Bengaluru techie becomes first Indian to scale highest peak in Europe, Mount Elbrus

Bengaluru-based tech professional achieves a remarkable milestone by becoming the first Indian to conquer the highest peak in Europe, Mount Elbrus, scaling it from the northern flank.

Sandeep Shah, along with his companion Rekha Tiwari, embarked on their challenging journey on August 29 and successfully completed the daring expedition in 19 hours.

Sandeep Shah, who transitioned from a techie to an avid trekker, etched his name in history by achieving the feat of conquering Mt. Elbrus, standing tall at 5,642 meters, from its northern flank and descending from the south flank.

Confirming this remarkable achievement, the Russian mountaineering organization ‘Mountain Guide’ stated that on September 2, at 2:53 pm, Sandeep Shah became the first Indian to reach the summit of Mount Elbrus. Sandeep's remarkable achievement has also been acknowledged by the India Book of Records for summiting both peaks of Mount Elbrus.

Reflecting on his challenging expedition, Sandeep mentioned the formidable Russian weather and the scarcity of vegetarian food as some of the most daunting obstacles he had to overcome.

He also emphasized that ensuring the timely completion of the summit was equally demanding.

With the conquest of Mount Elbrus now added to their list of accomplishments, Sandeep and his team are now closer to achieving their ultimate goal of conquering the 14 highest peaks in the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges by 2025.

Having already conquered Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa, by reaching Uhuru Peak at 5895 meters on August 23, 2023, the team is steadily making strides towards their ambitious goal.