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The history of SPS Trekking Club is as old as
SPS College itself. The present SPS Trekking Club had
not always been well-equipped and fully organized the
way it is at the moment. In fact the seed was sown in
1988 when the tiny eaglets of SPS started to go on small
hikes on the week-ends and some times during school days
around Mingora with their tiny legs accompanied by the
teachers of the fledgling institute. By the grace of
Almighty Allah and efforts of the students and staff of
SPS College the young plant of the young hikers has
matured into a fully-grown trekking club during the
course of the past 20 years.
The young SPSians, with very meager resources, for the
first time, found heart, physical strength and
will-power to go on a longer trek in 1991 and
successfully conquered Kacha Kani (17300 ft). The
success of the first trek not only greatly encouraged
the members of the group but other students of the
institute were filled with the same enthusiasm and
spirit, and thus the number of trekkers increased every
year. Since 1991 SPS Trekking Club has been organizing
trekking expeditions in various mountain ranges during
summer season every year.
The idea of organized trekking was new in Swat. This
certainly does not mean that the people here didn’t have
the zeal and urge to explore nature but they didn’t have
a proper forum through which they could satiate their
desire of exploring the most beautiful country in the
world gifted with enchanting snow-packed peaks. SPS
Trekking Club was the most wanted platform for
nature-lovers and thus a number of them not only from
Swat but other parts of the country as well thronged the
club.
A visit from the sole Pakistani conqueror of Mount
Everest, Nazir Sabir, gave further boost and impetus to our
efforts. A few words of praise and appreciation from him
were more than enough to strengthen our faith in our
mission and the efforts put in were redoubled to achieve
the goal for which the club was initially launched.
Nazir Sabir during his kind visit to SPS said: “I have
not, myself, in my entire life undertaken as many treks
as SPS Trekking Club has, nor have I seen or even heard
any other club in Pakistan with so many treks at its
credit”.
It is a matter of great pride that today SPS Trekking
Club has committed, mature, patient and sacrificing
people as its members. The club has all the necessary
equipment available. Members of the club go to different
parts of the country to get proper training and know
about the new developments taking place around the
world.
God Almighty may give us the courage to explore not
only the mountains of our dearest country but go beyond
the frontiers of Pakistan and see how gracious He has
been to us by giving us such a lovely planet. Aamin
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