Mitchell Hutchcraft : The Longest Climb to Everest
Born in the flatlands of Cambridge shire, UK, Mitch’s early fascination with mountains and wildlife seemed paradoxical.
The absence of natural elevations in his homeland only fueled his imagination, leading him to dream of towering peaks and untamed wilderness.
Early Beginnings
Mitch’s adventurous spirit emerged early in life. After his family relocated to Cyprus during his youth, he set his sights on Africa.
At just 16, he Commenced on a solo expedition to Tanzania and successfully summited Mount Kilimanjaro, marking him as one of the mountain’s youngest climbers. This achievement cemented his passion for exploration and high-altitude challenges.
His love for nature wasn’t just recreational. Mitch pursued formal education in zoology and animal care, earning advanced diplomas that led him to work in various zoos and wildlife establishments.
All the while, he remained captivated by tales of mountaineering pioneers like Mallory and Irvine, whose Everest expeditions he had read about since childhood.
At 20, Mitch’s life took a significant turn when he moved to Australia. However, a family crisis soon brought him back to the UK, where he faced the profound loss of his father.
This period of grief became transformative for his resilience. Honoring a shared dream with his father, Mitch enlisted in the Royal Marines at age 21 in 2016.
Military Career and First Expeditions
During his five-year military career, Hutchcraft served with distinction at 45 Commando, completing specialized training as a Heavy Weapons specialist.
His service included deployments across diverse environments including the United States, Arctic Circle, and Eastern Europe, as well as participation in UK migrant rescue missions in the Mediterranean.
The discipline, mental fortitude, and physical conditioning gained during his military service would become the bedrock for his future expeditions.
When he left the Royal Marines in 2021, he quickly Shifted to his first major expedition challenge – rowing across the Atlantic Ocean.
Joining a four-person team of fellow veterans aboard a vessel named “Atlantic Dagger,” Hutchcraft faced a grueling challenge of rowing a seven-meter boat across approximately 3,000 miles of open ocean.
The team encountered extreme conditions including isolation, cramped living quarters, and potential 30-foot waves.
Before their departure, Hutchcraft explained the magnitude of the challenge:
The challenges are many. Mainly being isolated on a tiny boat in very close quarters and having to deal with storms and potentially 30ft waves…. Keeping motivated is the biggest challenge and navigating ourself across the ocean effectively.
According to Ocean Rowing Society records, the team achieved an average speed of 2.26 knots and covered 2,607 nautical miles.
The expedition raised funds for the Royal Marines Charity (RMC) and provided Hutchcraft with crucial experience in managing long, physically demanding journeys.
Following this achievement, Hutchcraft completed a 5,000-kilometer solo cycle across the United States, further testing his endurance and determination while refining his approach to extended expeditions.
Project Limitless: The World’s Longest Triathlon
In September 2024, Hutchcraft Commenced on his most ambitious undertaking yet: “Project Limitless,” an unprecedented 12,000-kilometer triathlon from England to the summit of Mount Everest.
The journey would take him across 17 countries, combining swimming, cycling, running, and climbing in one continuous human-powered effort.
The expedition wasn’t just about pushing physical boundaries.
Hutchcraft designed it as a fundraising mission for SAVSIM, a charity that provides animal-assisted therapy for veterans struggling with mental health issues and supports wildlife conservation efforts.
Throughout his journey, he would visit and highlight conservation projects, including elephant rescue centers and wildlife sanctuaries.
Stage 1: Swimming the English Channel
On September 15, 2024, Hutchcraft began his journey by swimming across the English Channel. This 34-kilometer swim between England and France is considered one of the world’s most challenging open-water swims due to cold temperatures, unpredictable currents, shipping traffic, and jellyfish.
“Five times more people have climbed Everest than have ever swam across the English Channel,” Hutchcraft noted, underlining the difficulty of even his starting point.
The swim took him 18 hours and 19 minutes to complete – what he would later describe as “the hardest day of my life.” The physical toll was immediate and severe.
After finishing, he was sick for a week, suffering from extreme salt water exposure that left his tongue “falling apart” and his body depleted. During the final five hours of swimming, by his own admission, he was “just trying not to drown.”
Stage 2: Cycling from France to India
After recovering from the Channel swim, Hutchcraft began the cycling phase of his journey – an approximately 12,000-kilometer ride from France across Europe, the Middle East, and into South Asia.
The cycling leg quickly became a master class in overcoming unexpected obstacles. In Serbia, he had a gun pulled on him. In Turkey, he survived a harrowing car accident when his support truck was hit by another vehicle traveling at about 90 km/h, spinning their vehicle around.
“If I was sat on this other side of the truck, it would have been game over,” he recalled.
Visa complications added thousands of kilometers to his journey. When his planned route through Iran became impossible due to denied visas, Hutchcraft was forced to reroute through Iraq, Kuwait, and across the Arabian Peninsula – a 3,000-kilometer detour across the second-largest desert in the world.
Even with high-level diplomatic assistance – meetings with ambassadors from India and Pakistan and ministers in Oman – crossing borders remained extraordinarily complicated.
At one point, Hutchcraft cycled all the way to the Wagah border between Pakistan and India, only to discover that his electronic visa wouldn’t be accepted for crossing.
He had to cycle to the border gate, then fly for nine hours to Amritsar, effectively traveling 4,000 kilometers to cross what would have been just 40 kilometers directly.
