Everest Base Camp Trek September 2015

In September 2015 I fulfilled a lifelong dream. As a child I was always fascinated by Mt Everest. I would read books on the climbers and the mountains and at one time had a picture on my wall of the World’s tallest mountain. As a child with vertigo and a great fear of heights I knew climbing would not be in my cards. However I did keep in my aspirations the thought of one day going to Base Camp. Many years passed, two children, five grandchildren later; I felt it was time. For my 65th birthday I invited a friend to accompany me and share the experience.

Day One - Kathmandu

On September 08th my friend Bob Hill and I departed St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada via Heathrow, Zurich, and Deli to arriving in Kathmandu, Nepal. on the 09th. We were met by our trekking company Himalayan Wonders and were driven through the confusing streets of the city to our hotel.

Hotel Pilgim

This city was so congested and I have never seen the likes before. There seemed to be no rules for the various forms of vehicular traffic including cars, buses, trucks, bikes, scooters, and pedestrians all competing for the same real estate on the roads. Best described as "organized confusion" it was a hair rising ride to the hotel in Thamel District of Kathmandu. We finally arrived at the Hotel Pilgrim; not exactly 5 star but adequate and our home for the next few days.

Ed Evelly and Bob Hill

That night we went back out into the madness to a restaurant called the "Black Olive". To our surprise there was a young blues player who could make the guitar sound like a sitar. Also he could play awesome American blues music. 

Great Blues Music



It was great music and great food and our first introduction to Dhal Bhatt and the cuisine of Nepal. In the mountains we were to tier of it in time and resort to potatoes in their many forms with or without eggs.

Day Two - Kathmandu

Vendors Selling Wares

The next day we were met and walked through the streets of  Katmandu by the trekking company manager for a briefing on the up and coming trek. We picked up new sleeping bags and other gear we needed for the trek. The town has stores selling knockoff high end climbing and trekking gear for ridiculously low prices. You could get a branded down jacket for $30.00 USD. We discovered it was as cheap to buy the additional gear we needed rather than rent it. In the afternoon Bob and I went down to the World Heritage Durbar Square. Other than some rubble around the streets of the hotel this was our first real reality of the devastating effects of the two earthquakes in April and May. One earthquake was 8.3 and the other 8.1 on the Richter scale.

Before describing Durbar Square I should make some comment on the people of Nepal. They are without uncertainty the friendliest people I have met anywhere in the World. They are thankful for our coming but also genuinely friendly, warm and open. With devastation around them they still manage to smile and their eyes tell all as to how pleased they are that we have come. The economy is terrible and the shop keepers tell us about only one or two sales a day.

Bargaining is expected but the knockoff goods are already cheap. It is fun to bargain but you can tell the limits when you make an offer that makes them appear as if you shot their puppy. You can also see the expression of happiness when there is a price point they and you are happy with. These are spiritual people, honest in their work and there are very few hustlers about. They simply want to make a living and feed their families. The local greeting is hands held in prayer with a slight bow with the single word, "Namaste".

Namaste is much more than hello, but also a sincere, “have a good and peaceful day”. We were to use this greeting for everyone from the people on the street, hotel workers and the amazing porters carrying goods up the mountain.

Durbar Square is a World Heritage site. It is filled with the hustle and bustle of the street vendors, the Old Palace and many temples and holy places. Today it is mainly rubble since the terrible destruction of the earthquakes.

Many temples were completely destroyed while others are propped up with huge pieces of wood to hold them together. It is very sad to see and also sad for these wonderful spiritual people. We toured many of the sites but there were not many you could risk going inside. Walking from Thamel to Durbar Square it became evident why so much destruction took place in this historic city.

The buildings along the streets are ancient, made of brick and without any earthquake protection. They simply collapsed upon one another. People remain living and working among the ruble. It is so, so sad to see. The streets are lively, teeming with people, rickshaws and vendors peddling their goods. Families come to the fountain to fill their water containers or to wash from the ancient springs.

That day we also found a great lunch at a restaurant called the Roadhouse serving great thin crust pizza along with "Everest" brand beer that we came to quite like. That evening it was early to bed for an early rise for the flight to Lukla and the beginning of the trek.

