It’s about that time of year when you might be thinking about your goals for the new year. Maybe you want to get more active or spend more time outdoors.
Well, a Michigan couple can cross “climbing Mount Everest” off the list as they became the first married couple from Michigan to reach the top of the world. As members of the Sikh faith, they also did something that’s never been done before.
There’s that old adage that the couple that plays together stays together.
Harpreet and Navneet Cheema have been climbing mountains since 2019.
From Mount Kilimanjaro to Mount Denali, they’ve reached five of the seven summits. Their latest expedition was to Mount Everest.
“I think we are the eighth couple in the world to have done this,” said Navneet.
The Ann Arbor couple just celebrated their 19th anniversary and said the lessons learned on the mountain strengthened their marriage.
“I feel like you have to decide what’s important, and if it is, then you have to have an honest dialogue, and once you’ve talked, you have to let it go,” said Navneet.
Paired with a Sherpa guide, the couple spent 43 days on Mount Everest, navigating a trail that at times was just 18 inches wide.
“It’s steep on both sides,” said Harpreet. “It’s like the ridgeline and it falls miles down.”
With two kids at home, the stakes couldn’t be higher. In fact, a climber from Kenya passed out near the summit and died in front of them.
“I was shivering because I saw his dead body, and it was clipped onto the rope that we were on, and we had to bypass,” said Harpreet.
“It’s a narrow walkway, and if you start focusing on anything else, your foot slips, you’ll take everyone else, and then it’s a full rescue attempt at 8800 meters,” said Navneet.
This is why the couple trains and prepares extensively for months. Getting from their home in Washtenaw County to the highest point on Earth from sea level takes tremendous training.
“Every expedition is different. For this one, we had to run six miles every day,” said Harpreet.
“A lot of core work, a lot of endurance work; Mount Everest is really tall, so you have to have the endurance to go day after day,” said Navneet.
“We had to sleep in a hypoxia tent in our room, so it limits the oxygen and mimics higher altitude sleeping,” said Harpreet.
And then there are the tires.
“Basically, you rope on four sides and make a hitch, it goes on your back, and then you pull it and add weight and drag it behind you,” said Harpreet.
The exercise simulates the sleds they’d be carrying.
Beyond the physical feat of climbing Mount Everest, the couple did something that’s never been done before.
Harpreet, Navneet and I are all members of the Sikh faith, and when they texted me a photo from the Everest base camp, I knew I had to tell this story. The Nishaan Sahib, the Sikh flag, is flown at every Gurdwara or place of worship. For the first time, it was placed at the summit of Mount Everest.
“There’s lots that faith can do to help you climb the mountain, and we knew we were carrying it with us, and it will take us to the top and bring us safely down,” said Harpreet.
Remarkably, centuries earlier, the founder of the Sikh faith, Guru Nanak Dev Ji, walked the same treacherous region.
“For us, we were like, for as much as He has traveled, all He was saying is ‘do good be good,’” said Navneet.
“So surprising he went there without the gear, like how did he do that in 14 to 15th century?” said Harpreet.
Some feats are simply divine. The couple says the magnitude of their trek up Mount Everest will last a lifetime.
“People say, ‘conquer the mountain.’ No one does that; you conquer your mind; that is what our journey has been,” said Harpreet.
The Cheema’s said their health journey started because heart disease and cholesterol run in their family, and they wanted to set a good example for their kids. If you’re wondering, they can both work remotely, but internet access is another story.
And no surprise, the Cheema’s did not spend the holidays at home. They are currently in Antarctica climbing Mount Vinson.