Everest sunset from Base Camp.

Lexi Quinton has been a client of Explore Himalaya for years. This year she came to Nepal all the way from England on the early October to explore the trekking experience to the Everest Base Camp 5364m. Her trek started on October 8. She made the successful trek to The Everest Base Camp with the group of sixteen. We have few of her lines regarding the trek and her stay in Nepal.

“It was difficult to spot the signs at airport arrivals but once found the service was excellent. Check-in at hotel was smooth and the welcome drinks were appreciated. It was understandable to wait for a while for rooms given how busy the hotel was. Transportation were safe, well driven, clean and comfortable.”

Valley view.

“Quality of the meals during the trek was very good. However, I would suggest the variation in the menu. The offers to pay for ‘ala carte’ alternatives were appreciable. Tea- house staffs were generally very welcoming, helpful and polite.”

“Our guide Dayula Sherpa changed the itinerary to allow for better acclimatization and rest. It was an improvement from the original itinerary. Dayula was fantastic and his team was always polite, helpful and supportive throughout.”

“It would be better if the entire trekking staffs including porters and cooks would show up at Lukla to welcome and get know- how with the clients. I would suggest including 1-2 liters of boiled water each day per person.”

Watching Everest.

Pics: Explore Himalaya.

Everest has been the most adventurous region for decades.

Every year Explore Himalaya organizes the Everest Skydive in the region.

Explore Himalaya Travel and Adventure recently organized Everest Base Camp trek excluding Kathmandu portion for our 2 valuable clients (Mr. Joel Hugo Mendizabal Brunat and Ms. Joana Maria Amigo Serra) from Spain. They were escorted on this trek of 13 days by our experience guide Bal Kumar Tamang starting from Lukla-EBC-Lukla. Accordingly to their feedback they had a wonderful trek and had a life time experience to reach the base camp of world highest mountain in the world Mt. Everest (8848 m). They found the people of Everest region very friendly and helpful.

From our side we tried our best to satisfy their needs and help to complete the trip without any hassle which they appreciated very much.

Everest Base Camp Trek

Stephen Keller from Brazil arrived in Kathmandu on 22nd March 2012 to do Everest base camp trek with Explore Himalaya. This being his first experience to trek above the altitude of 5000m, he had been practicing walking and running daily back at home.

Consequently, he completed the trek without any hitch and was very happy to reach the foot of the world highest mountain “Mt. Everest”. He thanked our guide Ashok Tamang and porter for making his trip a memorable one during the trek and wishes to return to Nepal in near future.

And here’s Samir’s account:

“The story of my journey began when I unexpectedly received an offer from my office, Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure to visit an Everest region. It was like a dream come true as going on a Trek to Everest was something I had dreamed of. This was a kind of educational tour for me and besides understanding the nature, culture & people of Khumbu, my interest was also to collect information about the lodges en-route and see what facilities are available.

Lukla Airport

April 22, 2011 – Prachanda and myself boarded a plane for  Lukla o. Flight to Lukla was exciting and also adventurous as the airport is situated 2,900 meters above sea level. The runway is short : just around 1,500 feet long and 65 feet wide. The high altitude & unstable weather often makes the landing difficult. Thus the airport is regarded as one of the most extreme in the world. Thanks to skilled pilots for making it as safe as always. Upon landing in Lukla airport we were greeted by local residents. It was an unexpected thing because we were just a normal traveler not VIP or any special people. Soon we understood that the people were celebrating some local festival. We were just at the right place at the right time. After having breakfast , we began our journey to Namche. We crossed  the suspension bridge over Dudh Koshi River before reaching Namche Bazaar. The village has many shops and lodges where one can find almost everything required for trekking, although prices are higher than in Kathmandu. It has many internet cafes making it one of the few places in the region where trekkers can access the internet.

