Rest Day In Dingboche

It is a rest/acclimatization day at Dingboche. After eight days, the daily routine is pretty much the same: wake up at first light (4:45), get up enough nerve to get out of the warm sleeping to go to the bathroom; coffee at 6:00, washing water at 6:30 and breakfast at 7:30. Then we pack up our gear and get on the trail for a couple of hours. Lunch stop last about two hours then it’s back on the trail for a couple of hours to our camp site for the night. Along the way are incredible views and sites. At 4:00, we have afternoon tea. Dinner is at 7:00 and then it’s back to the tent and asleep by 9:00. On acclimatization days, we have the luxury of taking walks during the day and not having to rush to pack up in the morning.

Today, Gerry and I hiked up a side valley from Dingboche to an area that is used by yak herders to graze their animals during the summer. We climbed probably 1,000 ft. or so to some stone houses used by the herders. On the way back down, we met a yak herder, Hachbar, who owns 15 yak. He built a bridge over a raging glacial river in order to get his animals to better grazing lands on the other side of the valley. He was an interesting fellow.

The mountain views from Dingboche are indescribable. Although we can no loner see Everest because it is hidden behind the Lhotse Nuptse wall, we can see Lhotse (the fifth highest peak in the world) as well as the very dramatic peaks of Ama Dablam and Island Peak.

We are acclimatizing well to the altitude. Other than a couple of minor headaches, I’m doing well. Gerry complains about the food and not being able to sleep, but he’s kind of fussy anyway. A couple of people on the trip have come down with minor stomach or respiratory ailments. Gerry and I are still in good shape and feel strong (knock on wood).

Beginning tomorrow, we will have two days of climbing to get us close to the altitude of Everest Base Camp -- first to Lobuche at 16,105 ft and then Gorek Shep on Tuesday at 16,859 ft. These are the altitudes that we will be feeling the lack of oxygen. There are no further villages higher up as well. There are a few facilities that have been developed for trekkers but no permanent settlements. I will try to post again up higher but I don’t know what capabilities there will be. It’s very expensive and the connections via satellite are slow.

That’s all for now.

Lhotse Nuptse Wall


Everest Peak Between Mark and Gerry


Ama Dablam

Among the Giants

Just a quick post. We are at a satellite internet cafe (loosely speaking) in Dingboche. It's very expensive and slow, so not many updates and no pictures until we get back to Namche on the day of marathon.

We've had three good days of trekking since Namche. We are at 14,464 ft., over 5,200 ft of elevation gain since we started at Lukla.

We've had magnificent views of the great peaks -- Ama Dablam, Island Peak, Lhotse, Nuptse, and Everest. So far, Everest has been the elast impressive. We can see only the very top behind the massive Lhotse/Nuptse wall.

The trails are pretty rough in many areas. There are alot of long climbs and descents. Yesterday after lunch, we had a 2,000 ft climb to the Tengboche Monestary, the religious center of this region. It is a magnificent structure. We toured the temple where the monks pray.

Many of the monks are young boys training in the religious like. But you can't take the boy out of the boys. After 3:00 prayers, they all went running to the small flat spot to play some soccer with the local boys. Gerry got in on the game for a bit as well.

This morning (May 22), it was 28 degrees. It was tough to get out of the sleeping bag. But today's hike was wonderful -- great views around every bend inthe trail. I really can't describe the scenery. Photos don't do it justice and I don't have the literary skills to paint the picture.

I'll try to post again when we get a little higher. One week to race day!

A Few More Pictures

Second Acclimatization Day In Namche

May 20

Got up early again on Thursday (May 20) morning. The sky was quite clear after the storm last night. After breakfast, we had our first medical check. I’m doing fine -- pulse rate is normal and my blood pressure is lower than my last couple of checkups. Hmmm. Must be the clean mountain living.

A couple of the boys went for a run, but I don’t think that it’s a good idea at this point to run every day. You can do more harm and no good.

I decided to take a hike back up to the Shangboche airstrip and the Everest View Hotel and then back around through Khumjung.

At the airstrip, some sky divers were jumping and landing. It was quite a sight seeing the little planes taking off from the gravel strip.



The skies were pretty clear so I got magnificent view of the high peaks -- Island Peak, Ama Dablem, Lhotse, Nuptse and Everest. The scale of everything is so big it’s hard to describe or get on a photo. Nothing in the Rockies can really compare with how big the landscape is here. Even though we are at 12,000 feet, there is still a lot of vegetation unlike the Rockies or Alps at this altitude. The mountain peak rise up another 12,000 to 16,000 feet above where we are now.





