King of Everest climbers to trek Himalayan trail to raise awareness

Jan 14, 2012, 5:41 GMT

Kathmandu - The man who has climbed Mount Everest a record 21 times is leading a trek along the Himalayan foothills to raise awareness of climate change effects, organizers said Saturday.

Apa Sherpa will head a group of four on the 1,700-kilometre Great Himalaya Trail over 120 days.

'The world wants to support Nepali communities in their climate battle but they need to be told how and where,' Sherpa said.

'My effort to walk from east to west in Nepal is to find places and people that need the attention and help of the world in their climate battle.'

The project will also invite celebrities from across the world to do walk parts of the trail to raise the project's profile.

'I'll be working to tell the stories of the people affected by climate change in the region and their adaptation capacity to the impending changes on their livelihood,' said Saurav Dhakal, one of the four trekkers.

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development said Nepal's glaciers have shrunk by 21 per cent over 30 years.

Its study showed 10 Himalayan glaciers surveyed were shrinking, with a marked acceleration. The report by the Kathmandu-based centre said millions of people are under threat from the glacial melting.

'The Himalayas are iconic for Nepal and very important for the South Asian region,' said Simon Lucas of the British government's department of international development.

'We need to highlight the climate change in the Himalayas, because the melting of the glacial lakes is likely to affect 1.3 billion people downstream, which includes India and Bangladesh.'

The Great Himalaya trail, stretching between north-eastern and south-western Nepal, is the longest walking trail in the world, passing under eight of its highest mountains.