Day Three - Flight to Lukla and Trek to Phakding

Now if you don't know; Lukla is known as the most dangerous airport in the World. Its high elevation, wind shear from the mountains and short runway make it that way.

Check in at Kathmandu

Flights are dependent on the weather in open to the cockpit planes capable of carrying about 20 passengers but only allowed 12 due to the weight. As you approach the runway all you see is mountains around you and in front of you.

View of the cockpit

You can see no way that a plane can land. Before you know it abruptly touches down and quickly brakes before pulling into what can be described as less than a terminal. Seriously the runway looks not much longer than my driveway. People scramble to unload as the flight immediately leaves to go back to Kathmandu for another few passengers.

Where are we to land?

The weather, winds and mountains are that tenuous that they have to keep it moving. When we returned from our trek no further fights went into Lukla for three days. The pilots actually call Lukla for landing conditions before they leave Kathmandu and it is only a 35 minute flight. If you dare, go search the YouTube video "Most Dangerous Airports" and you will find it listed as number one. It was scary but not as bad as we had thought. This was my first emotional experience of the trip. Here I was from a childhood dream at the Tenzing Hilary Airport about to depart on a journey traveled by Himalayan Explorers for over a century.

Landing at Lukla

This was the starting point for trekkers and climbers alike. I was humbled. Here we were met by our guide Ishwor and our porter Pimba. Both were strangers but soon to become friends and soul mates in this amazing journey. Once bags and trekking gear were collected we went to our first tea house in Lukla for breakfast before setting off for Phakding.  This was to be our first overnight stop.

Unloading at Lukla 

Trek to Phakding

The trail to Phakding was quite pretty, meandering through pine and rhododendron forests and passing many Buddhist Holy Sites including beautifully carved ancient tablets (Mani Stones), carved rocks and prayer wheels.

Mani stones can be seen in Nepal and Tibet, where Buddhism is widely practiced. Large examples of Mani stones resembling tablets carved out of the sides of rock formations and are in locations throughout the Nepali areas of the Himalayas, such as Namche Bazar. Mani stone walls are most numerous in the high country of the Khumbu. 

The mantra of Avalokiteshvara is also a common design on prayer wheels and prayer flags in Nepal. We kept the prayer wheels on our right and spun them three times to the sounds of the bells as is the tradition. This area was highly religious as was evident by the Buddhist icons along the way. 

Starting at Lukla at 9,184 feet we were actually to descend to Phakding at 8,698 feet. Phakding was our first introduction to tea house accommodation. 

Tea House in Phakding

The rooms were small with two foam beds, a small table between and a toilet and sink shared with other guests. To this point it was at least shared flush toilets.

Meager but adequate accommodation

We drank only bottled water including brushing our teeth and continued to do so for the entire trip. It was readily available and cheap so there was no need to purify water.

In the evening we went for a short walk and saw that this was more a farming village and far less commercial than Lukla. Sitting outside a bar we met Fee (Fiona) and Gary who were later to become simply known to us as "the Aussi Couple". We met and/or stayed with them along the way and shared our Base Camp experience with then.

Phakding was to be our last encounter with meat until we finally reached back to Lukla 12 days hence. 

We were offered goat for the evening meal. We inquired about the freshness and were told the butchering was in progress. I guess that meant it was fresh as it ever was going to be? We decided on the goat curry with rice. It was a little tough but otherwise good with excellent curry flavor. It would not be our last curry meal as we familiarized ourselves with the native dish of "Dhal Bhatt". Bob ate more than I did as I soon switched to fried potatoes and fried eggs as my main staple.

Phakding Traffic

Our First Suspension Bridge

We were Room # 1

Porters and Sherpa's

This section of the trail introduced us to the porters. Pimba our porter ceased to amaze us as he carried both our bags weighing about 50 lbs total. 

Pimba

He couldn't have been more than 100 lbs himself but skipped easily along the stones, steps and descents at a pace we certainly could not emulate.

