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Actually it's not the bottom as Everest is 8848m and Base Camp is 5360m but more on that later. Here's how we got there......
Trek Day 4 - Phortse Gaon
I woke up in the middle of the night with a stinking cold which didn't bode well for the days ahead. I found this day harder than the one leading up to Namche Bazaar. The views, however, were breathtaking (literally). This is one of those occasions I can bring myself to use the word awesome! We were blessed with the weather and it was stunning blue skies all round. We caught a glimpse of the summit of Everest. Great to see except it looked tiny due to all the giant mountains closer to us. We were surrounded by several of the tallest mountains in the world. Just spectacular. The only way to really know what I'm talking about is to come here and see it for yourself!
We stopped for a tea break and the oldest guy in our group who's probably in his 50s decided to walk ahead, mainly because of a pride problem and he doesn't want to be last in the group. He was told to wait at the crossroads but when we got there he wasn't there. This caused huge issues as we didn't know if he had gone the right way or not. One of the guides had to go the other way to see if he could find him while another had to literally sprint ahead to try and find him. We finally tracked him down, no apology, nothing. You can only imagine how well that went down with me!
We walked for about 4 hours uphill for lunch at just over 4000m. The clouds then started to come down so we set off as we still had a few hours to walk. Now that was tough. We walked an hour downhill which was hard on the knees (very glad I bought the knee supports; they will be essential for the descent) and finally reached the river where we then had to climb up the other ride of the mountain to the village. In a few years' time you can guarantee that they will have built a suspension bridge across the valley as it would then only take 10 minutes to reach. I was absolutely knackered. I didn't think I had it in me to make it to the village. My breathing was so short and sharp, my nose running, my cough irritating (and it's really hard to cough when you can't take a deep breath in) and I had started to get a headache. We finally reached the village and when they said our tea house was further up the hill I just burst into tears. I was so overwhelmed and emotional. After a little weep and a chocolate digestive kindly donated by the Irish couple, I felt better and settled down to a pot of mint tea and a snickers. Our rooms were very basic - and freezing! There was a lovely squat toilet in a rickety shack and a bucket of cold water for communal washing, teeth brushing etc. There were no curtains in our room and ours was next to a narrow lane and yaks kept walking past looking in. Most disconcerting! An hour later we were having dinner. I feel like an old fart.....dinner at 6, bed by 9! The quality of the food has definitely plummeted in the last 400m in altitude. But, you have to force it down otherwise you have no energy to walk. We all sat around the edge of the dining room in a really strange set up. It felt like we were back at school, but in the Victorian days. There was a cast iron wood burner in the middle of the room where they burnt yak dung. In 5 minutes we were all stripping down to T-shirts. The owner of the tea house is a legend. His name is Karma Rita Sherpa and he's been to the summit of Everest 8 times as a guide. He had been at Base Camp as he is one of 70 guides leading an expedition of 35 people to the summit (his 9th ascent!) but everything has been delayed due to the avalanche. Many of his friends died so it was pretty sad. He had just 'popped' back to his village for 2 days before heading back. It takes him 2 days to get there. It will hopefully take us 4 days from this village! He sounds like a crazily fit guy. He's done the Everest marathon 3 times which involves running from Base Camp down to Namche Bazaar, a journey that is taking us 5 days. They do it in something silly like 5 hours. Apparently there are 32 expeditions waiting to go but 3 have already pulled out after the tragedy the other day.
I had a few other weird things tonight - severe pins and needles in my hands and feet that were really painful and I had a few nose bleeds. I'm prone to nose bleeds though so not too worried about that.
We were in bed by 8.30 and it was freezing! I was determined not to have to get up in the night as it was so bloody cold. I've camped in minus 5 and I've skied in much colder but I'm convinced I've never been as cold as I was last night. Anyway, I managed to be a grown up and slept all the way through until 5am, just in time to get up for the sunrise over the mountains.
