Namaste (hello in Nepalese)

Day 1- Friday 29 February 2008
London to Kathmandu

Here we are! After many months of preparation, training and fundraising I meet my fellow lunatic trekkers at Heathrow. The evening flights via Doha (Qatar) to Kathmandu take us about 17 hours without incident.

Day 2 - Saturday 1 March
Arrive in Kathmandu

The culture shock has started. Transfer to hotel through the streets of Kathmandu in time for briefing meeting and welcome dinner in Nepalese Restaurant.

Day 3 - Sunday 2 March
Fly Kathmandu to Luckla

The adventure starts as we fly into Lukla set deep in the spectacular Himalayan mountain range in a fourteen seater plane and landing on the tiny airstrip 500 yards long. There are no vehicles to be seen everything is carried by porters or cattle. Here we meet with our porters who rely heavily on trekking and mountaineering which are the backbone of the local economy. We begin our stunning trek with our five hour hike to Monjo (2815m) where we camp overnight and experience our first Nepalese vegetarian dinner. Considering the circumstances and conditions the meal is a success in spite of the lack of wine. Bryan my tent partner and I find it a bit challenging to organise ourselves and all our gear in such a confined space. Finally, we can go to bed.

Day 4 - Monday 3 March
Monjo - Namche Bazaar

My first night in the wilderness of the Himalayas has been an insomniac occasion, between the dogs howling and the Yaks' bell, our tent party has been very short. Our first breakfast with porridge, muesli and boiled eggs and Nepalese tea is welcome and seems to have made up for the night's inconvenience. This morning we take a steady climb through the fertile Dudh Kosi Valley, with its many farms and settlements. An hour before we reach Namche Bazaar (3450m), the most important Sherpa town and a former trading centre with Tibet, heavy snow starts falling and makes the steep climb more difficult. I feel for the poor porters wearing hardly any shoes carrying over 100kgs of goods on their back to higher altitude to the different villages along the route for a pittance. We start to feel the altitude here as the air begins to get thinner. Finally we arrive in Namche Bazaar in groups, some of us are pretty wet and tired after a 6 hour trek. The doc is starting to be of use. The snow has made me realize that this is the last opportunity to purchase any missing essential equipment.

Day 5 - Tuesday 4 March
Acclimatization day at Namche Bazaar

Another night of bells and howling concerto, we are starting to get sort of used to it. Disturbed sleep during the first few nights at altitude is common and normal, partly due to the added intake of water to keep the body hydrated. The continuous going up and down of the tents' zip and silhouettes about the camp in search of the field toilets is a common sight. Today is a rest day to acclimatize. However, Jeff and Grant our fun loving Scottish guides working for CAT the charity organising the trek for BHF have planned a small morning climb of 300 m to make sure we are not getting out of shape. The afternoon is dedicated to visiting the town. Namche Bazaar has a fantastic atmosphere and is well worth exploring, with its Buddhist monastery and distant views of Everest and Ama Dablam . The warm, outgoing nature and friendliness of the villagers and Nepalese makes you very welcome. Dinner is served at 7pm. It's bed time at 9pm. Getting ready for bed in our confined space requires a bit of practice and organising, particularly has we have been advised to expect a very cold night -10o Celsius.

Day 6 - Wednesday 5 March
Namche Bazaar - Tengboche

In the morning we leave the trading post of Namche Bazaar behind us as we set off deeper into the mountains. Within an hour the towering summit of Ama Dablam appears to the East, while glimpses of Everest lure us onwards. The gentle trail crosses the Dudh Kosi River at Phuki Teng where we start the long climb up to Thyangboche (3860m). Along the way a small Yak convoy in a hurry scares the life out of our small group by pushing their way ahead on this very narrow path with a sharp fall on one side. We reach the monastery. Dhala our Sherpa is talking to a Buddhist monk friend in charge of the temple and we are allowed to take a visit inside. Leaving the Monastery in the wood below close to the path a cow lies dead. Camp has been set up below the monastery. Temperature is pretty low and we are expecting a cold night. The meal served in the lodge is most welcome and helps us get warm. The fuel used in the fire is dried Yak's dung, very ecological!

Day 7 - Thursday 6 March
Tengboche - Pheriche

Our daily wake up call is 6am with a cup of tea. Most people are using earplugs by now due to the heavy snoring in the camp. Straight after breakfast we start the day descending to the Dudh Kosi River through the rhododendron forests which unfortunately are not yet in bloom. We continue on to Pangboche village where the monastery once held a yeti scalp, apparently stolen a few years back! Unfortunately, the first casualty, the oldest member in our party has been declared by the doc unfit to go further and will need to go slowly back down. After having said our farewell to Derek asking him to promise not to drink all the beer on his way back we move onto Pheriche (4252m). The altitude really starts to tell. Our camp has already been set up when we get to Pheriche. A light wind blows clouds over the mountains and makes the temperature pretty cold. Another chilly night in perspective!