I wandered through Khumjung a bit and took photos of the stupas and mani walls. On the way back, I counted the number of steps we will need to climb going over the last pass in the marathon (315 at about 15 inches per step). I won’t be running up that for sure.

I charged up my netbook this afternoon in the lodge at 150 rupees per hour. I was moving some pictures from my camera to the computer. A couple of sherpas came over and were looking through my photos so far. They liked the videos, especially one I got of a dog running across the Lukla airstrip as a plane was landing.

Tonight, we’ll be packing up for our trek to the Tengboche Monastery tomorrow. As we get into the higher villages, the goods and services available decreases significantly (and when available, the cost rises rapidly). I am not sure when I will be able to post again, perhaps not until the 29th or 30th when we are back in Namche after the marathon.

First Day in Namche

May 19



We had our first of two acclimatization days in Namche Bazaar.

Gerry and I went for a run at 5:15 am to Thamo about 4K away from town. Although it looked relatively flat on the map, we had to run through town and the up the other side past the monastery to a series of stupas or Buddhist religious monuments. It was a tough, tough climb out of town. We did more running than walking. After that it was always up or down. A couple sections were pretty nice and I felt pretty good at the altitude.

It was beautiful being on the trail early in the morning. It was a little cloudy but occasionally we caught glimpses of the high peaks through the breaks. The locals were just getting up. The whole way we saw only four people and one donkey on the trail. We crossed the Bhote Khosi (river) and then climbed a bit before we turned around and ran back.

Coming back into Namche at 6:30, things were beginning to stir. We could hear the clink, clink, clink of the stone masons beginning their work for the day. It was a constant background sound that we hear all day long. Almost all of the building are made of stone, a very abundant local commodity! All of the stones are very precisely cut by hand. It is amazing was these workers produce.

After breakfast, we took a hike up the ridge behind Namche to the Everest View Hotel and the towns of Khumjung and Khunde. Although this was supposed to be an easy stroll, the beginning was very tough -- a switchback climb straight up for 1,450 feet to a total altitude of 12,700 feet. We were huffing and puffing the whole way. There is a dirt airstrip at the top which looks even scarier than the one at Lukla.

We stopped for coffee at the hotel. Because it was still cloudy, we caught only a few glimpses of the peaks. It’s a tease of what is to come. This hotel is very plush by trekking standards but lacks the feel of the local culture. Great views, though, of the surrounding valley and peaks.

After the stop, we walked through this high plateau to Khumjung and Khunde to follow the last 4K of the marathon course back into Namche. These villages are relatively new and develop with the assistance of Edmund Hillary over the years and have a hospital and school. They were built very western style compared to the traditional Nepalese villages. The houses here were spread out each with this plot of land of an acre or so. In most villages, the houses are packed together.

It was probably a mistake to take a look at the final section of the race course. It will be very tough. At 32K, we will cross a bridge over the Dudh Koshi and then climb 2,300 feet in elevation to the villages. The we have a final climb of 300 or so feet up some stone steps to the airstrip. We cross the airstrip to the edge of the ridge overlooking Namche. It looks straight down. The final 2K is straight down the switchbacks which are mostly loose rock and sand. Although it won’t be dangerous, it will kills the quads. The final 400 meters or so will be over relatively level ground.



You would think that a run from Base Camp at 17,598 feet to Namche at 11,286 feet would be all down hill. But it’s not. We will have a total of about 4,000 feet of climbing in the race. So in total, we will have 10,300 feet of decent to go along with the climbs.

After lunch, I took a shower at a nearby lodge for 400 NP ($5.70 US). It was wonderful. The first hot shower in four days. It may be the last until we get back into Namche.

I spent the afternoon wandering through town checking out the shops. I met a young couple, Rob from Hungary and Clare form England, who will be joining our group at Base Camp to run the race. They have been here five weeks already hiking and climbing in the area. They are very well acclimated and have been spending a lot of time running the trails.

After dinner, some of the group went into town to play pool. (how they got a pool table up here, I have no idea. I went to bed early (8:30), but woke up at about 11:00 to a fierce thunderstorm. The sherpas were scrambling around the tents putting up rainflys in the wind and pouring rain. It rained quite hard for a couple of hours. But slept quite soundly.

