Buckeye Institute CEO is bringing his father’s ashes to the Seven Summits
The Columbus Dispatch
By Sophia Veneziano & Sarah Sollinger
June 23, 2025
Robert Alt's father, "Dr. Bob," is shown climbing a steep rock face during one of his frequent outdoor adventures. Provided By Robert Alt
Bob "Dr. Bob" Alt wanted to climb the tallest mountain in the world.
The endurance athlete and ultramarathon runner made it to Everest Base Camp in his 60s, but he didn't make it to the summit of the 29,032-foot mountain before his death in April 2010.
However, his son, Robert, made sure his journey didn't stop there.
On May 15, Dr. Bob made it to the top of Mount Everest 15 years after his death, when his son made the grueling trek up the world's tallest mountain to spread his father's ashes at the top.
"It was the most beautiful thing in nature I've ever seen," the younger Alt said of Everest's peak.
The president and CEO of The Buckeye Institute, a conservative-leaning think tank based in Columbus, Alt explained he never got to complete a major climbing expedition with his father when he was alive.
He is now on a journey to bring his father's ashes to the Seven Summits — or the highest mountain on each continent.
“I would give anything to be able to climb with him,” Alt said. “He’d say, 'You don’t need to,' but I think he would be extraordinarily touched by it.
Robert Alt’s father, “Dr. Bob,” is shown climbing a steep rock face during one of his frequent outdoor adventures.
Joking that there is contention among the mountaineering community about the supremacy of two peaks, Alt is earning "extra credit" and bringing his father's ashes to the world's nine tallest peaks to ensure he gets the job done.
Alt's first summit was completed five years after his father's death, when he climbed 19,341 feet to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro.
He now has completed five of the nine climbing expeditions, with four more to go.
The 'yo-yo' up the mountain
Still nursing a cough in early June from an upper respiratory infection he caught on the climb, Alt described both the mental and physical challenges from the trek.
In order to adjust to the altitude and bodily strain, climbers go up and down between four different camps.
The journey is a "yo-yo" process of going up and down the mountain, he explained. This is led by the team of expert Sherpas, for whom the journey is a sacred and religious experience.
The rule of thumb, he said, is you climb high and sleep low.
For Alt's guide, Pasang Dawa Sherpa, the journey was his 28th trip up the mountain and back down again, nearing the world record of 31 Everest summits.
Pasang Dawa Sherpa (left) guided Robert Alt up Mount Everest, as well as through the Khumbu Icefall. Photo By Griffin Kerwin/Provided By Robert Alt
Even with this experience, Alt said he could tell PaDawa was nervous when they passed through the Khumbu Icefall, which is situated between the base camp and the rest of the mountain.
The team journeyed through the treacherous section of the Everest climb four times as they worked their way up and down the mountain, getting closer to the top upon each ascent.
Robert Alt is shown ascending a vertical ladder in the Khumbu Icefall. Photo By Griffin Kerwin/Provided By Robert Alt
“It doesn’t matter how good of a climber you are. There is a bit of fate involved,” Alt said. “You can’t control it."
Obstacles range from illness and dangerously high winds to concern for other hikers while passing the bodies of adventurers who never made it safely back down, especially in the “death zone,” or the point where oxygen levels get dangerously low.
Over 330 people now lay to rest permanently on the mountain. A lawyer by trade, Alt said he tried to do everything he could to mitigate that risk.
Once they got to the top, even while being pushed four or five steps at a time by the wind, Alt took his glove off for mere seconds, just to spread his father’s ashes atop the world’s highest point.
The journey down and onward
As the saying goes, what goes up must come down. That is especially true on Everest, Alt explained.
“What you have to realize is the summit is not the objective,” he said. “That’s halfway. Your goal is to get back safely, and your Sherpa can’t carry you down.”
Now, Alt is back working in his corner office at The Buckeye Institute. Still, if you look closely, you can see how Everest has made its mark on him.
Around his neck sits two Sungkü cords, which were blessed by Nepalese monks for prosperity. A backpack that he used to fill with weight and hike up and down the stairs of his office building still sits on the floor next to his desk.
With four summits left to best — Mount Elbrus in Russia, Puncak Jaya in Indonesia, Mont Blanc in France and Mount Kosciuszko in Australia — Alt encouraged others in the community to set extraordinarily difficult goals.
“It’s only by doing that that you test yourself mentally and physically and see what you can do,” he said.
Robert Alt (left) is pictured with his father, “Dr. Bob,” during one of the only hikes they ever did together. Provided By Robert Alt
