Seven-year-old climbs Mount Olympus 

By Jake Meeus-Jones via SWNS

Meet the little mountaineer who started scaling peaks at the age of three and has become the youngest Brit to climb Greece's highest mountain.

Frankie McMillan, 7, has been regularly climbing mountains in the UK's Lake District with his mom, Basia McMillan, 39, after she got him into the hobby as a toddler.

Frankie summited Scafell Pike at just four years old and all the 214 Wainwrights (peaks) in the Lake District.

His latest trek saw him reach the 9,573ft (2,918m) summit of Mount Olympus on Sept. 2, 2023, with his mom - and he became the youngest Brit to ever to do so.

The mother and son duo spent two days trekking up the mountain with a local guide, before descending on Sept. 3.

Basia spent months exchanging emails and phone calls with the hike organizers and had to convince them Frankie would be able to reach the top.

Frankie, from Gosforth, UK, said: "I'm very proud of myself, it was the highest I have ever been before.

"My favorite thing about climbing is spending time with my family, getting outdoors, looking at the views and finding treasure, but most of all I like the rock-climbing parts.

"I would like to go to the top of Mount Everest, but I am too small, so maybe I can go up Rainbow Mountain in Peru or Toubkal in Morocco, or Everest Base Camp if my mom lets me.

"My friends at school think that I am amazing.

"They watched me on TV and congratulated me.

"They don't like climbing mountains as much as me because their legs get tired, but I love it."

Basia, a mountain guide, said: "I was a little bit worried about him making it.

"But he just made me proud - there wasn't a second where he complained or wanted to rest - if anything he was better than me.

"He was just drinking in the experience - at times even the guide had to tell him to slow down."

"He did very, very well.

"It is so special - since he was small, I've always told him one day he will move the mountains.

"I knew he'd be able to do it, of course, I was worried, and you never know for sure, but when we got to the top, I was so proud.

"It was a very joyful experience to see him touching the top after all the planning and worries."

Basia's day job sees her taking people to the peaks of the Lake District and she says Frankie has always had an interest in joining her.

She said: "Frankie would always see me walking up and down and he always wanted to come with me so when he was three, I took him up.

"And he did it himself, I thought he would just turn back but he made it all the way to the top and since then he's been asking for more and more.

"He wanted to go and play football after we climbed Scafell Pike."

The final ascent of Mount Olympus is very "technical" but Basia says that's what Frankie was most excited about.

She said: "We tried to find something as high as possible but within the limit.

"2,500 meters is considered a good starter altitude for a hike."

"It was as high as we could go at this age and Frankie really likes the technical parts of rock climbing.

"On the last kilometer, it's very technical on Olympus and he was very excited about that part as it's pretty much a vertical ascent using your ropes."

Now that Olympus has been ticked off, Frankie has his eyes set on Mount Toubkal in Morocco - with an ultimate dream of one day conquering Everest.

Basia said: "He was asking when the next school break is for his next adventure.

"And he's made a list of where he wants to go, Morocco, Nepal, Peru and Ecuador.

"So, it'll either be Morocco in November or waiting until April and trying Mount Everest base camp.

"That's a 15-day walk.

"I think he's proved that he will be able to do it but I really think that technically he will be able to do it and that'll be the closest to his dream - so we'll see."

Frankie and Basia have been raising money for Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team and have so far raised £2,492 of their £3,000 target. Donate here.