

Deeya abseiling down from the North Col

May 3, 2018

Update at 10pm

Hi all. We are back at the ABC from North Col.

We are hanging in our tent with other climbers, eating chocolate. We’d be heading to base camp tomorrow! We should be there by late evening. It has Wi-Fi, so expect lots of pictures.

May 2, 2018

Update at 7.15pm

Hello from the North Col, everyone. This is Deeya. We have just reached North Col which is at the height of 23,000 feet and would spend the night here. It has been a long tiring day. After we reached, We had chai with our Sherpa friends. The Sherpa sardar (chief), Nima, has climbed Everest 20 times. When my dad Ajeet met Nima for the first time, he almost touched Nima’s feet. He was so excited..

Tomorrow we will be back at ABC.

We are both happy and cheerful.

May 1, 2018

Update at 11.40am

Hello again. As we acclimatise, we are planning to spend the night at North Col tomorrow and will be back at ABC the day after and at base camp on May 4. We will get photos from ABC and North Col then. Thanks for your support.

Update at 9am

Hello everyone! It’s early morning and the mountains are looking beautiful…All is well. We have a rest day today. Yesterday, we went towards the North Col till about 6800 m (22300 feet) for acclimatization will try and call this evening. Deeya is sleeping…we plan to go to North Col tomorrow. We would be back at the base camp on May 3rd or 4th and would share a few pictures then.

APRIL 28, 2018

Update at 9pm

We are at the Advance Base Camp which is at 21,300 feet. Deeya had a rest day while I went for a short hike towards North Col which is at the height of 23,000 feet. The temperature was about -15 degrees C. We are both excited and cheerful.

APRIL 25, 2018

Update at 2pm

We are on our way to the Advance Base Camp. Weather is good, we are all doing fine. There is no Wi-Fi here, but we will have a satellite phone by tomorrow.

Update at 9am

A prayer before starting out from basecamp, situated at approximately 16,700 feet above sea level, early in the morning. Next stop: Advance basecamp which is at 21,300 feet.

APRIL 24, 2018

Ajeet and Deeya set off on another acclimatisation hike, this time to 21,000 feet. They trekked to the upper reaches of the mountain to test their hiking boots and crampons. There, they spent some time at 21,000 feet, had lunch and returned to base camp by late afternoon.

Here are some photos from the acclimatisation hike.

Here’s the first thing Deeya saw when she got out of her tent in the morning…

Before going to sleep, the team played a few games of Uno to pass the time.

APRIL 23, 2018

Some photos from basecamp, situated at approximately 16,700 feet above sea level, where prayers were held to bless the hikers as they progressed.

APRIL 16-17, 2018

After some yoga poses with their Tibetan guide Doma, Ajeet and Deeya made their way from Shigatse to Tingri, an elevation gain of about 2,000 feet. After two nights in Tingri for acclimatization, they made their way to basecamp.

About the Bajajs:

In April 2006, Ajeet became the first Indian to ski to the North Pole and in January 2007, he was the first to ski to both the North Pole and the South Pole. Handling the most extreme conditions our planet has to offer, including temperatures going down to (-) 60 degrees Celsius, unpredictable weather conditions and blizzards, he proudly unfurled the Indian flag at the Geographical South Pole on Republic Day, 2007.

In 2008, a 14-year old Deeya was the member of a sea kayaking expedition along the west coast of Greenland. In May 2011, Deeya, at 17 years, became the youngest to have undertaken the Trans Greenland Skiing Expedition. In July 2012, Deeya summited the highest mountain in Europe, Mt Elbrus, 5642 m.

Deeya has done her advanced course in mountaineering from Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) , Uttarkashi and was given the best trainee award after her Basic Course from NIM in 2012.

Preparation for Mt. Everest

Ajeet and Deeya have been training hard for the expedition. Here are some photographs from their training expeditions in the last few months.