Filipina mountaineer to scale the Seven Summits

Carina Dayondon is not your typical mountain climber. Born and raised in the town of San Carlos, Bukidnon — Dayondon is an elite mountaineer poised to become the first Filipina to scale the “Seven Summits”. These are the highest peaks on each of the world’s continents and regarded as the ultimate mountaineering accomplishment.

Only a few hundred mountaineers across the globe have successfully completed the Seven Summits, and few of them are female. The 40-year-old Philippine Coast Guard lieutenant, however, is determined to complete what she calls her life’s mission. She sets to attempt her seventh and final summit in December.

Female strength

Dayondon’s interest in mountain climbing grew when she joined a mountaineering club in college. This eventually led her to sportclimbing, and became part of the National Sportclimbing team from 1999 to 2001.

As a member of the national team, she competed internationally, including at the Asian championships in Hua Shan, Xian, China.

Nevertheless, she didn’t stop at sportclimbing. She also joined adventure races, a team sport where participants bike, swim, kayak, run, etc. The events lasts three to four days non-stop, covering a total distance of 600 kilometers.

This was when Dayondon was approached by an organizer to join the 2006 Philippine Everest Team, the first team to represent the country. Their attempt was successful, and Dayondon got another chance to climb Everest the following year — this time in a three-person female team that would traverse the world’s highest peak.

“We went up the north side and down the south side,” said Dayondon, who summitted with Noelle Wenceslao and Janet Belarmino.

“Four days to the summit and three days to descend […] On Everest, I just felt triumphant. It was pure joy.”

“It was the first traverse of Everest by women; not bad for a country without snow,” said Art Valdez, leader of the 2006 Philippine Everest team.

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Journey to the Seven Summits

After her first Everest climb in 2006, Dayondon traveled to Alaska, in the United States, to climb Denali. The highest peak in North America was part of her training. It took the team six attempts to complete their ascent.

Her third summit – Mount Elbrus (5,642 metres), in the Caucasus mountain range, in southern Russia – followed in 2013. Then, in 2014, she scaled Mount Kosciuszko (2,228 metres) in Australia.

Dayondon reached her fifth summit in 2015 – Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 metres) in Tanzania. It was after this trip that Dayondon received tragic news. Her sister Heidi was back in the hospital due to cancer. In December that year, Heidi passed away.

“Heidi was my biggest fan, and when she died I was determined to complete the seven summits,” said Dayondon.

It took two attempts for Dayondon to conquer summit six – Aconcagua (6,962 metres) in the Argentinian Andes. Her second, successful attempt happened in January this year.

And in December, she will make her bid for her seventh and final summit – Mount Vinson (4,892 metres) in Antarctica – which will surely be an especially expensive undertaking. The project is 30 days long and requires long-haul airfares plus 17-day round trips from the city of Punta Arenas, in the Patagonian region of Chile, via special flights to and from Antarctica.

With all these considered, it’s unlikely that Dayondon would still have the budget for new gear to replace her 12-year-old kit. Nevertheless, she has memories of Heidi, her Christian faith, and incredible will power to drive her to the top.

Dayondon admitted that reaching the summit will be an “emotional moment after all the hard work, the waiting, the patience”. And although it’s not clear what could be gained from conquering the Seven Summits, she said that its value lies beyond the material.

“We all have our own Everest in our lives. I want to show we can all achieve it,” she said.