Kayaking - from the summit of Everest - takes "attitude"!

It's a great event...
with an impressive Canadian connection as well.

Back on the east coast of Scotland and by the North Sea, we had the opportunity to attend the first session of the Dundee Mountain Film Festival last night. Four excellent and inspiring films from the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour were featured - followed by an inspiring talk by Sir Ranulph Fiennes, widely regarded as "the world's greatest living explorer".

The evening's films included "Hanuman Airlines". Two adventurers, Nepali pilot and kayaker Babu Sunuwar and Everest Sherpa Lhakpa Tsheri Sherpa accomplished what seems simply and completely impossible. They climbed to the 29,029 foot summit of Mt. Everest, launched themselves off the top on a tandem paraglider, landed...and then kayaked down the Ganges to its source. They accomplished this feat with typical Sherpa courage, warmth, grace, and laughter.

Here's a description from the documentary's producers, APPI and Faux Reel Films:

"Babu, a 29 year old husband, father and kayak champion wants to fly a paraglider from the summit of Mt. Everest but he has never climbed a mountain before. Lakpa a 37 year old husband, father, and master Everest guide will kayak from the headwaters of the Ganges all the way to the Ocean, but he can't swim. Using their combined skills our heroes will help each other achieve The Ultimate Descent. Go with Babu and Lakpa as the summit Mt. Everest, launch a paraglider from the top, set a new free flight world record and change the culture of climbing forever."

Folks like Babu and Lakpa, Ranulph Fiennes, and Josh Dueck - the Canadian Para-Olympic athlete featured in, "Freedom Chair" - are more than inspiring. It's clear that they all share and reflect something in common: a positive and abundantly spirited attitude. It is this human characteristic that clearly helps to make the impossible, possible.

Image from the Toronto Nepali Film Festival.

The world could use a lot more "attitude" like that!

It was an important reminder for us all...and an absolutely superb evening.

Duncan.


"Hanuman Airlines" was directed by American filmmaker Hamilton Pevec.