Late last year I was approached by my friend Stephanos about doing a charity hike to the Everest Base Camp (EBC) in Nepal. The charity is Make A Difference (MAD) Now, whose mission is to provide quality education to vulnerable children so that they can become leaders in their countries. As much as I've traveled I've not heard much about the EBC hike: how long does it take, what is the terrain like, how difficult is it, what do I need to do to prepare for the hike, etc. I signed up for it without having those questions answer. The date was set for October 9 to 25. As the date approaches, I prepared myself physically: running, doing a lot of core exercises, and some hiking. I've done a lot of long and difficult hikes so I wasn't worried about my physical condition. Earlier this year I hiked the Inca Trail and traveled in Bolivia, going up as high as 15,000 feet, so I was not overly worried about altitude sickness. However, altitude sickness can happen to anyone and anytime so I have to be very cautious about that. I know how to prevent it - by drinking lots of water as we increase our altitude. I was not going to take any prescription medication.
About a month before the trip, I found this website that provides very good information about Nepal and trekking in Nepal. It gave me a better idea of what the trek is like, the terrain and what type of people go on these hikes in Nepal. Still, there were a lot of unanswered questions: logistically and mentally.
I finally flew to and arrived in Kathmandu on October 7, three days before the hike. I wanted to give my body a chance to get over some jet lag and get used to my new environment. I typically do this, arriving at a travel destination a couple of days before to get a feel for the place. There were five of us: Stephanos, Vicki, Ellen, Bert, and myself. The rest of the group arrived a day later. We hung around the hotel and walked to Thamel, an area about 1 km from the hotel that caters to tourists and trekkers. We withdrew money from the ATM or exchanged for Nepalese Rupees from the many money changers in the area. We took a half-day tour of the city and visited a shelter for trafficked girls called Maiti. In hindsight we should've taken a more comprehensive 1-day tour of the city to understand what life is like in Kathmandu. There are a lot of pros and cons about the city, as I've written in the previous post.
In the next few posts I will explain in more detail each segment of the trek. I use the words trek and hike interchangeably because they mean the same thing. Americans prefer to say hike whereas the rest of the world like to use the word trek. One thing I want to clarify is that we are NOT climbing Mount Everest. That is a completely different ball game which takes much much more effort, time and money to accomplish. This trek is just to the Everest Base Camp, where almost all climbs to Mount Everest start. This usually happens in April and May, when conditions are most conducive to summiting the highest peak in the world.
The trekking season is usually from September to November. This is the dry season and temperatures are just right for trekking. All of us in the group except Stephanos, did not know what to expect on the trek. Stephanos attempted this trek two years ago but ran into health issues just before the end of the trek. Our plan was to take 8 days to hike to Gorak Shep, the last settlement on the trail and then on the next day hike to EBC and immediately turn around to start on the 4-day return trip to Lukla, the first settlement on the trail.
Here is our original trekking schedule:
Day 5 11-Oct-2018 Thursday Fly Kathmandu to Lukla (9380 feet/ 2860 meters), Trek
to Monjo (9315 feet/ 2840 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 6 12-Oct-2018 Friday Trek to Namche Bazaar (11,280 feet / 3440 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 7 13-Oct-2018 Saturday Acclimatization Day in Namche (B) Local Tea House
Day 8 14-Oct-2018 Sunday Trek to Tengboche (12,664 feet/ 3860 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 9 15-Oct-2018 Monday Trek to Dingboche (14,465 feet/ 4410 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 10 16-Oct-2018 Tuesday Acclimatization Trek to Chukhung (15,518 ft) or
Chukhung Ri (18,196 feet) & Return to Dingboche (B) Local Tea House
Day 11 17-Oct-2018 Wednesday Trek to Lobuche (16,109 ft/ 4910 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 12 18-Oct-2018 Thursday Trek to Gorak Shep (16,863 feet/ 5140 meters)/ Climb
to Kala Patthar (18,187 feet) (B) Local Tea House
Day 13 19-Oct-2018 Friday Trek to Kala Patthar or Everest Base Camp (17,590
feet/ 5267 meters) and then to Pheriche (13,907ft) (B) Local Tea House
Day 14 20-Oct-2018 Saturday Trek to Tengboche (B) Local Tea House
Day 15 21-Oct-2018 Sunday Trek to Jorsale or Monjo (B) Local Tea House
Day 16 22-Oct-2018 Monday Trek to Lukla (9,184ft) (BLD) Everest Summit Lodge
Day 17 23-Oct-2018 Tuesday Lukla to Kathmandu (B) Hotel Tibet
Many of these stops have names ending in "boche." It means settlement. And that's what they are, settlements or small villages but not quite a town. They get smaller the further in you go. They are there mostly to serve the trekkers. They are fairly primitive and all their supplies have to be carried in, either by porters, mules or yaks. Hence, things in general are more expensive the further in you go.
