It’s no small feat to summit a mountain. Months of preparation and planning. Weeks spent training body and mind. Hours spent waiting for the perfect weather conditions. And what does it feel like to achieve this goal? Here’s reaction from five summiteers.  

Peter McFadyen, Business consultant, 55

My first mountain was a double: Mt Meru, and then Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania in 14 days. Standing on the summit with the crew I had walked up with brought a real sense of peace; that everything was going to be okay in my life. It is the calmest and most capable I have ever felt. I love the sense of perspective. You know if you can endure the fear and the pain and then get to experience the wonder of standing on a summit – well then, you can do anything you set your mind to. It’s a life-changing gift you have given yourself.

Nathalie Huygelberghs, Surgical nurse, 32

It’s very rewarding to summit mountains! You feel confident, strong, free and happy on top! The most rewarding for me was Taranaki Maunga. It’s an amazing mountain and also a bit scary.

Deborah Hunter, Landscape gardener and Cubs leader, 49

I feel like I’ve achieved something and I love that there are more peaks to do. My first summit was Te Aroha with my eldest when we were training for the Tongariro Alpine Crossing.

Karan Khurmi, IT, 30

How the hell am I going to get down from here?

Brendon Gilchrist, Postie, 41

It’s never a feeling of summiting; it’s the whole journey that gets you there, the people you share moments with, the look on people’s faces seeing something they conquered as well as the descent, which is still exciting as you think about that moment you shared on top of a snowy mountain with friends.