Canberra man Kyle Williams becomes first to climb Australia's 26 highest ... - ABC Online

Posted November 05, 2013 18:52:51

A public servant from Canberra has become the first person to climb Australia's 26 highest mountains in one non-stop expedition.

On his third attempt, Kyle Williams reached the top of all 26 mountains over 2,000 metres high and stretching more than 130 kilometres along trails and roads in the Snowy Mountains in New South Wales.

The 37-year-old achieved that feat in 48 hours battling wind, rain and snow, including the northern most peak of Mount Jagungal, the highest peak at Mount Kosciuszko and finishing at Perisher Mountain.

But Mr Williams says after all that he is feeling surprisingly well considering he endured 48 hours of continuous climbing.

"It was without a doubt the hardest thing I've ever done physically or mentally. Forty-Eight hours of continuous activity, sleep deprivation, going through the extremes of heat, snow, cold, rain - even limited amounts of food with gels, bars and rations," he said.

"I pushed myself harder than I ever thought possible."

He came up with the idea after hiking Australia's highest 10 peaks five years ago in the National Park in the Snowy Mountains.

"After I achieved that, I decided I needed something a little bit bigger," he said.

"I've actually attempted it twice before and didn't succeed. And they were very humbling experiences to go through."

With the temperature at minus six degrees Celcius, Mr Williams says he reached the home stretch at 130am at Charlotte's Pass with the help of supporters.

"It was snowing, it was cold and dark. But to their credit they were out there cheering me on and supporting me," he said. "You just can't do it on your own."

He admitted to suffering some hallucinations and afterwards some soreness and stiffness but credited his climbing team for keeping him moving throughout the journey despite his fatigue.

"As they say, pain is temporary and pride lasts forever," he said.

As for the immediate future, Mr Williams plans a well deserved break.

But he has a message for all those trying to achieve seemingly impossible goals.

"When you've got a dream or you've got a goal, when you're really focusing and you never give up, and you get good people around you that support you, you really can achieve greatness."

"You've just got to put your mind to it and just never ever give up."

Topics: winter-sports, sport, event, people, orienteering, nsw