Nepali climber sets record by climbing 14 highest peaks twice

Summiting the world's 8,000-metre mountains is the ultimate bucket list dream for ambitious climbers, a feat managed by fewer than 50 people, and Sanu Sherpa is the first to do it twice.

The Nepali climber's summit of Pakistan's Gasherbrum II (8,035 metres) last month completed his unprecedented double ascent of the eight-thousanders -- as the 14 peaks are collectively known.

As usual, he was guiding a paying customer -- this time a Japanese climber -- to the top.

"What I have done is not something that is impossible," the 47-year-old said. "I was just doing my job."

Sherpa, who began working in mountaineering as a porter and kitchen aid, climbed his first 8,000-metre peak in 2006 while guiding a South Korean group to the summit of Cho Oyu.

Nepali guides -- usually ethnic Sherpas from the valleys around Everest -- are considered the backbone of the climbing industry in the Himalayas. They carry the majority of equipment and food, fix ropes and repair ladders.

It can be a perilous occupation. Altitudes above 8,000m are considered a "death zone", where there is not enough oxygen in the air to sustain human life for long periods.

On average, 14 people die every year out of the eight eight-thousanders in Nepal. About a third of deaths on Everest are Nepali guides and porters, underscoring the risks they take to enable their clients' dreams of reaching the world's highest peaks.