Trek Day 5 - Dingboche
The days seem to be getting tougher instead of easier. After managing to warm up over breakfast, we set off this morning all wrapped up in hats and gloves. It was bitterly cold. The first few hundred metres were so steep and I really struggled. The whole morning alternated between steep sections on really narrow trails with a sheer drop to the side and pleasant flat sections that felt like a Sunday amble. On the steep sections, I found it challenging to breathe. It's hard to describe unless you've been at altitude but I felt as though my heart was going to jump out of my chest, closely followed by my lungs. Everyone was on pretty good form today though with a couple of exceptions of people physically throwing up. We all made it to the lunch stop after which we saw some ridiculous scenery. Myself and Karen kept saying it was just stupid. Mountains higher than you can ever imagine. We kept catching glimpses of the summit of Everest but the other mountains are much closer and look so much more impressive. We reached our night stop of Dingboche, which sits at 4410m. We have 2 nights here as an acclimatization stop. It was at this point that people started dropping like flies. Severe headaches, nausea, dizziness etc. I was reasonably ok, touchwood, although I know I'll get the severe symptoms sooner or later. I've had headaches off and on but other people seem to be really suffering. One of the guys was found in his room, white as a sheet and violently shaking which was a bit scary. He was cold and had a cold. The guides took him tea and made him eat plain rice and he seemed a bit better. Dinner time was a bit subdued. Half the group were chatting but a lot of the group were very quiet and a few had had a tearful moment or two, even the boys! One of the symptoms of altitude sickness is loss of appetite but I am still eating like a horse. I told the group that the day I have no appetite is the day I'm on my deathbed and they should realise something is very wrong! I demolished a big plate of spaghetti and then Karen and I shared an apple pie. Some people just took one look at their plate and pushed it away. I felt for them. Everyone's heart and blood oxygen readings had changed dramatically today. My oxygen was 87 and he said most people at this altitude are between 50-70. I think I can probably thank the diamox tablets for that although other people taking tablets seem to be suffering more than me. I decided to mix up my tea choice tonight and went for ginger tea with a dollop of honey. Good for the sniffly nose and tastes great in the cold weather!
Our tea house tonight was quite cosy. Our rooms looked like prison cells but at least we had duvets we could use for extra warmth. There was a shared toilet for every 2 rooms that was inside the mdf walls - pure luxury! We all got very excited when we saw it was a western toilet although it didn't flush. We just had a huge barrel of freezing water next to it that we had to scoop in. Still, mustn't grumble as the views were magnificent.
Brushing our teeth was a mission. We had to get our down jackets, hats and gloves on as it was so cold! Another late night tonight......9.15 and tucked up in bed!
Trek Day 6 - Nagarjun Hill
Another decent night's sleep and, although we had a lie in as we weren't setting off til 9am, we were wide awake at 5am. It was soooooo cold that we had to try and get dressed in our sleeping bags. We were drinking water with our gloves on; the bottles were so cold. We couldn't brush our teeth at the sink as the water had frozen. It's only going to get colder from here and I already feel as though I look like a Michelin man, I've got so many layers on! Scary stuff.
Today was another acclimatization day and we had to try and get up to 4,800m so that we will be prepared for tomorrow. We did a crazy climb. It was so steep. A few people gave up and went back down but I was determined (or stubborn). I was leading the tortoises at the back and we finally made it to 4785m. The views were spectacular. I'm running out of adjectives really as you just can't describe it and I know my photos won't do it any kind of justice. Coming down was just as bad as it was so steep and very sandy so quite slippery. I had my hiking pole but I get nervous going downhill and I did fall on my bum at one point. I was more concerned about my camera than anything else! We got back for lunch and then went for a wander to the village. There were a lot of shops but they were just little sheds with all the same stuff - out of date chocolate, crisps and biscuits and a small selection of essentials like baby wipes. While in one shop Karen and I got chatting to a father and son from Australia who were buying toothpaste that was best before 2009. They were asking us if we thought it would be ok. I said we would tell them tomorrow when we saw them on the track and their mouths were clamped shut! They were very funny and they are with a groups of friends who are all elite climbers. 2 of them, in their 60s have summited Everest twice and one was the first Australian to climb above 7000m. We carried on downhill (nothing else to do!) and came across a kind of heaven! A French bakery! It was packed with people and when we got inside we could see why. They had a great selection of freshly baked cakes. I had blueberry cheesecake which was delicious and Karen had apple and cranberry cake which had just come out of the oven. Amazing. It felt like we were in some surreal universe. Outside there were horses, cows, baby yaks......like some wild farmyard!