Going to School

First two days on the trail.

On Monday, we hiked from Lukla to Tuktuk, a pretty easy walk. The trails are pretty rough, very rocky and up and down. They are also very busy with trekkers coming and going and the locals transporting goods to higher villages. The loads that the sherpas carry are unbelievable -- 100 kilos or 220 pounds.

We camped at Tuktuk, a tiny village with a couple of houses. The local kids were funny. They entertained everyone on the group.




The second day was the our first major hike to Namche Bazaar, a climb of about 600 meters or 2000 feet. Along the way, the local children were going to school. One young boy, Chandra, befriended Gerry and I and invited us to his school. He was 11 and in the fifth grade. He took us up a steep path off the main trail to his school. The children and teachers were in the dirt play ground surrounded by the classrooms. Chandra introduced us to his school mates and Gerry played marbles with the kids. We had a great time and enjoyed ourselves. It's amazing the English skills that these children have.




After school, we entered the Sagarmatha National Park, which surrounds Everest. The scenery is incredible with rushing rivers, and soaring peaks. We haven't seen any of the big mountains yet and the scale of these foothills is amazing.

We stopped for lunch along the Dudh Kosi (river). A couple of the exhibitionists in the group decided to strip down and go swimming. It wasn't very sensitive to the local people who are very reserved.

After lunch, we began the long climb up to Namche Bazaar. We crossed a long and swaying suspension bridge, hundreds of feet above the river. Fortunately, we didn't have to share the bridge with a yak train.

The climb to Namche took a couple of moved, even though it was only a couple of kilometers. It was a long, long climb with many steep parts. Many of the trekkers were having problems, but the sherpas moved quickly up even with their loads.


We finally got to Namche, the main village in the Khumba region. About 6,00 people live there. The village is set in this huge amphitheatre, with views thousands of feet below to the valley. Our camp is set up at the top and to one side of the village, so we have a wonderful panoramic view of the town.

I'll do another post in the next day or so. We will be at Namche for three nights as part of our acclimitization. Tomorrow we'll try some running.

Lukla

We flew in to Lukla today to begin the trek to Everest Base Camp. We left the hotel at 5:15 and took 30 minutes to weave our way to the city to the airport. The domestic terminal was total chaos. Porters grabbing bags and taking them away, different lines to get into, confusion about who had what tickets and what plane to get on. It was great.

We did manage to get onto our plan, a decrepit Dornier. The thing was ancient and the pilots looked like teenagers. We took off for the quick 30 minute flight to the mountain airstrip at Lukla. We could see some of the high peaks coming in but it was pretty hazy. The landing was quite exciting -- cross over a ridge and then a steep drop to the airport's short (about 500 meters) and uphill runway. You get only one attempt at landing. The runway ends into the mountain. The pilots, though, were quite good. They needed only about three quarters of the runway to stop. The passengers applauded the successful landing.

Getting off the plane was just as confusing. The porters quickly unloaded the gear and took it away and we were led away. A group of passengers were queued for the return trip to Kathmandu.

We spent a short time at the lodge we will be staying at tonight and then Gerry, Dennis (from Kuala Lampur) and I set off to explore the village. It was a pretty amazing site with the shops, sherpas taking their huge loads onto the trails. About halfway through the village we came across an Irish Pub and a "Starbucks". You'll never know what you'll see.

Gerry and I took a quick hike down the trail our of town. There was a lot of traffic--pedestrian, there are no vehicles here. The trails were rough and steep, but people of every age seemed to be moving up and down quite well. It's amazing the size of the loads that the porters carry. But this is the only means of getting supplies to the villages. There seemed to be a lot of beer going up.

We came back into the village and Gerry decided to get a haircut from the local barber. He got a pretty tight cut, a shave, an eyebrow trim, and a head massage with yak cream.

After lunch were headed back out for another hike with the sherpas. They took a to a small village in the valley. On the way we visited a stupa (Buddhist temple) and a government school. Our group was the hit of the school yard, probably because the kids got a little time away from their studies. The school was very basic and rustic but they did have computer lab. As in most societies, the kids were really charming, friendly and cute. I love the very proper uniforms that they wear.

Back up to the village and afternoon tea. We probably did about 800 meters of climbing today. Not bad for our first day at altitude.

Tomorrow, we begin our two day trek to Namche Bazaar, the main village in the Khumba Valley. I will be out of contact until then, but will try to post an update sometime on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Namaste.