Scaling Mt Kenya to set a new record

We are immensely proud of Tariq Woodley, who at aged 12 has climbed Mt Kenya and scaled Nelion Peak, setting a new record for the youngest person to achieve this incredible feat.

In the words of Danny, Tariq’s father:

“Tariq summited Nelion (5,188m) on the 15th December, unfortunately too late in the afternoon to cross the gate of the mists to Batian (5,199m) which was another 4 hours.

So we took the precautionary decision and descended late, abseiling down the last 5 pitches in the dark using head torches and getting back to the Austrian hut at ten. A pretty tough 17 hour day.

We used a combination of climbing in two independent pairs with a lead climber on each of us. This gave us the added benefit of having Tariq led and followed closely by two very experienced lead climbers.

I was “tail end Charlie” cleaning up the gear as we proceeded, mostly unaided as the focus was on Tariq and I was a pitch behind all the way… this often resulted in me taking the wrong route or getting stuck and this was why we were late summiting. I believe Tariq is the youngest to climb Nelion and is now way ahead of his dad on the mountains..”

Can you imagine the kind of resilience and mental strength it must have taken Tariq to get to the top of Nelion Peak? We are so proud of him and completely in awe of his bravery and determination.

Our Year 8 pupils will be the next group to tackle Mt Kenya, and will set off this February to climb to Lenana Peak (4,985m). They will undoubtedly draw immense inspiration from Tariq’s climb, and hopefully he can give them some useful advice on how best to approach the challenge