Talking of surreal, I had 2 very weird dreams last night. One as that we were leaving the tea house and I spotted a door and wondered what it was. When I opened it, it was a proper western toilet, with toilet paper, carpet on the floor, a proper light and a nice smell. It was lit up, almost as though there were angels inside calling us. Ha ha ha. The other dream involved me getting home and Alex, who catsat Harry for a few days, told me me that she thought he had grown slightly. I then saw a giant fat ginger cat with stubby legs. He was almost oblong he was so fat. He also didn't recognize me and bit and scratched me. Separation anxiety?
Some of the group seemed to get worse today with people sleeping for 4-5 hours in the afternoon, not eating, feeling sick and dizzy and experiencing splitting headaches. My headache keeps coming and going but hasn't yet been bad enough to take anything for it. One guy has started to take diamox and is going to make the decision tomorrow whether or not he carries on. I think he'll make it but it's very sensible of him to be prepared not to. There are so many people don't actually make it to Base Camp and it's now becoming very clear why. Our guide spoke to us all this evening and said that those who are currently sick are likely to get worse and there will come a point when he will advise they don't go any further. I really hope I don't get a delayed bout of really bad symptoms. We'll just have to wait and see what happens. Not a lot anyone can do about it.
I had Sherpa stew this evening which was a first and I wish I'd discovered it earlier as it's delicious. Unfortunately one of the local guides gave us some home made chilli. We had a tiny dab but it blew our heads off. I thought my lips were going to explode. I've had blisters on my lips from the sun and wind but the chilli burnt the top layer of skin off so now I seem to be cured!
We were in bed by 8.30pm, preparing for a further ascent tomorrow to 4900m. I am scared now to tell the truth. I'm terrified I won't make it although I'm super determined to give it a damn good try.
Trek Day 7 - Lobuche
Managed almost 9 hours sleep last night, only waking once to go to the loo and the second time to the sound of Karen screaming. I was halfway through asking if she was ok when she sort of said, "sassa frassa crassa hassa". I then realized she was asleep. She screamed again and said the same words. We were killing ourselves laughing as I was reenacting what she'd said. We decided she must have been dreaming about the yeti so screamed and then tried to communicate with him.
Got to breakfast to find that our guide was suggesting the one of our group Danielle, should go to the hospital to get checked out as she'd been sick for a few days. We all set off and about 3 hours later discovered she'd been diagnosed with pneumonia so she had to descend. Gutted. We reach Base Camp tomorrow. I can't imagine how disappointed she must feel.
Today was tough. What's new? We had a fairly leisurely start but it was bitterly cold with an icy wind. We stopped for tea after around 3 hours then came the torturous part. About an hour of solid uphill walking. With very little oxygen. We bumped into the father and son from yesterday. They gave Karen and I some of their dried fruit supplies: goji berries and then mangoes and bananas they'd dried themselves and brought from Australia. I think they must be on a very upmarket trip and probably had most of their stuff choppered in. They're not using Sherpas. Everything is being transported by yaks and they have their own chef.
After the torture, we had just over an hour of fairly ok walking but it started to snow and was freezing. Then, disaster of all disasters, my camera stopped working. That was the straw that broke the camel's back and I spent a good 30 minutes walking on my own balling my eyes out. Reached our night stop of Lobuche which sits at 4928m. Less and less oxygen and every little movement requires so much energy. Even trying to drink while walking or talk while eating wears you out. I immediately grabbed Ben who is Mr Gadget to get him to look at my camera. He took it apart and it was full of moisture. Not really sure how. He asked for some rice and filled a drysac with it and there my camera and lens are sitting, hopefully drying out, unlike my face which is still full of tears. Luckily I have my compact camera with me too but I will be gutted if my SLR has bust.