Day 8 - Friday 7 March
Acclimatisation day at Pheriche

To help us acclimatise to the increasing altitude, Jeff and Grant have decided that a small walk to higher altitude is better than just resting; the walk offers good views of the mountains surrounding us and keeps us from being bored. Back at camp we visit the Pheriche clinic, a trekkers' aid post where an American doctor offering medical assistance gives us a very informative talk on Acute Mountain Sickness. Later on some of us have decided to do a bit of laundry to use the spare time. During the evening meal we hear that Steve will have to be flown back to Kathmandu by Helicopter the next day.

Day 9 - Saturday 8 March
Pheriche - Lobuche

The night has been very cold -12o Celsius, I wore almost all my gear. Leaving Pheriche, we head over dry grazing lands, climbing gradually to Dughla. From there the trail goes directly into the surrounding stony wastes where the terminal moraines (debris) of the mighty Khumbu Glacier are, then into the memorial area, before reaching Lobuche (4930m) - a small cluster of shepherds' huts and tea houses. The 700 m height difference has made an impact on quite a few of the group. Our comfort is that we will be sleeping in a lodge tonight, the best birthday present I could have wished for in the circumstances to celebrate my 50th.

Kate, the BHF representative has organised a surprise birthday celebration on top of the world or near it!! With Sherpas singing and dancing. What a treat!! I am not too sure how the Chef managed to bake a cake without an oven at 5000m or thereabouts, everyone seems to enjoy it. What a feat!!

Day 10 - Sunday 9 March
Lobuche - Gorak Shep

The doc has had a busy early morning. A few people in group are suffering due to the altitude. We hear at breakfast of another casualty, our group is getting smaller. Hemmed in by high peaks, the early morning sun is slow to reach Lobuche. As we leave the village and skirt the tongue of the Khumbu Glacier, the sun is first to hit Pumori (7161m). We traverse a chaos of glacial debris where an adjoining glacier flows down from Changri La. In the rarefied air, around 50% oxygen, we need frequent stops but we are lucky with the weather and enjoy the stunning views all around. After a 7 hour journey we reach our camp at Gorek Shep (5170m). Due to the very tight trekking schedule inflicted on us some members of our group decide to do the optional trek to the summit of Kala Pattar (5623m) to enjoy the sunset of Everest's black south west face. The lack of oxygen is getting to me and symptoms of AMS are starting to show. The doc puts me on Diamox to reduce the effects of AMS.

Day 11 - Monday 10 March
Everest Base Camp

This morning I woke up feeling much better and ready for the final assault of our BHF challenge. After our daily preparation of high factor sun-block and barrier cream we set off in the footsteps of many Everest summit climbers. We may even meet a current summit expedition group!

We head to the foot of the Khumbu's tortured ice field that stretches away in an unbroken panorama of snowcapped mountains. Finally, we reach the site of the base camps of many Everest Expeditions (5364m). Sadly, there is no summit expedition group and there's hardly any view of Everest from base camp but it's still an emotional moment.

Although exhausted by the 8 hour trek, everyone enjoys another birthday celebration that evening.

Day 12 - Tuesday 11 March
Gorak Shep - Pangboche

We start our descent through the Imja Khola Valley to Pangboche (3901m), with its 300 year old monastery containing wall paintings and Tibetan manuscripts. The trek back down is relatively easy, but it seems endless because of the many uphill climbs. Again we trekked for 8 hours; this in comparison has been fairly easy. We've really noticed the comparative abundance of oxygen in the air as we drop in altitude.

Day 13 - Wednesday 12 March
Pangboche - Monjo

After leaving Pangboche, we pass through Deboche (2757m) and continue on to Tengboche Monastery which is magically set amidst soaring peaks with impressive views of the shapely Ama Dablam. The scenery changes yet again as we walk through woodlands to reach Namche Bazaar. On our way down we meet new groups of trekkers going up, some of them looking quite exhausted and local people usually carrying extraordinary heavy loads of various items.

The trail descends to the Dudh Kosi where there are several small lodges and a series of picturesque water-driven prayer wheels before climbing to the high suspension bridge over the river and then continueing on to Monjo.

Day 14 - Thursday 13 March
Monjo - Lukla

This is the last part of our trek in Nepal, realizing that for almost two weeks we have discovered some of the most spectacular and beautiful scenery in the world. From here the deep valley drops away as we retrace our steps to Lukla where we celebrate the end of our adventure. We say farewell to our porters and Sherpas who will probably be ready for the next trek within the next few days.

Day 15 - Friday 14 March
Fly Lukla to Kathmandu

We fly by Twin Otter planes from the tiny mountain airstrip back to Kathmandu, with a last chance to glimpse the mighty snowcapped Himalaya in the distance. Stepping off the plane into Kathmandu is a bit of a shock - the sounds, sights, people and smells can be quite exhausting. Back to the hotel. Everybody is excited at the prospect of a nice shower and a beer, in my case a glass of wine.

In memory of Robert

Everest Photos