Sat Bains: Everest didn't want me there

He had to abandon his Guiness World Record attempt for the highest dinner party due to altitude sickness but Sat Bains says it saved his life after the devastating earthquake which hit Nepal days later. The two-Michelin star chef is now back in the UK and is even more determined to raise funds for Community Action Nepal than ever before. 

"One thing that I've learnt is that the mountain doesn't want us there," explained Sat. "She is the most amazing, powerful thing I've ever seen in my life. You can feel it moving and you don't realise until you are at the foot of the Base Camp how big Mount Everest is.

"All the Sherpas call her Mother Earth and you have to have a ceremony to ask to put your foot on her and you have to be accepted -  I feel I wasn't accepted and she didn't want anyone on her."

While at Base Camp Sat was diagnosed with the full symptoms of High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE) which can be life-threatening, and he began his descent with oxygen to the hospital at Kathmandu last week. Despite having to make the decision to go home the chef was still happy he tried.

He said: "I wasn't disappointed I didn't get to the top, which sounds strange! I was disappointed I couldn't make the dinner but I knew I had given it my best.

"As soon as you come down from altitude you get cured from the edema naturally. I was in really good hands and I knew they had my best interests and my health at heart. I had the option to continue with the help of drugs and oxygen but it would have masked the symptoms so I would have put myself in serious danger, I also didn't want to split the team and stop them continuing so, I made the decision to go home."

It was just days after his descent that Nepal was hit by the tragic earthquake which is expected to have claimed 10,000 lives, Sat was still in Kathmandu when it happened but was unharmed.

"To see the earth move physically and the violence of it was mind blowing," explained Sat. "I've never seen anything like it, we were in a stronger building but everything around us was falling like a house of cards - it's something I won't forget for a long time."

He added: "I saw first hand the resilience of the Nepalese, they were all at work even though they had lost their homes and family members - it's phenomenal.

"People's houses were destroyed within seconds; to see the beautiful city coming in, how lush it was and the colourful atmosphere of the city - to experience it so grey,dusty and dull is unbelievable."

After experiencing altitude sickness and an earthquake, will Sat be attempting to climb Mount Everest again?

"It's just not for me," he said. "I've got more things to do in terms of the project and raising funds. I'm glad that I did it, I'm glad I was there because there was an option for me just  to do the food and send it but I'm glad I was part of the team and I can say first hand that I tried, I didn't succeed but fingers crossed we can now raise as much funds as we can.

"Before everything that has happened it was a bit of fun doing the world record attempt but now we can use our influence to raise money and get help out there."

He added: "It's so fitting that the charity we were raising funds for was Community Action Nepal, the charity that was part of last year's avalanche. It's even more important that we do more now and raise as much money as we can."

Sat spoke to the rest of the expedition team yesterday, they too abandoned the world record attempt after the earthquake. Four of them are still at Base Camp and the rest are at Advanced Base Camp. They are all heading down so Sat is hopeful they will be evacuated very soon.

*To continue supporting Community Action Nepal the charity which Sat and his team were raising funds for, visit his Just Giving page.

By Cara Pilkington

@canteencara