Climb your mountain, change theirs
Summit Challenge is the Himalayan Trust's climbing event. Every March, hundreds of New Zealanders set a vertical goal and walk, run or bike their way up to it. Every metre raises money for education in the Himalayas.
Ten years, and counting
Summit Challenge has been running for over a decade. In that time it has grown from a small group of climbers into one of the Trust's biggest community efforts.
Years of climbing for the Himalayas
Raised for the Trust's work in Nepal
Fundraisers and donors who have taken part
Vertical metres climbed
Every dollar of that came from someone choosing to climb, and someone else choosing to support them. That is the whole idea, repeated thousands of times over. In 2026 that idea went further than it has in years: climbers raised an average of $427 each, up over 30% on the year before, and 20 of them raised more than $1,000 each.
Why a climbing challenge
Sir Edmund Hillary's name is associated with the world's highest mountain, but he always said his proudest work was not the summit. It was what came after: the schools, the hospitals and the projects he helped build alongside the Sherpa communities who became his lifelong friends.
Summit Challenge carries that spirit into your own backyard. You do not need to fly to Nepal or rope up on a ridgeline. You set yourself a climb that means something, and you let it stand for the families on the other side of the world who climb every day, sometimes two hours uphill just to reach a classroom. It is adventure with a purpose, which is exactly the ground the Trust was built on.
Where your climb goes
Every dollar raised through Summit Challenge supports education in remote Himalayan communities, continuing the work Sir Ed started with a single school at Khumjung. For many students in Solukhumbu, the walk to school is its own climb: two hours each way, hundreds of metres of elevation, before the first lesson begins. Your effort helps make that walk worth it.
Stationery for one child for a year
Teaching materials for one teacher for a year
Equipment upgrades for one classroom
Across ten years, that has added up to schools built and strengthened, teachers trained, scholarships funded, and classrooms kept stocked and running. It is practical, measurable work, and you can see exactly what your climb pays for.
How it works
Summit Challenge is built to be flexible. You do not need to be an athlete. You just need a willingness to give it a go.
Pick your goal
Create your page and choose a vertical-metres goal that suits you, from a local hill to the full height of Everest. It is free and takes a couple of minutes.
Take on your summit
Across March, from the 1st to the 31st, walk, run, hike or bike uphill to build your metres. Small chunks or big days out, your call.
Make an impact
Share your page with friends, family and workmates, and turn your climb into real support for education in the Himalayas.
Vertical metres measure how much you climb, not how far you go. Walk up a hill that rises 100 metres and you have climbed 100 vertical metres, however long the path. You build your total across as many days and activities as you like.
People take it on as walkers, runners and bikers, as teams, and as whole workplaces. However you move, the metres count the same.
Join the next climb
Whether you are chasing a personal best or just want a reason to get outside, there is a place for you on Summit Challenge. Set your goal, start climbing, and add your metres to ten years of New Zealanders doing the same.