We had a few hours before dinner so I bought a bowl of hot water to soak my feet. They're so shriveled up you'd think I'd been lying in the bath for a week. No blisters though thank goodness. Went outside for 5 minutes to get some fresh air but nearly froze. Then it started snowing. I'm feeling a bit crappy today. My headache has gone but I feel really spaced out and odd - can't explain it. Really struggling to breathe too and feeling very emotional. I think it's because I never once thought that our group wouldn't make it to Base Camp as a group, even though I know a lot of people don't make it. It brings it all home when someone you know has to give up. I'm scared that I won't make it tomorrow. We have a 9 hour hike and another climb in altitude of 464m. I'm feeling very nervous and stressed.
Even earlier night tonight. In bed by 7.30. It's snowing so slightly concerned that we might be trekking in a foot of snow tomorrow. I'm not sure I've got the right gear. Oh well, guess we'll find out in the morning!
Trek Day 8 - Everest Base Camp
Today I had to muster up every ounce of energy and determination I could. It was the most physically, mentally and emotionally draining thing I have ever done. I made it to Base Camp though so very very proud.
We set off early this morning after breakfast in the dining room which was -7 degrees! My camera has completely died although I'm sure it will revive itself either when I'm back in Kathmandu or in Brisbane. At least I have my little one as a back up.
We heard the latest news on Danielle. She was emergency choppered back to Kathmandu to hospital as she had a minor pulmonary edema in one lung. Scary scary stuff. She'll be fine though as they caught it early enough. Thank goodness our leader forced her to go to the local hospital yesterday, otherwise she could have been in real trouble.
It was a tough 3 hour climb to our overnight tea house in Gorakshep at 5140m. We had a mid morning snack and then set off to Base Camp. I spent a lot of today in tears. I was so emotionally drained and I lost all my confidence. I was convinced I wasn't going to make it and that's a devastating feeling when you've made it this far. Anyway, after a few donated chocolate biscuits and some support, I kept going and then it was only 30 minutes away. We saw where the avalanche was last week. It's so close to all the tents. When we got there, virtually everyone started crying. There were lots of hugs and then the photos started. We weren't allowed down where the tents are as they are on expeditions and we only have trekking passes but that was fine. There's a rock full of prayer flags and a sign for Everest Base Camp at 5360m. A lot of people have scratched or written their names but I didn't really see the point as I don't know who would see it!
We stayed up there around 30 minutes but there was a biting wind and it was freezing cold. I was exhausted and just done in. My heart was beating so fast that I thought it was going to jump out of my mouth. I felt very light headed and a bit nauseous. We had at least a 2.5 hour up and down trek back to our tea house. As we walked away from Base Camp, there was a huge thunderous noise and we witnessed an avalanche. Probably only around 500m away. Scary. The way home was hard. I just wanted to close my eyes and sleep and could actually feel my eyes closing. I then spotted some huts and knew it was our place. Or was it? Maybe it was some weird cold and altitude induced mirage.
We got back at around 4.30. The tea house was in chaos. There are over 80 people staying here and 3 very basic toilets. Drinking 5+ liters a day plus the effects of the diamox mean that I have to pee on average every half an hour......usually exposed behind a small rock during the day and in the horrible so called toilets in the tea houses. I'm surprised I haven't caught anything yet.
People are exhausted but in good spirits. As I write this I'm huddled up in the dining room with 4 layers, my down jacket, a scarf and hat. And I'm still struggling to keep warm. I'm not sure how much sleep I'll be getting and we're due to get up at sparrows fart tomorrow to climb Kala Pattar which sits at 5545m. Apparently there are great views of Everest but I think I'll see how I feel. I have a terrible cough that's now hit my chest so I will start with the anti bios tonight and see if they help.
