Kuntal Joisher is a vegan mountaineer who recently climbed Lhotse, the world’s fourth-largest mountain at 8,516 metres.
He completed his climb using vegan climbing gear and on a plant-based diet. He said he’s the first person to do so on an all-vegan expedition. And we believe him.
IMO – no human has climbed an 8000m mountain using Vegan food, and gear. Yes there has been an ascent of Everest on plant-based diet, but Down and leather was used.
That changed few days ago. I stood on top of Mt. Lhotse using 100% Vegan food and gear!#Vegan @Save_the_duck pic.twitter.com/7rQPgaTjco
— Kuntal A. Joisher (@kunsjoi) May 24, 2018
PETA, the world’s largest animal rights organization, wrote on Twitter: “He’s SO inspiring Mountaineer @kunsjoi climbed #MountLhotse (an 8000 meter expedition!) on a 100% #vegan diet in support of the animal rights cause. His #DownFree-insulated jacket by @Save_the_duck kept him warm & protected throughout the journey #PoweredByPlants.”
He has now climbed Everest, Manaslu and Lhotse on vegan expeditions.
Vegan-based climbing gear you ask? He wore sustainable gear by Save the Duck, a company that uses materials from plants to create winter gear with water-resistant qualities and breathability.
In April, a two-day all-female vegan climbing event took place in the Davao region, located on the southern Philippine island of Mindanaos. The event was called “Bobay Climb”
In 2017, Fred Distilhorst, an 88-year-old retired vegan physician climbed Kilimanjaro to raise money for orphanages in Kenya that benefit children with AIDS.
There are many top climbers who promote vegetarian climbing, including Alex Honnold, Steph Davis and Raphael Slawinski.
“The diet for climbing all the time isn’t really different from the diet for living,” said Honnold.
“It’s not like cardio sports where you’re burning a bajillion calories every day. You can eat a burrito while climbing and be pretty much fine.”
