Sibusiso Vilane, South African adventurer, motivational speaker and author of To the Top from Nowhere, was the guest speaker at a recent meeting of the Lakefield Social Club.
He lives in Nelspruit and ended up speaking at the club thanks to an acquaintance he made many years ago.
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Pam Harvey, a committee member of the Lakefield Social Club, met Sibusiso while on holiday with friends at the Malolotja Nature Reserve in northern Swaziland some years ago.
“I was working as a game ranger and tourist officer when Pam approached me asking which route is the best to hike. I ended up hiking with them,” said Sibusiso.
“I am originally from the Shongwe Mission area known as Jeppes Reef. It is now called Nkomazi district and is in Mpumalanga, about 60 km south of Nelspruit. I grew up in Swaziland because my parents got separated when I was young.”
The Lakefield Social Club members were very excited to host Sibusiso in Benoni.
Sibusiso explained where his love for climbing mountains started.
“While working at the Malolotja Nature Reserve, I met a man named John Doble. At the time – 1996 – he was a British High Commissioner.
“John is the reason I have climbed as many mountains I have today. He opened my eyes so much regarding the world around us.
“As John did not know anyone in the area, I offered to take him for a hike through the areas I knew were the best.
He was impressed with my strength and determination,” Sibusiso explained.
“This is about the time we started talking about me one day climbing a mountain such as Mount Everest.”
What then may have seemed like an impossible dream ended up with Sibusiso standing on the summit of Mount Everest on May 26, 2003, making him the first black person in the world to achieve this feat.
He descended Everest a transformed man.
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“I was 33 when I climbed and summited Mount Everest and then two years later I summited it for the second time,” he explained.
“There are many more mountains I dream of climbing and do not think I will ever get to a point I feel I am done.
“I am trying to get sponsorships for another big one near Everest, called Lhotse, which I will hopefully be ready to do in 2022.”
His talk focussed mainly on conquering Everest, but he also touched on some of the other mountains he has summited.
“To name all mountains I have climbed will prove to be a mountain to climb in itself, but I am going to try,” he jested.
• Kilimanjaro 5895m (1999)
“This was the beginning of my climbing journey. Kilimanjaro was tough even though not that technical. It was physically exhausting. I watched the sunrise as I reached the peak of Kilimanjaro and that was special.”
• Mount Everest (Himalayas) 8 848m (2003)
“I went to the Himalayas and climbed Mount Everest. This was a big climb for me because I wanted to tell the world that Africans could climb and summit Everest with some support and desire. The climb itself was tough. It took two months of effort, determination and drive to reach the summit. After 60 days I got to the top and felt humbled yet motivated to climb a few more.”
• Mount Everest (Himalayas) 8848m (2005)
“I returned to Everest and climbed it for charity. This was even harder. It took me 73 days to climb to the summit. But it was worth the effort because I raised a bit of money for charities like the SOS Children Village.”
After 2005, Sibusiso climbed the seven highest mountains of the seven continents in the world, among others.
These include:
• Aconcagua in 2006, South America (6 962m).
• Mount Elbrus in 2006, Europe’s highest in Russia (5 642m).
• Puncak Jaya (Carstensz Pyramid) in 2006, highest mountain in Indonesia (4 884m).
• Vinson Massif (Mount Vinson) in 2006, Antarctica (4 892m).
• Denali (Mount McKinley) in 2008, North America/Alaska (6 190m).
• The Matterhorn in 2008, straddling the border between Switzerland and Italy (4 478m).
• Mont Blanc in 2012, Western Europe (4 809m).
• Mount Kenya in 2012, highest mountain in Kenya (5 199 m).
• Rwenzori Mountains in 2014, on the border between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (5 109m).
• Lenin Peak in 2014, on the border of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan (7 134m).
To date, Sibusiso has climbed and summited Mount Kilimanjaro 27 times.
“All the climbing expeditions have been amazing and I am very humbled to have had the opportunity to explore these natural giants,” he said.
“They have taught me a lot about myself and life.”
The Lakefield Social Club enjoyed the motivational talk. At the end of it all, they wished him all the best for his journey ahead.
COMPETITION!
Are you a mountaineer? Do you enjoy being outside or peaking at some of the highest mountains in the world?
Maybe you don’t enjoy taking part in outdoor activities but you do enjoy reading about them?
Either way, this could be a competition for you!
Once you are done reading the article about Sibusiso’s journey, answer the below questions and the first three people to answer the questions and get them correct will win a free copy of Sibusiso’s book called To the Top from Nowhere.
Once the winners have been calculated, they will be called to our offices in Boksburg for a photo opportunity and to collect their prize.
Questions:
• Where is Sibusiso originally from?
• What year did Sibusiso first reach the Everest summit?
• What club did Sibusiso come to talk to in Benoni?
Once you have your answers, email them through to jemmap@caxton.co.za
Winners will be contacted telephonically.
