Saturday, October 17, 2009
Everest Base Camp Trek Underway
Mountain Madness Everest Base Camp Trek is well on its way! After climbing to the top of the Monkey Temple for views of the city, watching the funeral rituals at Pashupatinath, sitting beneath the eyes of the Buddha at peaceful Bouddhanath Stupa, and meandering through monasteries, we packed up and headed for the mountains! A few days in chaotic Kathmandu, fascinating though it is, makes me long for the fresh breeze and quiet jangling of yak bells that we find on the trail.
Our flight into Lukla is always a thrill, but even more so this trip! The weather was extremely clear and we had sweeping views of the Himalayas before sliding into the airstrip. These Nepali pilots are accustomed to flying several flights a day into Lukla, and they navigate the looming mountains with professional ease. We sped in for a fast landing, the uphill runway immediately slowing us down. Stepping out onto the tarmac in the cool wind of morning, everyone was elated with the views, the village, and the start of our adventure!
In Nepal, however, everything starts with tea. So we made our way over to a sunny courtyard and sat down to enjoy tea, while our sherpas and portering team assembled our bags into even loads. After introductions, we all set off for a few hours of hiking along the Dudh Kosi, or Milk River, and a night in Phakding.
The following day we began to see waterfalls and snowy peaks, even as we hiked through forest and small villages. Crossing the Hillary suspension bridge high above the river, we made a steep climb for the rest of the afternoon until we arrived in Namche Bazaar. An old trading town, it's now filled with lodges, shops, and bakeries. Our whole group hiked strongly and is looking good!
Our group continues to be amazed by the magical and mystical scenery, constantly surprised that every turn is a more beautiful panorama than the last. This morning's acclimatization hike brought us to the famous Everest View Hotel. Aptly named, we could see a long way up the valley that we will trek through and staring us in the face were Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, Ama Dablam, and Taboche. Stunning!
We've also been getting to know each other and our Nepali staff, from the 6-time Everest Summiter to the Everest Marathon runner, from the Sherpa studying to be a Buddhist monk to the local village boy saving money for his family. We have a great group: Americans, Brazilians, and Nepali staff, and we're climbing higher tomorrow!
Deana Zabaldo, Team Leader
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Dispatch #2: Everest Base Camp Trek
From rhododendron forest to high alpine valleys, our days take us through local villages, past Buddhists deities painted on cliffs, past yak caravans loaded with supplies, and around large piles of stones carved with prayers. We arrived in Tengboche just in time to visit the monastery for the afternoon ceremony – monks chanting Tibetan scriptures and drinking steaming bowls of tea. Afterwards, we stayed to have some prayer flags blessed and ended up talking with the monks.
They were setting up for a big ceremony the next day and needed to move some heavy furniture. Handing back the prayer flags (and after chatting a bit in Nepali), the monk took a look at Brian and Geoff and figured they were pretty strong – and asked if we'd lend a hand with the rearrangement. Brian and Geoff were happy to help and were laden with a handpainted wooden throne (heavy indeed!), plus a few tables, for ceremony setup. Two weeks ago they never expected to be moving furniture with Buddhist monks, but here they were and fully enjoying it! You just never know what you're in for in Nepal.
From Tengboche to Dingboche took us above the tree line to high alpine valley. A few people opted in for the harder of two acclimatization hikes out of Dingboche this morning. It was well worth it. At the top of a steep, steep climb, we were rewarded with an exquisite turquoise blue lake gracing the foot of a massive glacier on the back side of Ama Dablam. The rest of the group curved up the valley towards Island Peak, with fantastic views of Lhotse, Nuptse, and a range of fluted, serrated mountains. Acclimatization complete, we're reveling in the last showers and internet for a while. Tomorrow we climb an alpine valley for one of my favorite days of the trek: sweeping views of the mountains, stone memorials perched high on a ridge top, and the dizzying arc of Taboche peak looming over us.
--Deana Zabaldo, Team Leader
Monday, October 26, 2009
Dispatch #3 Everest Base Camp Trek
These days are not easy, but they are powerful. Over 14,000 ft, our bodies struggle to breathe, struggle to recuperate from any minor infraction (respiratory trouble, stomach ailments). Nonetheless we climb...and we reap the rewards.
At Lobuche and beyond, the mountains become massive. No longer a distant sweep of peaks, they are now individuals confronting us and towering over us. Nuptse, which was once a ridge in the foreground of Everest, is now a shiny face of veined black rock, slick like a mottled mirror. We curve around its side, cross over the Chang-Ri glacier, and contour briefly along the 5-mile Khumbu glacier, its creaking and cracking making clear that the glacier is indeed moving.