Tea houses are lodgings. Most of them have rooms with double occupancy but some have dorm rooms. Toilet facilities are shared although a few have ensuite toilets. Hot showers are available for a fee, typically 500 Nepalese rupees or about US$4.32. Charging your electronic devices also costs 500 rupees. Some groups sleep in tents, although they look like fairly permanent tents.
Meals are fairly basic. I would not call them Nepalese food. You find pizza, spaghetti, basic Chinese food like chowmein and fried rice; Indian food like dal bhat, curry, roti; Western food like sandwiches and burgers; some baked goods, etc. Considering you are in the wilderness, the food is not bad. Most tea houses serve similar type of food. The prices go up the further in you go. Our appetites varies, depending on our physical conditions. I don't recall anyone in our group having stomach ailments after eating any of the meals.
Our meals are in the big dining hall of the tea houses. All the trekkers congregate there because that's the only room in the tea house that is heated. The rooms are not heated so we have to sleep in sleeping bags because temperatures outside drop down to around freezing at night. The higher the elevation the colder it gets.
The guides and tea-houses have a mutually beneficial relationship. At each tea-house our guides became our personal waiters. They took our orders and keep track of what we ate and drank. At the end of our stay they tallied up our bill. We pay them and they give the money to the tea-house. In return they get free meals and lodging from the tea-house. Lodging may be dormitory-style or in the tent but at least they have to pay for them. This works very well because the tea-houses are minimally staff and English is not a comfortable language for them. Our guides know us and help us get our food and drinks faster.
About a month before the trip, I found this website that provides very good information about Nepal and trekking in Nepal. It gave me a better idea of what the trek is like, the terrain and what type of people go on these hikes in Nepal. Still, there were a lot of unanswered questions: logistically and mentally.
I finally flew to and arrived in Kathmandu on October 7, three days before the hike. I wanted to give my body a chance to get over some jet lag and get used to my new environment. I typically do this, arriving at a travel destination a couple of days before to get a feel for the place. There were five of us: Stephanos, Vicki, Ellen, Bert, and myself. The rest of the group arrived a day later. We hung around the hotel and walked to Thamel, an area about 1 km from the hotel that caters to tourists and trekkers. We withdrew money from the ATM or exchanged for Nepalese Rupees from the many money changers in the area. We took a half-day tour of the city and visited a shelter for trafficked girls called Maiti. In hindsight we should've taken a more comprehensive 1-day tour of the city to understand what life is like in Kathmandu. There are a lot of pros and cons about the city, as I've written in the previous post.
In the next few posts I will explain in more detail each segment of the trek. I use the words trek and hike interchangeably because they mean the same thing. Americans prefer to say hike whereas the rest of the world like to use the word trek. One thing I want to clarify is that we are NOT climbing Mount Everest. That is a completely different ball game which takes much much more effort, time and money to accomplish. This trek is just to the Everest Base Camp, where almost all climbs to Mount Everest start. This usually happens in April and May, when conditions are most conducive to summiting the highest peak in the world.
