Adventure Medic Editors Matt Wilkes and Luke Summers caught up with Sano Babu Sunuwar during the recent Wings of Kilimanjaro Expedition to Tanzania. Babu, together with Lakpa Tsheri Sherpa, shot to fame as the 2012 National Geographic Peoples’ Choice Adventurers Of The Year after their incredible Summit to Sea Expedition. During this amazing feat, Lakpa led Babu up Everest, then Babu flew the two of them down from the summit in a tandem paraglider to a waiting tandem kayak, where they then paddled to the sea. In this interview, Babu talks about the expedition, what motivates him and gives some advice to doctors.
By way of a small disclaimer: Babu is an wonderfully friendly guy who always brings a smile, but his English is rather unique. Consequently, parts of the following interview are paraphrased. We have tried to convey his sentiments as best as possible, and have left some parts untouched to give you a sense of Babu-ness. Enigmatic may be an overused word, but here it is entirely appropriate. Babu is a man who may be small in stature, but he is truly massive in personality.
Babu – where did you get the idea or the summit to sea expedition?
I got the idea from my environment, when I am growing up, when I am playing with my nature. In my country I live below the Khumbu, around me are some big mountains and coming from them some rivers. When I was a child I saw people passing in the rivers on kayaks, and some people with back packs going on the mountains. After that when I moved away from home I saw people climb with the paragliders and an idea came – why not one person with all these sports come from one of the highest places to one of the lowest places. I mean from the same mountain follow the water all the way.
So you had the idea before you could paraglide?
Yes.
When did you learn to paraglide?
2006, My teacher was David Arufat from Switzerland and taught to make experience with the paragliding.
And now you teach?
Yeah I teach but I learn also.
And kayaking?
I started in 2000.
What was your favourite part of the expedition?
All was favourite. I never said that this bit is the best or this bit was not. The kayaking was at its very best, the first time in my life I put crampons on my legs, the first time I climb the Khumbu ice fall – this was a good memory, very interesting- on top of Everest, oh god this is the highest peak in the world. I didn’t say this is the best but a real memory – swimming grade V rapid with big whirl pool.
How did Lakpa get on?
It was a challenge to get him all the way to the sea passing grade V rapids. But then even for him I’m a big challenge, I don’t know about mountains and taking on the summit on the highest place in the world, for him it was very challenging taking me. It was the same for me taking him all the way to sea when he doesn’t know how to swim.
Lakpa couldn’t swim?
No, but then I’d never climbed a mountain before – Everest was my first.
Had he flown a paraglider before?
Not much, just tandems with me. He did try to learn from somebody else and he crashed in a tree. After he was rescued he came to Pokhara to learn to fly and that’s how I met him.
What was the key to your success?
I have one habit, I love my habit and that is – never give up, what I want to do I have to do and if anything happens I don’t care, that makes me self depending and I trust my skills and I know my own limits. That makes me a success.
What was the scariest part of the trip?
Not scary. Scary means give up if scary. If you’re still alive you keep going. Of course challenging – I remember thinking oh my god maybe this is me finished maybe today – I remember when I am maybe 10m under the water in the whirlpool and still my brain is thinking something wrong has happened. This is the part of the expedition with the strongest memory.
Any other challenges?
Technically the environment was difficult – for two months it was very cold sometimes -40C after it was 25C hot. Some time in the middle of the night somebody coming, maybe 100 people, trying to attack trying to take our money or whatever we had. This was a big adventure to solve this problem.
How did you solve this problem?
Technically, mentally, many ways it was very difficult. (Babu is truly an enigma)
And when you got to the sea?
I had never seen the sea before I come from the mountains. Oh shit yes (laughs). I heard when I was kayaking that there are like piranhas – many small fish that when one attacks, thousands attack and kill very fast. I remember when I was at the sea I saw lots of red things walking backwards and I thought maybe this is piranha, I didn’t want to get eaten so I took some pictures and called a friend and said what is this? He said, Babu no problems they are crabs, they are your friends.
How did you get involved with the Wings of Kilimanjaro trip?
This was a surprise trip for me. Even I did not know [Adrian Mcrae – expedition organiser] before. One day I was in Switzerland and Facebook made this happen. One day he is online and after he asks me “do you know Kilimanjaro?” I said no. He said “this is the biggest mountain in Africa, this in the Seven Summits, you want to make history?”. I want of course but how can I? Adrian helped me with financial support and to get the participants permit to take part in this great experience with lots of great paragliders from all over the world. It’s a great experience on the way with the camping, everyone sharing their histories, skill and knowledge. It is a great opportunity for me – climbing Kilimanjaro – the second mountain I have climbed – to the top of Africa.
What drives you to do what you do?
What I do, and what I am going to do next, what I am doing right now and what I did that’s the meaning of what happens. I am not competing with anyone, I never give challenge to nature but I love to do these things, I want to do it, I want to give challenge to myself and make new experiences that no one has done – that makes it happen.
What next after wings of Kilimanjaro?
I have no idea, maybe something happen I am sure. Everyone will have to wait what happens, even I don’t know. I am not very good at making planning this is just happening.
Did you have any health problems on the summit to sea trip?
Health is a part of the journey, it is very important. If it is mentally, physically – if you are not well enough it is not possible to do any of the things that you want. I remember when on Everest it was important to think positively. For instance with the high altitude if you get a headache and you think positively and it may just go away but if you worry then it becomes a bigger problem, that is how I think about health. When you go to extreme places then you have to prepare – physically, mentally and then no problems.
How did you prepare for health problems?
Mentally – I trust my kayaking skills, grade V: no problem. Flying I trust my wing and my limits. But altitude is physical, even I didn’t know but Lakpa said “Babu you are tough, I take that kind of person, you will make the summit” and I trust Lakpa and I made it.
Did you take a doctor for the trip?
Oh my god doctor! It was very far, even sometime we didn’t have enough Dahl bat! Of course safety is very important, without safety we cannot do nothing. But sometimes too much safety also closes the doors for our destination. Safety is important but too much is dangerous.
Everyone was impressed by how little money you managed to spend on the trip how much did you spend, and how did you raise it?
To pay for the trip it was difficult – to have a tandem kayak for a start, there is not many in Nepal. For the paragliding there is no company that makes a wing certified to fly above 8000m – who takes that risk to make a wing to fly tandem from Everest? All these things I don’t want to say the cost but I am very lucky and I have lots of good friends ho helped me. Now I have many ideas to do big things on small budgets.
Is there any advice to young doctors/people involved in expeditions?
I think they have to have experience in the mountain environment, to know your skills and know your limits. It is a very extreme job to save people from this environment. You need to be able to work in the environment without all the equipment; you need to be physically, mentally and technically fit.
The Wings of Kilimanjaro Expedition was a charitable event where 95 paragliders climbed Kilimanjaro in the hope of flying from the top. Although everybody made it to the top weather conditions compounded by other factors stopped all paragliders but one from flying, forcing them to walk back off the mountains. The one that flew was… Babu.
Babu has now gone on to found a paragliding resort near Pokhara in Nepal.