Gorak Shep is the final outpost of shelter in this extreme world of rock and ice, and we spend two nights here. The first afternoon, Kala Patar lures us up to its rocky peak. At 18,450 ft, it's the classic viewpoint of Everest, the highest point of the trip, and a tough climb in the thin air (only about 50% of the oxygen at sea level). Strewn with prayer flags, the summit offers 360-degree views of mountains including a close-up of Everest and a long line of mountains as far as the eye can see. Thamserku and Ama Dablam. Lhotse and Nuptse. Lingtren and Khumbutse. Mountains even in Tibet. And of course, the rounded snowy peak of Pumo-Ri right behind us, so close and huge that it seems taller than Everest from where we stand. Wind whipping and sun streaming down, we feel on top of the world! It's hard to believe the summit of Everest is another 10,000 ft above us. Unfathomable.
The following day was a long hike out to Everest Base Camp with Pemba Gyaljen Sherpa. Pemba is a well-known Nepali climber with an impressive record, and it's been exciting to have him co-guiding our group. He has summited Everest six times; has summited K2, Cho-Oyu, Monte Blanc, and Ama Dablam; and has successfully rescued climbers on these mountains after avalanches, exhaustion in the dead zone, and other dangerous situations. Pemba is not only a famous climber however--he's also a friendly guy with an easy laugh and is great to trek with!
While other groups turned back at lower base camp, Pemba took our group on another 45 minutes to the regular base camp and found the "Icefall Doctors." The Icefall Doctors have some 20-years of experience and are specialists at detecting the safest routes through the ever-changing Icefall all the way to Camp 2. They were out on the glacier preparing to set the ladders and fixed ropes for upcoming winter expeditions. Also out at base camp were the remnants of spring expeditions--strands of prayer flags from when lamas come to bless the start of each group's climb and stone structures which serve as kitchens and staff shelters during the long two months of acclimatization. Pemba was full of stories and information ranging from the 1952 Swiss expedition that first reached 8500 meters to his own experiences over the last seven years climbing with international expeditions (Irish, British, South African, and Austrian). After lunch and lots of photos in the perfect weather, our group turned around and headed back down to the warmth of the lodge at Gorak Shep.
Now the hard days are behind us. We drop 3,000 feet to Pheriche, a small village on a wind-swept plain. Everyone has a chance to recuperate--14,000 feet feels low and comfortable now! Tomorrow we take the high trail to visit the oldest monastery in the region before contouring around to Phortse. Built into the side of the mountain, Phortse is a village few groups visit. We're looking forward to the quiet trail, the chance to see wild mountain goats, and a visit to the monastery, recently painted by one of Darjeeling's finest artists.
Watch out for the yaks--here we go!
--Deana Zabaldo, Team Leader
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Everest Base Camp Trek Wrap-Up
The trail to Phortse is one of my favorites, contouring high on the mountain and offering great views up and down the valley. As hoped, we run across a herd of ~25 tahr (wild Himalayan mountain goats) who are utterly at ease grazing on the steep hillside. We have left the main trail behind and find ourselves alone in the quiet of the mountain today. It's a welcome change not to see another tourist the whole afternoon.
The morning we leave Phortse, we drop down to cross the river and have a stiff climb up the other side. After 2 weeks of hiking, however, it's clear the group is generally stronger. At the top, we pause for some snacks and then cruise gently down to Namche through the afternoon. One more long day of hiking brings us to Lukla for a celebration with all our staff. Beers, sodas, and chocolate--before one last heaping plate of rice with chicken curry!
The following morning we slide off the side of the mountain on Lukla's inclined runway, and we're back in Kathmandu in an hour. The crumbling chaos has been transformed into a cosmopolitan metropolis after two weeks in the mountains. We can't wait to revel in all the comforts of the city before a final party to celebrate and close the trip! Strangers three weeks ago, we are now all familiar friends. Once you've walked in the Himalayas, you are forever changed--and you will always feel connected to the people who have been there with you!
Many thanks to all our Nepali partners and staff who made this trip possible--especially Kili, Sagar, and Shankar in Kathmandu and Pemba, Dawa, and Yubaraj on the mountain!! You've been amazing! As always. I'm already looking forward to the next trip!
--Deana Zabaldo, Team Leader
For more info about the trek, or if you'd like to sign up for your own adventure, check out: : http://www.mountainmadness.com/trekking/asia_base.cfm Photo taken by Mark Lohff