We teased him that he had a girlfriend in every village and that he was in a hurry to get there before us. The porters’ are employed by the trekking companies and is by far a better job than the porters who carry goods up the mountain to supply the various villages. 

Pimba could expect better wages and a good tip from us in the end. Other porters do not have it so good. We saw porters carrying as many as 4 two four cases of beer along with various other materials and goods. Many we saw carrying 12 sheets of 1/4 inch plywood and one guy with 4 sheets of 3/4 plywood. There were others with sheet metal for roofing. These porters carry their loads up steps that can descend hundreds of feet along uneven paths that we could barely walk up. They do it with contraptions supported by a band around their head and a short stumpy wooden walking stick that they use to support the load when they need to rest. They look for walls or rocks also to rest the loads.

We saw one guy in Tengboche actually carrying what was to be a telephone pole. All are bent over double and life expectancy may be short. With that said they will greet you or return a greeting of "Namaste" as you pass them.

The wages are poor at best and go up as elevation increases. From Lukla to Namche the rate is 25 rupees per kilo. That is equivalent to 25 cents per kilo, making a two day trek with about 100-200 lbs on your back worth approximately between $12.50 and $25.00. Above Namche that could double but now it is done in thin air that we could barely breathe in. The wages would probably work out to little more than $1.00 per hour for grueling work. 

This is the way of life and they depend on the trekking and climbing tourists to come and stay at the tea houses so they can get the jobs to feed their families. You can see and feel the appreciation that we had come. The last two seasons have been devastating to their economy. 

Last year 19 Sherpa's were killed in a rock slide beyond Base Camp in the Khumbu Ice fall and cancelled the climbing season. This year 18 people were killed at Base Camp when an avalanche caused by the earthquake swept over the camp. This year only one climbing permit has been issued. This single permit was issued to a Japanese celebrity who has already attempted several summits of Everest and lost fingers and toes. Some feel he is putting many Sherpa's at risk when many of the ladders and ropes have not been replaced since the recent disasters on the mountain.

When is a Sherpa not a Sherpa? This became an interesting question that deserved an answer. The answer really is that Sherpa is an ethnic group and not simply porters. Belonging to the ethnic group means that you use Sherpa at the end of your name. As an example Sir Edmund Hillary's sherpa was named Tenzing Norgay and thus used the full name of Tenzing Norgay Sherpa because he was a member of the ethnic group. Now to complicate matters a porter who carries a load for an official mountain guide is called a sherpa. You see he is a sherpa but not a "Sherpa"!

Quickly we were to understand that we had with us a special individual in our mountain guide Ishwor.

He was from the town of Gorkha which was the epicenter of the first earthquake. His home was destroyed and his family is subsiding among the rubble.  He has a business degree in finance and is saving to study abroad to finish his Masters. For now Ishwor continues to raise money to help rebuild his home and try and put away money for study. All along the mountain cell coverage is fairly good and while walking Ishwor was corresponding with his university to try and get documentation to them to register for courses.

We also quickly noted Ishwor knew more than he was telling us. Weather in the mountain region is very unpredictable but a pattern seemed to be settling in. We would wake to sunshine, get an early breakfast and start to trek by about 7:30 or 8:00. By midday you could see clouds starting to infiltrate the valleys.

By 1:00 or 2:00 it would get misty and Ishwor would try to have us at our nightly destination. By that time it was cooling considerably and it was nice to get a hot tea or lemon. Ishwor not only knew the likelihood of weather but knew our trekking pace to get us to the next destination.

Day Four Phakding to Namche Bazar

Our next day we were to gear up for the trek to Namche Bazar, the largest Sherpa village in Nepal. The trail takes us along the Dudhkoshi River over our first suspension bridge and the through a beautiful pine forest.

Soon we were to enter the checkpoint for the entry to Sagarmatha National Park.

Here Ishwor checks us in and gets our permits to enter the region. We continue onto Jorsale where we stop for lunch. All stops begin with a hot drink, usually tea or hot lemon. Lunches consist of vegetable soups or fried egg sandwiches. We had decided not to eat meat after leaving Phakding due to the lack of cold storage. The trail is becoming more challenging as we climb great numbers of steps with high rises only to descend once again down big steps and rocks to the river bed.