Feeling reverential at the first of sight of Mt. Everest

April 23, 2011 – We continued our trek to Tengboche passing by several villages and tea shops. The first half of the trek was easy as we descended  to a bridge at Phunki Tenga. From there the trails turned vertical until we reached Tengboche. At Tengboche we visited Tengboche Monastery or Thyangboche Monastery which is also known as Dawa Choling Gompa. Built by Lama Gulu in 1916, the Monastery is largest in Khumbu region and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We could see Tawache, Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, AmaDablam and Thamserku towering above us . We further continued our trek to Pangboche. On the way we encountered mountain goats grazing in the rocky hills.

April 25, 2011
It was a challenging day for us. We were at Pangboche which is close to Ama Dablam Base Camp but going there was not the part of our program. We were on a tight schedule and the Base Camp was high and steep. But we finally decided to go. Upon reaching Base Camp the weather turned foggy and  we were hit by wind and snow. We explored the Base Camp and chatted with climbers. It was an amazing experience and the landscape was superb.  Afterwards we descended to Pangboche for lunch and continued to Pheriche.

Lobuche

April 26, 2011
Our initial plan was to spend one extra night at Pheriche for acclimatization but we were also concerned about the gain in altitude next day. The difference is altitude from Pheriche (4,252 m) to Lobuche is 678 m. This put us on a confused stage whether to go for Lobuche or spend a night in Thugla (4,620 m) as we were concerned about altitude sickness.  In the end spending a night in Thugla seemed like a better idea. But since there was only one guest house (Yak Lodge), we were unsure about the availability of room.  Luckily the owner of the lodge at Pheriche asked someone (going ahead of us) to book a room for us. Upon reaching Thugla it all turned cloudy and there was heavy snowfall.

Everest Base Camp
April 27, 2011
It was a sunny day and the weather was good. We were ready to head off but soon the last night’s heavy snows started to melt. It made the trail wet and slippery. Crossing Thugla Pass seemed impossible, but we carried on. At the top of this pass were many stone cairns, built as memorials to dead climbers. We passed through Lobuche Base Camp which was close to the trail to Lobuche.

April 28, 2011
This day was definitely the most challenging for us.  Upon reaching Gorakshep (5,170 m) we climbed Kalapattar (5,545 m) which is a big hill below the magnificent south face of Pumori. It is also one of the finest view points in the Everest region. We had close-up views of Himalayan giants like Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, Pumori, Ama Dablam, Changtse, Tabuche, Khumbutse, Lingtren etc.

Everest Base Camp

April 29, 2011
Next day I trekked to Everest Base Camp (5,364 m) and met the expedition team. They were all very happy to see me. Everest Base Camp was a beautiful place but surprisingly I could not see the Everest from there. It was hidden behind the massive Nuptse and other mountains. The landscape of the Base Camp was quite different. It was a glacier of ice, sand and rocks and one had to be cautious while walking around. There are many sections where ice is hidden beneath sand & rocks which makes the trail slippery. I headed down to Thugla where Prachanda was waiting. He did summit Kalapattar but unfortunately couldn’t make it to Base Camp due to altitude sickness.

April 30, 2011
Now we could relax a bit as we were descending. But going downhill proved to be equally painful as it strained our legs. We spent a night at Tengboche.

May 01 – 03, 2011
The brand new day was sunny and pleasant. We packed our bags and started the journey. Just half way to Namche we were hit by rain and snow. We somehow arrived in Namche and reached Lukla the next day and from there we caught the flight to Kathmandu.

The trek was truly wonderful and once-in-a life time experience. Thanks to Explore Himalaya specially Suman Sir, Nabin Sir & helpful friends!”

The Everest Peace Project’s trek to Everest Base Camp concluded recently. Lance Trumbull, the leader of the expedition has been kind enough to share some  photographs of the trek with us. Here are some images from the Everest Peace Project’s trek to Everest Base Camp. (Read our earlier blog post)

Everest Peace Project’s team at Kala Patthar

Expedition Leader Lance Trumbull

Lance with Explore Himalaya’s Sherpas

At EBC

Team – Everest Peace Project

Mount Everest(left) & Nuptse(right)

Khumbu ice fall & a helicopter flying over it

Namche

Inside Tengboche Monastery

A little Sherpa girl & Mount Ama Dablam in the background

(Photos Courtesy: The Everest Peace Project,www.EverestPeaceProject.org)