Couple, child from Sullia scale Umling La pass in Himalayas

Couple, child from Sullia scale Umling La pass in Himalayas

A couple and their three-and-a-half-year-old child from Sullia successfully scaled the Umling La pass in the Himalayan range.

Thouheed Rehman, his wife Jashmiya and their child Jazil Rehman from Sullia, Dakshina Kannada district, braved all odds to scale the pass that is 19,024 feet above sea level and is taller than Everest base camp in Nepal (17,598 feet above sea level).

Thouheed, a Sullia-based businessman and an avid traveler, had hitherto attempted to scale Umling La pass on two occasions. He finally succeeded this time after reaching Umling La Pass a couple of days ago.

Jazil became the youngest person to reach the Umling La pass and in the process,  broke the record of Dhimahi Parate from Gurugram, who had scaled the pass at the age of seven years and four months on August 20, 2022.

Thouheed said they had initiated the process of including the Jazil’s name in the India Book of Records.

He recollects embarking on the gruelling motorbike journey from Sullia to the Himalayas in August where they journeyed via Mangaluru-Dharwad-Bhatkal-Mumbai–Surat-Vadodara- Udaipur-Jaipur-Chandigarh–Pathankot-Kathua-Jammu and Kashmir-Shrinagar-Kargil-Leh–Ladakh to reach the destination. The total distance covered, including the return journey, will be 8,500 km.

“On the way, we visited many breathtaking locations including Pangong Lake. We will cherish the experiences for a long time,” the businessman said.

He said he was touched by the Himalayan people’s hospitality. “They treat guests as their own family members,” he said.

Their memorable experiences included meeting an army personnel at Tangste city in Ladakh who hailed from Sullia.

They met another person from Vadodara, who recognised them from the pictures uploaded on Instagram and offered free food.

“There were many challenges, including a lack of mobile phone network and petrol pumps, in many places. But the breathtaking beauty of nature, like Zojila Pass (Sonamarg) in Kashmir, made us ignore those little inconveniences,” he said.

“On the way back, we witnessed many changes due to recent floods in the Himalayan region,” he recollected.

With the number of tourists dwindling, the room rent had reduced from Rs 3,000 to Rs 800. Touheed could not scale the pass last time due to altitude sickness.

“At the high altitude of Umling La, the oxygen level is only 42%. But this time, I was equipped with medicines and an oxygen kit. Surprisingly, my child Jazil did not face any serious problem at high altitude and enjoyed the stay,” Touheed said.

The trio has embarked on its triumphant return march and is expected to reach Sullia next week.