A toddler aged just two years old is believed to be the youngest person to reach Mount Everest’s base camp after his parents decided to take him “on a whim”.
Carter Dallas, from Glasgow, Scotland, arrived at the site at 17,598 feet above sea level on October 25th on his father’s back.
He is two years younger than the youngest known arrival at the camp so far, a 4-year-old from the Czech Republic.
Carter’s father, Ross Dallas, said he and his wife, Jade, “basically did it on a whim” during their year-long trip across Asia, buying jackets and sleeping bags for the trek. He said he bought some.
“We started the trek within 24 hours of arriving in Kathmandu,” said the father and wife, who wore regular sneakers for the adventure.
“Carter coped better than me or his mother,” Dallas said, adding that doctors who examined the two-year-old son throughout the trek were “astonished” at his condition.
“We both got mild altitude sickness, but he was totally fine!”
Dallas, a 35-year-old former senior sales manager, said she is well prepared because she and her family regularly practice breathing exercises and take ice baths.
The Dallas couple rented out their home in Scotland and embarked on a year-long trip in August 2023. So far, he has visited India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Malaysia.
They are currently in the jungles of Khao Sok, Thailand, and the next stop on their itinerary is Bangkok, then Cambodia.
Dallas said her son has picked up some foreign phrases and developed a taste for exotic fish curry and chicken foot dishes.
“I hope we can inspire others to go out and see the real world,” the father-of-one said.
