KATHMANDU: Three young Nepali mountaineers have successfully summitted Mt Denali (6,190 m), making them to the top of North America via the West Rib route as none of Nepali climbers had been there before. Nima Tenji Sherpa, Tashi Sherpa and Tenzeeng Sherpa became the first Nepali climbers to successfully climb the mountain from the West Rib route this summer, according to Talkeetna Ranger Association in Alaska of the United States, which certifies the climbing bids on Mt Denali. “We climbed the peak on June 22,” Nima Tenji who leads the ‘Sherpas on Cassin expedition’ said, after descending the summit. According to him, the team had reached Denali National Park on June 10 to start climbing activities. “The team was also accompanied by other Nepalis (Beyond the Himalayas) who were climbing via normal route (West Buttress),” he added. “Earlier, we had a plan to summit the mountain for the first time via its Cassin Ridge (Japanese Couloir); but despite several attempts, it was foiled due to bad weather,” Tashi Sherpa, a member of the expedition shared. According to him, considering the high risk of avalanche due to incessant snowfall, the team leader Nima Tenji decided to give up the attempt to cross the northeast fork on Cassin Ridge for the safety of the team members. “We finally made up a mind to climb the West Rib as none of Nepali climbers had been on that route before,” he shared. After a long way of climbing up and struggling with rusty weather for over nine hours, the team first got up to 4,800 m, then successfully made it to the top of North America at 10:00 pm local time, Nima Tenji said. After descending safely to the Camp III via the West Buttress route, Nima Tenji and Tashi also made the second summit via the West Buttress with the Beyond the Himalayas team. “At least eight Nepali climbers made it to the summit of Mt Denali this summer from both teams,” he added. All three climbers are trained and certified mountain guides in Nepal. Earlier, Nima Tenji and Tashi along with a fellow mountaineer Dawa Gyalje Sherpa had also summitted Mt Langdak (6,220 m), Mt Raungsiyar (6,224 m) and Mt Thakar-Go East (6,152 m) becoming the first ever Nepali team to successfully climb the Rolwaling peaks in the Rolwaling Valley of Dolakha district bordering Tibet, exploring the new adventure opportunities for the world climbers in Nepal’s Himalayan regions in the last autumn season.