He is a doctor by profession, but his passion is mountaineering. Dr Aditya Khadenga with a burning desire to climb mountains is currently on internship after completing his MBBS from a private medical college.
The 25-year-old doctor scaled Mount El'brus, located in southwest Russia, on August 16, 2023. It is the highest above-ground peak in Russia and Europe. After this spectacular success, Khadenga has set his sights on the highest mountain peak in Australia.
Speaking to OTV, the young doctor shared his experience with mountaineering, his profession, and his ambition.
“Nature inspires me. When I observe Nature, I always wonder how to be in its midst and adapt to it. Nature inspired me to challenge myself,” the doctor said.
He recalled the days when he used to go to school with his father on the scooter and found far-off mountains charming. “I wondered what the mountains would really look like from near. I could imagine how it would be a wonderful experience to watch sunrise and sunset from the top of the mountains. Such things used to haunt my mind in childhood. I was thinking of how to mount them and how to challenge them,” he added.
Khadenga said that it was an unimaginable feeling for him after reaching the summit. “The experience was amazing after reaching the summit and surmounting hurdles and pain. Whenever I have touched summits, my eyes well up with tears of joy,” he said.
The young doctor said that he started his journey by trekking and hiking mountains in Uttarakhand. “I did a course in basic mountaineering in 2020-21 at Atal Bihari Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports in Manali. After that, I could boost my confidence and the desire to scale more and more mountains. My journey of mountaineering started in 2020-21,” he said.
Stating that he is longing to scale all mountain peaks in seven continents, the doctor revealed that he is leaving for Australia on March 11 to scale its highest mountain peak – Mount Kosciuszko.
He further added that every mountaineer has a goal to climb Mount Everest. He has plans to scale Mount Everest in 2025.