Trek Day 9 - Kala Pattar and Pheriche
I think today I attempted to do the craziest thing I have ever heard of and probably need my head read for attempting it. We got up at 3.45am and I put virtually every piece of clothing on that I'd brought with me. We then trudged outside wearing head torches to be greeted by about 5 inches of snow. Thank goodness my boots are gortex lined. We then just started climbing up and up and up. The water in the pipe of my camelpak had frozen and I was gasping with the effort and the altitude. Our leader gave me his water bottle and I had to smash the ice on the top. I got about halfway up the 'hill' and my hands were so cold they were in pain. I was wearing thermal liners and thermal gloves but you'd think I just had bare hands and was wearing gloves made of solid ice. I can't describe the cold. I've never felt anything like it in my life. I went a bit further and then decided I would be stupid to carry on and risk getting frostbite or something so I admitted defeat and turned around. I was so frustrated but knew I had to go back. Bhim our leader came with me as I almost skied down the hill I was trying to get down so quickly. I did get two thirds up so reached 5400m. The others reached the top (those that went; the sensible ones stayed in bed!) which was 5445m and apparently I saw the same view; just didn't reach the altitude. They were all frozen and a few if them threw up with the exertion and cold. I saw the sunrise over the mountains which was beautiful and we could see the summit of Everest. We also heard 2 avalanches while we were climbing which were likely to be near Base Camp. It seems that most expeditions are pulling out this year. Apparently the prime minister was there yesterday trying to sort out refunds and compensation for the Sherpas etc. We saw yaks carrying the NBC camera kits etc yesterday and today so I'm guessing they've been covering a lot of the US expeditions.
Anyway, I got back to the tea house at around 6.30am and was invited to sit round the fire with the guides so that I could warm up. The others arrived back about an hour later and we had a well deserved breakfast. It was at that point that a few people started commenting on how blue my lips were - a sign of altitude sickness. I'm now on the watch list but we start our descent today so it should be fine. I hope. We had about a 5 hour (mainly) downhill trek to our overnight stop at Pheriche which sits at around 4100m. There was a lot of traffic on the trail today - we saw more people today than we've seen the whole week and there were loads of yaks going up and down. Weirdly my headache got worse the lower in altitude we got but I think it's because I wasn't drinking enough. My cough is terrible and I started taking antibiotics last night so I'm hoping they will do the trick, along with the sudden blast of oxygen we'll be getting over the next few days.
We arrived in Pheriche via a load of mud, yak wee, yak poo and stepping stones. I felt like I was in an episode of The Crystal Maze (only the Brits will probably know that) and certainly didn't want to choose the wrong stone and fall in. I have no clean clothes left. In fact, I have been wearing the same clothes now for a week and have only changed my socks twice. I also haven't had a shower for a week and most places don't have running water so getting clean (and I use that term very loosely) has involved baby wipes and hand gel. I believe I may look and smell like a yak! My hair is stuck to my head but luckily it's still cold so it hides under a hat all day. My only saving grace is that my base layers are merino wool. That stuff is magic. It never smells. Totally does what it says on the can.
Tonight was interesting. We were 'allowed' alcohol as we'd come down in altitude so we all indulged in either Everest beer or local rum. It's been 9 days! One of the girls, who'd been very quiet and surly for the last week, downed 2 bottles of rum straight from the bottle. The quiet ones are always the worst eh?! Anyway, she became really loud and obnoxious and started giving everyone the finger, including our leader. Totally unacceptable. Everyone was just looking on in disgust then finally one of the guys took her to her room where she apparently promptly threw up, multiple times! Nice. So glad I'm not sharing with her but really pity the girl who is. She's going to feel super rough in the morning as we're still at altitude. It's going to be interesting.
Karen and I shared a mini bottle of rum (pushed the boat out) and coke. It was Karen's and David's birthday today and Bhim surprised them by baking 2 cakes when we got to the tea house. They were properly iced with their names on and candles. So sweet.
Despite the wild Friday night of drinking, we were still tucked up in bed at 8.30pm!!
- comments
Richard Wow...huge congrats....enjoy the rest of the downhill!
Ian If I told you how miserable you would be you would have had me killed. but its all strangley worth it in the end isnt it? Now it becomes a race downhill for a proper warm shower
Diane So proud of you many congratulations take care of yourself lots of love. auntie diane
Chris You deserve to be feeling pretty chuffed with yourself right now. Congratulations! That's a great achievement.
Dan Amazing story, Linda! Wow...what an adventure. I loved reading it. Congrats!