Meet seven-year-old Advait, the youngest Indian to have language certification in Mandarin. But that’s not his only wow factor. The young adventurer went on a 12-day trek with his mother Payal from Lukla, Nepal, to Everest Base Camp, where the tricky Khumbu Icefall, which is 17,593 ft above sea level, is located.

For Payal, a fitness enthusiast and mother of two, treks had always been a part of her life and it became even more exciting for her when she found a companion for her travels- her son, Advait.

“Initially, only I was going to go for this trek, but one day, while I was on a call with the expedition leader, Advait came into the room and overheard me talking about it. He has always been an inquisitive child and he instantly asked me if he could accompany us. He promised he would train really hard for it, so I said yes,” Payal said.

And thus they both began training for the Everest base camp. For Payal, the training comprised a grueling combination of exercises, regular workouts at the gym, climbing stairs, aerobics and weight training.

“I did three hours of training every day for three months. I would do one hour of swimming or Parkour, play football or skate for an hour, and in the last hour I would climb up and down about a 100 flights of stairs,” Advait said.

As both had a healthy diet, they didn’t really have to make any changes there. “I’ve always eaten healthy—I have never even tasted processed sugar. My diet before the trek included a lot of proteins and rice, millet, quinoa, and amaranth,” said Advait.

Though they had trained well for the upcoming difficulties they would face while trekking, there were moments when, being a mother, Payal wanted to turn back.

“At one point during the trek, Advait’s heart rate fell drastically. I’ve never given my kids any medicine so far, not even Paracetamol. During high-altitude treks, everyone is advised to take this tablet called Dimox. But as Advait had never taken medicine before, he wasn’t ready for it. So we decided that if by lunchtime his stats didn’t stabilize, we would call a chopper and bring him down. That was one moment when everyone in our trek group was worried,” she recalled.

But despite the difficulties both brought back memories.

“The other trekkers called me ‘kancha’ and took selfies with me, saying I was an inspiration to their kids and grandkids back home. I remember one day, I was answering nature’s call and I looked up and right above me, I saw a Himalayan Barking Deer standing on a small cliff. I was so thrilled by this close encounter!” said Advait.

Well, though this trek is over now, Advait is already planning his next expedition with his mommy. “I love rock climbing, trekking, surfing, skiing, skateboarding and playing football and cricket. I also play the violin, piano and tabla. We’re also planning our next expedition. We’d like to trek Mt Elbrus in Europe and Mt Kilimanjaro in Africa next. Apparently, you can ski your way down Kilimanjaro and we’re very excited about that,” he said.

H/T: Femina