A Dominican mountaineer reaches the highest peak in Antarctica
Thais Herrera
- By THE EDITORIAL
- Date: 01/13/2024
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UNION GLACIER, Antarctica.- Completing her second expedition in Antarctica, mountaineer and adventurer Thais Herrera climbed Vinson, the highest mountain on that continent, being the first Dominican to carry our flag up to 4,892 meters above sea level and thus completing the fifth (5) of the 7 highest peaks on each continent.
“It has been the summit in which I have felt the most emotions, because I also reached the summit on my birthday with my flag in my hands, a coincidence that is an immense gift,” she explained.
She indicated that upon reaching the summit the cold was extreme, with temperatures of about -37C and a thermal sensation of -45C. “The cold was unbearable, it was a challenge to even take a photo,” he said.
They arrived in a small DHC-6 plane modified for this type of adventure, from Union Glacier to the base camp, about 2,137 meters above sea level, from where they climbed to the base camp to rest. From there they ascended to the high camp, where they waited for a good weather window to climb to the summit.
TEAM MEMBERS
The team was guided by the famous American mountaineer Garrett Madison and made up of 6 others, including the owner of the Guinness record for speed on the three highest peaks in the world, the Mexican Viridiana Álvarez.
After climbing the mountain, they were stranded due to bad weather for 2 days, until I could fly to look for them.
Herrera achieved this summit only 12 days after skiing 111 km to the South Pole, something never before done by any Dominican.
The young woman is carrying out a project she has called “A Dominican finding herself at the top” which consists of climbing the highest mountains on each continent (7) and skiing to the North and South Poles.
“To put it in Dominican language, this is what we would call the home run with the bases loaded for the scouts, a person as normal as me simply has the dream of achieving it,” he explained.
ONLY 74 IN THE WORLD
There is only a record of 74 people in the world who have achieved it, 15 of them women.
“I feel immensely grateful for the support, messages and prayers that many have sent to achieve these two expeditions in Antarctica. It is a very special place that I will always carry in my heart," said Herrera.
He said that it will take about two weeks of active recovery to start training to climb Mount Everest next April, the highest mountain in the world, located in Asia and at about 8,848 meters above sea level.
“My biggest challenge for Everest now is to get other allies to get the funds and stay healthy by training very hard,” she said.
THAIS HERRERA
Herrera is a mother, entrepreneur, and speaker. She is an industrial engineer with a master's degree in Senior Management and Finance. She is the owner and main facilitator of Asertiva RD, a company specialized in outdoor training and team buildings for both companies and educational institutions. She is also a teacher at Barna Management School.
In addition to being a mountaineer, Herrera is a triathlete, philanthropist and the first Dominican woman to complete an Ironman, an event of which she has completed 6 so far.
Una montañista dominicana llega hasta mayor cumbre de Antártica
UNION GLACIER, Antártica.- Completando su segunda expedición en Antártica, la montañista y aventurera Thais Herrera escaló el Vinson, la montaña más alta de dicho continente, siendo la primera dominic
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