The Dudhkoshi is known locally as the milk river due to its milk white color. Although the rivers are clear and fast the water is not drinkable. The many yaks along the route cause it to be polluted. The locals can tolerate it but foreigners would likely get "Nepali Belly". This is something you want to avoid at all cost so you either buy bottled water or treat the water with chlorine purifying tablets. We keep in mind that the tablets work more slowly as the temperature goes down.

Along this route we encounter the first of many yak trains. As they approach you squeeze into the banks and shush them away so their sharp horns don't come near you.
Most are cow yaks that are a cross between a yak and a cow and therefore are less aggressive. We will see many real yaks as we ascend and will learn to treat them with respect. It is noted that the yaks appear to be carrying far less loads then the human porters. Is that because they are held in much greater esteem and are less expendable?  We weren't really sure if this was the case or not. We did note that there appeared to be a general rule when it came to yaks. It seems they deposit their waste always on the very rock or step that you require to navigate. It never failed!

Flying into Lukla I had to overcome my first fear. I have flown on small planes before including fishing trips inland in Newfoundland and Labrador. However that did not prepare me for the mountain flying or landing in the World’s most dangerous airport. That over with I now had to face my second fear, the suspension bridges.

The first one over with Bob and Ishwor’s help I knew there were four more to go today and in particular the Hillary Bridge. It is a tough climb up to the bridge that suspends across a great gorge with another bridge many feet below you to another village. I had heard that walking over the Hillary Bridge was as if one was suspended in air. With knees shaking I followed Bob with Ishwor closely behind me. It was not quite like floating on air and my fears were arrested. I did it with no ill effects and really quite enjoyed it, stopping once or twice to admire the view up and down the gorge and to the other bridge many feet below me. Three more to go!

Beautiful Waterfalls

As we continue onto Namche we encounter numerous waterfalls tumbling down from great heights. Many of the mountain flowers are still in bloom with some recognizable but others of varieties unknown to us. Donkey and Yak trains seem to becoming more frequent and as we approach Namche we see the occasional monk.

We have been spinning the prayer wheels and touching the prayer poles the entire way for continued luck. The final approach to Namche is a steep climb up many steps and we note at higher elevation the climbs are becoming increasingly more difficult. 

Children at play entering Namche

We pass through many small villages and watch the children make play out of the simplest things. Not unlike children anywhere they make play easily but you can see the opportunities for a different life is non-existent here in these isolated mountain villages.  Women sit outside separating grains, attending to what would be little more than kitchen gardens to us but survival for them in the winter months when no trekkers or climbers are about.

Aaron and Isaac 

Along the way to Namche we were passed by two young guys, one from New Zealand now living in Kathmandu.  His wife had taken a three year teaching appointment in Nepal and he was seeking a work permit. His friend from the UK had joined him for the Everest Trek. Isaac and Aaron ended up being great fun and we spent a lot of time with them laughing and telling stories.

Namche Bazar

We arrived in Namche mid afternoon very tired after a tough day of climbing up and down out of valleys.
To us it became known as "Nepali Flat". We had our usual hot drink and then it was off to our room for some much needed rest. We were pleasantly surprised to see we had a toilet and sink separate in the room.

There were hot showers, not in the room, that you could pay for. They consisted of a concrete floor, tin room shack outside; but the water was hot. I decided to take a shower before settling down for a nap. In the mountains it doesn't take long to cool down and before long we were in sleeping bags in the room.

Moonlight Lodge Restaurant

The tea house was known as the Moonlight Lodge and Restaurant.  It would be by far the nicest we were to stay in. This day we had gained considerable altitude and could start to feel that the air was getting thinner. The height now was 11,283 feet. We were to remain here for the night and all the next day to acclimatize. Shortly after arriving the Aussi Couple showed up with their guide and we had a great evening conversation. The meal that night consisted of vegetarian Dhal Bhatt as we were now totally off meat for the rest of the journey.

