Day 9: Lobuche to Gorak Shep to Kala Pattar to Gorak Shep

We set off early for Gorak Shep, the highest camping site for our trip, as we had heard that accomodation was hard to get. Unfortunately it seems that we were not the only ones to think of this and along the way we must have passed over 100 trekkers, Sherpa's and porters. We followed the lateral moraine of the Khumbu Glacier all the way up the valley.  We were  pretty fast and got into Gorak Shep before most but still had some difficulty securing accomodation (which we eventually managed for 300/- per night).

Gorak Shep is the last town before Everest Base Camp and is located right at the foot of Kala Pattar. There are perhaps 7 buildings in the town all together and one gets a sense that no one wants to be here for too long.

We got in around 10am and made plans to head up Kala Pattar (5550m) for what would probably be our best views of Everest. Before heading off we sat up on the helicopter pad that over looked the town and Khumbu Glacier and had a nice relaxing time. We saw some beautiful native fowl which were not afraid of us at all and also got an amazing view of an avalanche some 5km away.

After lunch we started off for Kala Pattar and I must say that it was one of the hardest treks we have done so far. The heavy snow fall had left the path covered with ice and snow and there were several times where we slipped and nearly fell. After a very difficult almost 2 hour trek we reached the top, marked by a huge assortment of Buddhist prayer flags, and what an amazing view we had!

The sky was cloudless and blue and Everest could be seen in all her ugly glory. We were treated to views over the back of Kala Pattar of blue glacial lakes and pristine snowy mountains. We witnessed a massive avalanche down the face of Nuptse and were kept company by some native birds that were so fearless they were almost eating out of our hands. Ama Dablam stood strong and high way off in the distance, it was amazing to think that only 2 days ago we had been standing at its base. The view of the Khumbu Glacier was like no other and we were in awe of its brutal power, pushing aside mountains to get where it wanted to go.

We stayed up on the mountain for the sunset where we were treated to an amazing view. Everest and the surrounding mountains slowly went from brilliant white to an amazing orange as the sky changed from blue to purple to grey. Clouds crept up the valley way below us and the entire view was just incredible. The temperature dropped suddenly below freezing and as we made our way down by the light of our head torches over slippery ice and snow we couldn't help but be amazed at what we had seen.

When we arrived back to Gorak Shep we were covered with ice and as we entered exhausted into our room we realised that it would give us no comfort as temperatures inside were close to -10 degrees.

Day 6: Tengboche to Dingboche

After some planning we decided to head to Dingboche instead of Pheriche. Not only was this a slightly higher altitude but it also meant that we were able to keep the company of our new friends a little longer.

Our new friends were Rob (from England), Hanna (from Wales) and James (from Canada). They were all really lovely and our walks were filled with a range of conversations from latest movies to the production process of Maple Syrup. Time passed a lot quicker in their company.

We started around 8am from Tengboche and had a wonderful gradual trek through beautiful rhododendron forests which were laden with Old Man's Beard (a light green stringy lichen that hangs from the branches of the tree).

We worked our way up the valley at a reasonably even altitude passing through a few small towns along the way before coming to a broken bridge that was washed away in some flooding years ago. We crossed over the Imja Khola river on a small wooden bridge and then began our ascent up to Dingboche.

On the journey we met a German man who had been a part of a group of 6 who after crossing the Reno La on their way to Gokyo were hit by the bad weather mentioned yesterday. His group was travelling alongside a group of 8 who were also following the same trek but during the white out caused by the heavy snow the groups were separated. His group were in the front and all the way to Gokyo they heard the sound of avalanches tumbling down the valley. Hours later they finally reached Gokyo settled into the first lodge they found and we're having dinner when suddenly 5 of the 8 members of the other group burst in and immediately the Sherpa guides started on the radios calling in for Search and Rescue - aparently part of the group had been hit by an avalanche and three members were knocked down the mountain and were presumed dead. A grim idea of how terrible conditions have been. Aparently it was the heaviest October snowfall received in 15 years.

The terrain suddenly changed and before we knew it there were no trees to be found, shrubs and grasses replaced them and after a winding 30 minutes ascending up the mountain we found ourselves in the snow. I have never trekked in snow before so it was a wonderful (all be it slippery) experience. We continued to ascend until finally we came around a corner and saw the town of Dingboche.

Dingboche (4410m) took us by surprise, located right at the base of Mt Nangkar Tshang (5616m) not only was it huge compared to all the other towns we had passed since Namchee but the location could not be beaten. Lhotse was in full view but was shadowed by Ama Dablams North Face which towered majestically over the town as it was only 4km away.

We checked into our accomodation had some lunch and then wearing sandals or flip flops we headed up a large snow covered hill behind Dingboche. Our footwear would not get the best of us as we scraped and clawed our way up through the snow to the top where we were given views off a completely new mountain range that was at the bottom of the Khumbu Glacier. The views were out of this world and we would have stayed up there admiring them longer if it had not been for the bitter cold which drove us down the hill and into our warm rooms.

Our accomodation was amazing and the staff were even better. The lodge we stayed at was called the Snow Lion Lodge and Restaurant. We celebrated Aaron's 30th birthday with a wonderful chocolate cake from the bakery attached the lodge.

Good news is that Aaron seems to finally be beating his cold and my knees are no longer giving me pain on our treks. Got my first blister however... So that sucks a little.

Day 4: Namchee Bazaar to Tengboche

Woke up to the sound of no rain on our roof. Opened our window and there were blue skies all around -not a cloud in the sky. We quickly packed our bags, downed a quick breakfast and headed off for our next destination, Tengboche.

The walk was amazing, beautiful valleys... snowy peaks all around us glistening in the morning sun and then suddenly there she was... Mt Everest... "The ugly sister in a room full of beautiful women" as she was once described. The tallest mountain in the world paled before Ama Dablam with her sharp walls and incredible structure. Lhotse was also standing out and looking extremely impressive with her pointy peak. I just had to sit down for a moment... Take it all in. Wow.

Stopped again for a brief moment at a stream to fill our drink bottles before continuing downward. As we walked on the mountains came closer and closer till it almost felt like we could reach out and touch them. The trek led us to Sanasa then on to Phungi Thanga where we stopped for a quick bowl of noodles before the long ascent to Tengboche. We crossed another amazing bridge where we had to wait for yet another set of yaks and then almost immediately the ascent began.

Two solid hours of up hill trekking brought us to the beautiful town of Tengboche with its open green pastures and incredible views. We headed straight to the local monastery (or Goomba) mistaking it for a hotel (to which a little monk kindly explained it wasnt). Tried another place but they were already full and then on our third attempt we got a double room at 200 rupees a night (AUD$2.10). Score!

We dropped our bags in our room and then raced outside as clouds were beginning to set in and we wanted to get some good photos. Headed back to the monastery and got a few snaps of everything around it, took some pics of a yak then headed inside to get some lunch and get warm.