A nurse with a passion for mountains has set her sights on the summit of Everest.
Melek Aktaş, who lives in Bodrum and works at a private hospital, is captivated by her passion for summits. Having summited Ağrı three weeks ago, Aktaş has set her sights high.
“Mountaineering is my passion, and summits have become my goal,” Aktaş said. “I’ve become obsessed with summits. Next up are Lenin Peak in Russia and Everest.”
The 48-year-old mother of two, has reached the top of mountaineering, a sport she started 10 years ago. Aktaş is also a licensed athlete of Munzur Zirve Mountaineering Sports Club, and has successfully completed the Alidoruk, Süphan, Kaçkar Aziz Abdal, Sultandağı and Akbaba summits in Türkiye.
Aktaş, who climbed Ağrı with a group of 15 mountaineers at the end of June and reached the summit, said that the sport he has been doing for years has become his passion.
Aktaş, who stated she narrowly escaped death on the edge of a cliff when a rock broke loose during his descent in foggy weather from the summit of Mount Süphan last year, said, “I narrowly escaped death thanks to experience. Sensing danger three seconds beforehand and taking precautions paid off. Call it adrenaline, excitement, or whatever, even narrowly avoiding death couldn’t deter me from this passion.”
Aktaş stated that she continues her training whenever she can from her nursing job and that she wants to reach Mount Lenin in Russia and summit Mount Everest as her new goals. She said, “If we don’t go up a mountain for three to five months, if we don’t summit, we get sick. I’ve become addicted to summits.
“Because when you reach the summit, what you see when you look down from above is impossible to see from below. That’s why it’s becoming a passion.
“We’ve already started preparations for the Lenin and Everest summits next year. God willing, I’ll be planting the Turkish flag on those peaks as well.”
Melek Aktaş noted that women’s interest in mountaineering and summit sports is growing but hasn’t yet reached a sufficient level. She said: “Currently, the number of female athletes in mountaineering doesn’t exceed 10-15%. Women who are interested in this sport can contact their nearest nature sports and mountaineering club. Anyone, from 7 to 70, can participate in this sport if they receive training.”