That evening before settling down for the night we were treated to a spectacular sunset over Ama Dablam.  The mountains turn yellow in the sun and provide a simply spectacular site.

Pimba still manages to smile after a hard day

Shopping in Namche

Namche has a sherpa museum for an overview of Sherpa culture and history of mountaineering. It is a shopping hub with all manner of trekking and mountaineering gear. Bob and I went shopping; me for knee braces and he for internet as nothing was working at the tea house including the power that was intermittent in Namche throughout our entire visit. I was successful, Bob was not. My worn out running knees were surprisingly good but I feared the downhill on the decent would do them and me in. Namche's power supply is mainly underground and many of the lines were cut during the quakes. Now flimsy wires are strung out through the streets to try and maintain some semblance of normal. It obviously wasn't working during our time there. It was better on the decent.

Rebuilding a Tea House 

It was now noticeable on the way up the effects the earthquakes were having on the economy. Coming this far we saw many of the destroyed homes and tea houses. Tea houses that had concrete around them feared better than those that were constructed of simply stacked stone. The effects were the same as in Kathmandu where the oldest structures had the worst damage. Many of the homeless families were living in improvised shelters or tents. The big difference was in the number of trekkers. Most tea houses were empty and at ours only the Aussi Couple, an American who was on his way down and us. Isaac and Aaron were staying elsewhere. Other than porters carrying rebuilding supplies the trails were empty. This in particular is having a major effect on the recovery.

Day Five Rest and Acclimatization

The next day being a rest and acclimatization day we took a two hour hike up to the Everest View Hotel.

Namche in a distance

We awoke to glorious sunshine and a view of the mountains around us, including Kwanghe, Thamserku, Ama Dablam and a partial view of Lhotse. Along the way were spectacular views back to Namche far below us. This was meant to be our first view of Everest but it was obscured by cloud. We hoped at least we would get a glimpse of Everest from the Everest View Hotel. It was far from a rest as we climbed several hundred meters in order to acclimatize. It is known as, “climb high, sleep low”. We discovered it worked as we had no altitude issues to this point.

Ed and Bob at Everest View Hotel

The Everest View Hotel was built by the Japanese and is quite opulent compared to anything else this high in the mountains. The Japanese fly in from Kathmandu by helicopter to stay and partake of the beautiful views. We were to be disappointed as Everest was still to be obscured by cloud. Views of Everest are not easy to spot as it is often obscured due to the fact that it is the highest and sits behind Lhotse and Nuptse. We would have to wait another day. We did enjoy a juice stop on the patio before descending back to Namche.

Khumjung 

As we descended from the Everest View Hotel, in a circle route, we could see the mists coming up the valley. The temperature dropped considerably but the mists added to the natural beauty. In the distance we could see a village with beautifully arranged stone walls.  This was the village of Khumjung. 

Entrance to Hillary School 

Children at classes outside

The story of Khumjung and the Himalayan Trust work all began in the early 1960s when, during one of his journeys, Sir Edmund asked a Sherpa “If there was anything I could do for the Sherpa people, what do you think that would be?” The Sherpa immediately replied, “Burra Sahib (big Sahib), our children have eyes but they are blind and cannot see. Therefore, we would want you to open their eyes by building a school in our village of Khumjung”.This touched the heart of Edmund Hillary and he immediately began to raise funds and build the first school in Khumjung. Today the school is still active and we saw children outside with their teacher during lessons.

A statue to Sir Edmund can be seen in the school yard. The Khumjung School was built in 1961 as the first major project of the Himalayan Trust. It started off as a two classroom school but now caters for pre-school, primary and secondary sections with over 350 students.

We were particularly pleased to see that this project was partially funded by the Sir Edmund Hillary Foundation Canada.  

The walk back to Namche was spectacular with beautiful paths along the ridges with mountain views. We were now getting near the end of the tree line in places as we got up to higher elevations.

When we got back to Namche we met two young Aussie girls, both nurses who are a day behind us. They were ill prepared with sleeping bags and we helped them out by lending them our silk liners to get through the cold and damp night. We are to see them again later in the journey and they are to surprise us all on the descent.