October 2006:
Shyam Menon vividly remembers that day and moment.
The cardiologist at a hospital here in Kuwait had a grave expression on his face when he had looked at Shyam and said: ‘Your right coronary artery is 100% blocked. There are other complications too. You must get a bypass surgery done immediately’.
He could not walk for even 10 meters.
Cut!!!!
Scene 2 in June 2023:
56-year-old Shyam Menon is packing his bag; sorting out his gear for his next climb on the 1,110-meter-tall mountain --- Kjerag in Norway.
Those frequenting the Salmiya garden would not have missed this always pleasantly smiling man, exuding exuberance, even as he---with his load of 14kgs on his back, is sprinting or walking in the garden for about 90 minutes twice a day just before a trek. On normal days, his target is about 25,000 to 30,000 steps (17-18 kms) daily and taking the stairs in the building up to 7 floors thrice in the morning and thrice in the evening.
Born in Thrissur and raised in Surat, Shyam did his engineering from NIT, Surat before coming to Kuwait in 1999. He worked in Ooredoo till 2017. Shyam Menon is also a cricket and badminton enthusiast and had actively played for his company in Kuwait.
In 2006, one fine day, while on vacation in India, he felt excruciating pain in the jaws and then in the chest. He could not even take a few steps. The pain subsided after some initial treatment but intermittently, he experienced severe bouts of chest pain. He consulted many doctors in India and in Kuwait and the opinions were divided. He returned to Kuwait and one day, the pain and the breathing became so difficult that a doctor here advised him to proceed with a bypass surgery immediately or face dire consequences.
Shyam decided to trust alternative medicine and went to Kerala for Ayurvedic treatment. For someone who was advised and warned to not walk for 10 meters, it was a brave decision to not seriously heed the warnings; to trust alternative medicine. Within a week, he was able to walk 1km and as the treatment proceeded, he was back to his normal activities and much more. He resumed playing cricket soon.
Life, however, had other gigantic plans for him!
Says he: “Had never imagined that trekking on mountains was going to be my elixir for life. . The year was 2016. I decided to go with myself on a holiday. Someone suggested that Norway was a fantastic place and I booked my tickets and reached Norway. There I happened to look at a poster of Trolltunga (the tongue of the mountains) and I felt so drawn towards it that I decided to go there.
I had neither planned and nor was prepared. I just asked the locals if it was a ‘possible’ climb for an amateur like me. they said I could do it and I decided to do it. It was a very challenging hike of at least 11 kms one way on rough terrain. There are no shelters on the hike route and no places to buy supplies. The round-trip hike is 27 kms with an ascent of almost 800 meters. I experienced such joy; such a rush of adrenaline that I knew this was my calling.”
There was no looking back for him. There was no end to the peaks and summits that were beautiful and beckoning. He started trekking in the Alps, Norway, Germany, France and NZ. Once on a flight from Cochin to Mumbai, he met someone who told him that he ought to go to the Himalayas. He was told that the Devbhoomi would touch his soul like no other place would!
Shyam decided to take up the Valley of Flowers trek and the greenery of the Himalayas so astounded him that he felt a complete contrast when immediately after that he did the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) trek—a 170 km trekking trail through France, Italy and Switzerland. The Alps were dry and barren compared to the Himalayas. Thereafter, he just kept going back to the Himalayas.
He hasn’t taken any professional training to climb these fascinating peaks. He has made his own decisions and preparations and of course, the guides are there too. Since he cannot stay in India for more than 120 days, (to maintain the NRI status) he does 4-5 back-to-back treks in that short period, while also taking care of other personal commitments in India.
Shyam has completed over 13 treks in the Himalayas and over 9 worldwide. He initially trekked on shorter and relatively not-so-difficult treks and gradually went on from the 11k treks to the higher altitude treks at 17k ft. As the higher peaks beckoned him, he decided to go to Nepal and started climbing the 20k treks.
When he starts narrating the tales of his trails ‘n treks, the listener is spellbound. There are countless stories he has in his kitty of the warm and loving people he has met; of the intelligent guides he has had; of the silly or careful actions of his fellow-climbers; of the threats posed by bears or the wear ‘n tear unleashed by the unpredictable weather and of the looming threat of AMS (acute mountain sickness) etc etc. He says that the most difficult and challenging climbs have been in the Himalayas from Nepal side.
“Indian peaks are not that high or difficult (at least among the ones I have done). Till 8,000 ft there is no issue. Thereafter, oxygen starts depleting. After 11,000 ft, there is no life. There are no trees or even snakes. After 14,000 ft, it gets completely barren but above 20,000 ft, one begins to gasp for air very badly. In Nepal, the climbs are mostly above 21,000 feet. I did one trek this year in Nepal and prior to that, I almost practiced climbing 100 floors daily here.”
He is glad though that he has never had to abort his climb or trek till date due to any exigency.
Lovingly nicknamed as ,Mr Adventurer by a few residents of the building in which he stays, and who see him always with a spring in his steps and a smile on his face, he is passion for adventure personified. He observes keenly and this simple fact oozes from all the accounts that he gives of his journeys and treks. He appreciates divine natural beauty as much as he loves challenges and most important, notices and appreciates the simplicity in people he meets on his journeys.
When asked as to what are usually his emotions when he reaches the peaks, he thinks for a moment and replies: “the paramount feeling while climbing is that ‘you are on your own’. The mountains are so quiet that the only sound is of your heart beating. The focus is all the time on one’s breathing. Every step and every breath matters. In that rhythm, there is meditation. Once you reach the peak, there is exhaustion. For a few moments, one tries to catch one’s breath. Thereafter, you gradually look at the surroundings and drink all the beauty that it envelops. And then a sense of the divine wonder fills your heart, even as you smile knowing that you have done something worthwhile!!”
This adventure-enthusiast has paraglided from the world's top 3 destinations: Chamonix in Austria; Oludenis in Turkey, and Queenstown in NZ and has also skydived in NZ.
“I do not feel fear because I am grateful that after the health-scare, all of this is bonus. Till I can, I shall go and climb mountains. When I can’t, whether due to my knees giving up or any other reasons, I shall simply tour different places. I have been to 41 countries till date, and want to see at least a hundred countries…,” says this adventurer with a prized smile.
Where and when there is such passion---the challenges seem tiny: the icy cold winds or waters; the sleep or food or lack of them both; the funds or shortage of them and the dangers on cliffs and summits---nothing matters! And then there is no fatigue; no regrets and fears about one’s life or even a trace of cynicism towards the world.
In our current times, when we lose heart very easily or get aggressive easily; when we cry easily over life being a lackluster affair, and when we cluelessly search for a passion that identifies us; gives us unconditional joy for long---the interesting accounts of the treks of Shyam Menon infect the listeners too with a thrill!
It is not just about the desire to visit countries and climb peaks that places Shyam Menon in a different league than the million others who too harbor similar desires and the million others who actually travel far and wide. There is something about his indomitable spirit; about the undaunting will of his that he chose to climb peaks and not wilt in self-pity and lament over health issues. It is all about the upbeat aura that he has which is infectious and which inspires…