The trekking season is usually from September to November. This is the dry season and temperatures are just right for trekking. All of us in the group except Stephanos, did not know what to expect on the trek. Stephanos attempted this trek two years ago but ran into health issues just before the end of the trek. Our plan was to take 8 days to hike to Gorak Shep, the last settlement on the trail and then on the next day hike to EBC and immediately turn around to start on the 4-day return trip to Lukla, the first settlement on the trail.
 |
| Trek Route to Everet Base Camp (from wildernesstravel.com) |
Day 5 11-Oct-2018 Thursday Fly Kathmandu to Lukla (9380 feet/ 2860 meters), Trek
to Monjo (9315 feet/ 2840 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 6 12-Oct-2018 Friday Trek to Namche Bazaar (11,280 feet / 3440 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 7 13-Oct-2018 Saturday Acclimatization Day in Namche (B) Local Tea House
Day 8 14-Oct-2018 Sunday Trek to Tengboche (12,664 feet/ 3860 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 9 15-Oct-2018 Monday Trek to Dingboche (14,465 feet/ 4410 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 10 16-Oct-2018 Tuesday Acclimatization Trek to Chukhung (15,518 ft) or
Chukhung Ri (18,196 feet) & Return to Dingboche (B) Local Tea House
Day 11 17-Oct-2018 Wednesday Trek to Lobuche (16,109 ft/ 4910 meters) (B) Local Tea House
Day 12 18-Oct-2018 Thursday Trek to Gorak Shep (16,863 feet/ 5140 meters)/ Climb
to Kala Patthar (18,187 feet) (B) Local Tea House
Day 13 19-Oct-2018 Friday Trek to Kala Patthar or Everest Base Camp (17,590
feet/ 5267 meters) and then to Pheriche (13,907ft) (B) Local Tea House
Day 14 20-Oct-2018 Saturday Trek to Tengboche (B) Local Tea House
Day 15 21-Oct-2018 Sunday Trek to Jorsale or Monjo (B) Local Tea House
Day 16 22-Oct-2018 Monday Trek to Lukla (9,184ft) (BLD) Everest Summit Lodge
Day 17 23-Oct-2018 Tuesday Lukla to Kathmandu (B) Hotel Tibet
Many of these stops have names ending in "boche." It means settlement. And that's what they are, settlements or small villages but not quite a town. They get smaller the further in you go. They are there mostly to serve the trekkers. They are fairly primitive and all their supplies have to be carried in, either by porters, mules or yaks. Hence, things in general are more expensive the further in you go.
Tea houses are lodgings. Most of them have rooms with double occupancy but some have dorm rooms. Toilet facilities are shared although a few have ensuite toilets. Hot showers are available for a fee, typically 500 Nepalese rupees or about US$4.32. Charging your electronic devices also costs 500 rupees. Some groups sleep in tents, although they look like fairly permanent tents.
Meals are fairly basic. I would not call them Nepalese food. You find pizza, spaghetti, basic Chinese food like chowmein and fried rice; Indian food like dal bhat, curry, roti; Western food like sandwiches and burgers; some baked goods, etc. Considering you are in the wilderness, the food is not bad. Most tea houses serve similar type of food. The prices go up the further in you go. Our appetites varies, depending on our physical conditions. I don't recall anyone in our group having stomach ailments after eating any of the meals.
 |
| Tea House in Dingboche |
The guides and tea-houses have a mutually beneficial relationship. At each tea-house our guides became our personal waiters. They took our orders and keep track of what we ate and drank. At the end of our stay they tallied up our bill. We pay them and they give the money to the tea-house. In return they get free meals and lodging from the tea-house. Lodging may be dormitory-style or in the tent but at least they have to pay for them. This works very well because the tea-houses are minimally staff and English is not a comfortable language for them. Our guides know us and help us get our food and drinks faster.
No comments:
Post a Comment