Wilco and Cas climb 4 Smiling Faces

Our unsurpassed ambassador Wilco van Rooijen and his climbing buddy Cas van de Gevel have done something special again this year. Very special. Unique even. They climbt the world’s third-highest mountain, the Kanchenjunga ( 8586 meters, Sikkim, Nepal) as ‘cleanly’ as possible. 

In 2018, Wilco and Cas made a first attempt to conquer this Himalayan giant. They didn’t make it all the way to the top. This year they are going for a rematch.

Climbing a 8000+ mountain is always a very special achievement, but Wilco and Cas do it completely differently than other mountaineers. As always, they won’t use additional artificial oxygen. Their expedition started with 3 weeks acclimatization weeks on the Mera Peak (6466m, Nepal) and from there they went directly to Kanchenjunga base camp (5100m). With 2 tents, a bivouac and without Sherpa’s they hoped to reach the top. 

With this special expedition, Wilco and Cas drew attention and collect money for three beautiful, sustainable goals, of which 4 Smiling Faces is one. 🙏🏽 We are very honoured that Wilco and Cas are thinking of us – and especially of the children in Nepal – again in this expedition, just like in 2018. We’ll use the proceeds to make study grants possible for young people without any safety net, so that they can have a bright future. Will you help, just like Wilco and Cas?

Wilco, Cas, top achieved or not, we think you’re cool anyway!