In Pakistan, he cycled 1,500 kilometers while being escorted by armed police, challenging not just physical terrain but complex geopolitical landscapes.
The mountainous sections alone were equivalent to climbing Mount Everest twice in vertical ascent.
Stage 3: Running from West Bengal to Kathmandu
After completing his epic cycling journey to India, Hutchcraft transitioned to the third stage – running 900 kilometers from Digha in West Bengal to Kathmandu, Nepal.
This segment followed immediately after 12,000 kilometers of cycling, with no extended recovery period between phases.
The run took him through varied terrain, from coastal lowlands to increasingly elevated Himalayan foothills.
By February 2025, Hutchcraft had completed this phase, arriving in Kathmandu after 170 days of combined cycling and running since his Channel swim.
Mitchell Hutchcraft : The Longest Climb to Everest
Final Stage: The Everest Climb
As of March 2025, Hutchcraft is in Kathmandu preparing for the final phase of his journey.
a trek from the British Embassy in Kathmandu to Everest Base Camp, deliberately mirroring the route taken by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay during the historic first successful ascent in 1953. From Base Camp, he will attempt to summit the world’s highest peak at 8,849 meters.
This final stage is timed to coincide with the spring climbing window in April-May 2025, when weather conditions on Everest offer the best chance for a successful summit bid.
If completed, it will mark not just the conclusion of an extraordinary physical achievement but what Hutchcraft calls “the longest climb of Mount Everest in history and the first triathlon to the top of the world.”
Overcoming Adversity
What makes Hutchcraft’s journey even more remarkable are the personal challenges he has overcome. Despite having undergone two knee surgeries, he refused to let physical limitations deter him from his goals.
His approach to these seemingly insurmountable obstacles reveals his philosophy toward achievement.
“I know my capabilities and I know that [it’s possible] if you break it down and compartmentalize each section. So do not think of it as one gigantic mission – then it becomes very overwhelming, so I know breaking it down it will be realistic,” he explained.
This methodical approach to enormous challenges has become a cornerstone of his message to others. Throughout his journey, Hutchcraft has stated that extraordinary achievements aren’t the exclusive domain of superhuman athletes.
“You don’t have to be a crazy super fit or super human to achieve your wildest dreams,” he insists. “For me, I’m not a very good cyclist, I’m not a very good runner. I just had a dream and it’s 99% belief in your mind and it’s only a little bit physical.”
The Charitable Mission
While pushing his own boundaries, Hutchcraft has maintained focus on the causes driving his journey. Project Limitless raises funds for the Warriors of Hope programme, an initiative offering animal-assisted therapy for veterans struggling with mental health issues and PTSD.
In partnership with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), the programme provides veterans with healing opportunities while also supporting their training in wildlife crime prevention and anti-poaching efforts.
Throughout his expedition, Hutchcraft has visited wildlife conservation projects, including bird rescue centers in Europe, bear rescue facilities, and the Wildlife SOS elephant sanctuary in Agra, India, which rescues elephants from street performances and captivity.
“One of the main things on this expedition was also to try to shine the light and to visit as many Wildlife Conservation places as possible,”
Hutchcraft explains. “It’s just so important to help spread the words and the message, to try to educate people as much as possible.”
This dual mission reflects Hutchcraft’s personal values and experiences. Though he wasn’t deployed to active combat zones during his military service, he’s witnessed the impact of trauma on fellow veterans.
“I have many friends who have seen their friends killed, many friends that have been nearly blown up and had many traumatic things happen,” he says. “I’ve seen the effect it has on people, and I’ve also seen how amazing community and wildlife and nature can make a difference.”
The Support System
Though Project Limitless was originally conceived as a solo journey, Hutchcraft now travels with a small support team including Stan and Molly, who document his progress and provide logistical assistance.
“This was meant to be originally just me on my own, but now with Stan and Molly, it’s been incredible,” he acknowledges. “It’s been much easier, and they’re working so hard. I’m very grateful.”
The emotional and practical support has been crucial during the most challenging moments of the expedition. But equally important has been the kindness of strangers.
When asked how he stays grounded despite the extraordinary nature of his achievement, Hutchcraft credits the people he’s met along the way.
We’ve been very lucky on this journey. One of the main things is the amazing people we’ve met across the entire world – India, Pakistan, Oman, Iraq, everywhere. We’ve been blown away by the hospitality. I think I’ve managed to keep grounded because of the amazing humans that I’ve met along the way.
Looking Beyond Everest
As Hutchcraft prepares for his Everest summit attempt in spring 2025, he’s already considering what comes next – though his immediate plan is simply to recover and process the experience.
“I still haven’t processed hardly any of this expedition yet,” he admits. “I think I just need to go home and enjoy, and then think about hopefully doing more things like this to help more people, to help more wildlife. My dream now is that hopefully because of this expedition, it will open more doors and allow me to help more people in the future and more animals.”
Whether or not he reaches the summit of Everest, Mitchell Hutchcraft has already accomplished something remarkable – transforming personal tragedy into purpose, military discipline into civilian achievement, and individual ambition into collective benefit.
His journey stands as proof to his core belief: “Pain is momentary, but with hard work and dedication, every goal is achievable.”
As he prepares to make his final push toward the roof of the world, Hutchcraft continues to embody his philosophy that human potential is truly limitless when we have the courage to test its boundaries.
Photo Courtesy: Mitchell Hutchcraft (Facebook & Website)
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