Climbing Your Way Up Ft. Samar Khan

Today I sit down with Samar Khan, the first ever Pakistani to cycle on the Roof of Africa. But this isn’t a conversation about big records and shiny medals. It’s about the slow, quiet process of building a life in adventure sports when you don’t fit the mold. Samar didn’t grow up in a sports family. She discovered movement almost by accident, and then she kept at it, facing everything from frostbite to the persistent hum of log kya kahenge. This is what it actually looks like to mountaineer through life.

The first solo flight

Samar tells me her spark ignites late. In university, she stumbles upon paragliding on social media and convinces herself to sign up for a course with the army. ‘That first solo flight changed everything,’ she says. ‘I realized how much time I had wasted, but now I just wanted to fly.’ That trip was her first time traveling alone. From there, she starts tinkering: hiking, cycling, slowly picking up skills. No formal training, just a stubborn curiosity.

Cycling where no one has

When Samar sets her sights on the third largest non-polar glacier, experts laugh. They tell her cycling on a glacier is impossible. She spends months researching, assembling a team, and eventually does it herself, carrying the bike on her back where she must. ‘It was four days of constant rain and freezing cold. I came back with frostbite, but I had done it.’ That ride, and the video she shares, breaks the internet in Pakistan. Suddenly she is invited everywhere, but the real victory is the quiet one: she proved to herself that she could.

What the mountains teach you

The outdoors, Samar says, teaches you things no classroom can. ‘You learn patience. You learn acceptance. You become so much more patient and broad-minded.’ She describes how, in a group trek, the men often give up first while she powers on because her training is her own. ‘I am not afraid anymore. I am not scared of being a girl alone on a road with ten men around. That confidence comes from the mountain.‘

Navigating a world that isn’t ready

But the world beyond the peaks is often unkind. Samar shares openly about the harassment she faces: ‘Once a man on a motorcycle tried to grab me while I was cycling. I chased him, but I couldn’t catch him.’ She posted the video, and her inbox flooded with messages from other girls saying the same happens to them. She also speaks about the societal narrative: ‘People tell me, beta bohot bahadur ho, achha kaam karti ho, lekin apni beti ko hum kabhi akele safar karne nahi denge.’ The praise never translates into permission. And then there’s the marriage pressure: ‘By 25, they say, shaadi nahi ki to you’ve lost everything. They think a woman who cycles alone in pants and a sports bra must be sleeping around. These comments come, and you have to be mentally prepared.’ She doesn’t sugarcoat it; she wants young women to know the real challenges, so they can guard themselves.

The small things that keep you safe

Practicality is Samar’s love language. Her advice for anyone stepping into the outdoors: always carry dates, water, a power bank, and a paper map. ‘You never know when the network will fail. I keep extra clothes, helmet, knee and elbow pads. A small cap for the sun.’ She details the bikes: a mountain bike for rough terrain, a road bike for smooth tarmac, and a hybrid for broken roads. And she stresses nutrition and fitness: ‘Start small. Even 30 minutes of cycling or exercise a day can change your lifestyle.’ She learned everything from international athletes and online programs, because in Pakistan, adventure sports coaching is rare. Now she runs her own camps, the Samar Summer Camp, to pass on that knowledge to kids and young women.

A life beyond ‘log kya kahenge’

Samar’s story isn’t just about cycling glaciers. It’s a quiet rebellion against the idea that a woman’s timeline belongs to others. She says, ‘I don’t care anymore what people think. I know I am doing something meaningful. My family now supports me because they see I won’t stop.’ She is training in snowboarding, climbing, and wants to represent Pakistan in international adventure sports platforms. She believes that adventure can channel youth energy away from negativity. ‘You don’t need to be a daredevil. You need patience, preparation, and the patience to wait for the right moment.’

This conversation isn’t a glossy highlight reel. It’s a real, messy, beautiful map for any Desi woman who wants to step outside the lines. Samar doesn’t promise ease. She promises that if you let yourself grow, the mountain will meet you with more than you ever imagined. Carry your dates, wear your helmet, and go anyway.