All posts tagged: Namche

DAY 15 Namche to Phakding

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We are truly on the home stretch when wake up is 7.30, and we don’t need to leave till 10…so, some random thoughts/insights on our fellow trek warriors. 1. They come in all ages, male & female equally, and in varying states of preparation & condition. 2. Dinner conversation in luxury apartment (anywhere in China)… “What do we want to do for our next holiday? How about a nice stroll in Nepal?” Next week!! “Better prepare by getting the best gear, must be organised”. 3. Re point 2, a lot of mainly Chinese, but not exclusively, seem very ill prepared physically. The pain on some faces at the start of a climb, and the agonising, crawling pace makes you wonder if they will ever complete any days trek, let alone the whole thing! 4. Lots of chirpy banter on day one, less so day two, almost none by day five! 5. We saw some spectacular outfits, from the stunning crocheted poncho, ultra wide brimmed hatted, monster sunglasses ensemble; thru to the parasol shaded gent staggering …

DAY 14 Dingboche to Namche

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Today looks to be a long one, so up early for breakfast and hoofing it by about 7.30. Breakfast was a little slow, and then the attractive aroma of someone’s scent (read BO!!) had us rushing outside, screaming for mercy. Oh, the humanity!! Finally, de-scented, we headed off for lunch at Tengboche, which houses the most famous Monastery in the region. The walk was mainly uneventful, rolling hills with a few ups and downs, including a solid climb to the monastery which sits proud on the mountain ridge. The monastery was quite beautiful, which Liz would attest to if only she hadn’t been wearing shorts! Read the fine print, Liz!! A nice lunch with spectacular views back to Everest, then the long descent to the valley floor. We spent over an hour going down, while hundred of miserable suckers (umm, I mean, trekkers) slogged their way up, up, up! One nasty hill climb to Tengboche Monastery. Actually, murder on the feet going down, not that we would have got much/any sympathy from the climbers. We …

DAY 5 Khumjung to Dole

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We woke this morning to low cloud after rain overnight, before the cloud slowly lifted to reveal a taste of the Himalayas, one peak after another rising out of the mist, giving everyone a glimpse of what was to come. As it was our last morning together we gathered outside for a team photo before heading off at 8.30 for the long trek to Dole (4200mt). The views on the way to lunch were breathtaking, soaring peaks descending to the valley floor on both sides with us zigzagging our way both up and down along a thin ridge, forest of rhododendron and pine splitting the pathway, shear drops to the raging river below. We had morning tea at the Everest View tea house (3950mt), falsely advertised sadly as she was covered in mist, before cruelly descending back to 3600mt for our farewell lunch to the EBC crew, who we will see again briefly as our paths will cross in about a week. The highlight of the day for Rachael was being able to get enough …

Days 1 to3 Kathmandu to Namche

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Leaving Kathmandu for Lukla, hopefully. A busy day today with a 4am start to be at the airport by 6, for a 6.30 flight to Lukla to start our trek. That is if the weather permits us flying, as the airport at Lukla is a manual landing requiring visual contact with the runway. Lukla airport is regarded as one of the hairiest places to land in the world, being both steep and short, finishing up the hill by a stone wall. Go too fast and the wall greets a new friend, misjudge the landing and crash into the ravine. Being able to see the runway becomes somewhat important, and the early morning weather deemed this improbable, so we sat around the unairconditioned departure lounge waiting for the clouds to lift. 6.30 turned into 9.30, then luckily we had the all clear to board for the 30 minute flight on a tiny 17 seater twin prop plane. But not before sitting on the tarmac for 30 minutes in the searing heat with no air conditioning in …