Trekking to the Top (well, almost) of the World, Everest Base Camp by KevHolls

If you’ve ever entertained the notion of climbing Mt. Everest, or like reading stories about this once in a lifetime journey, check out KevHolls blog Trekking to the Top (well, almost) of the World, Everest Base Camp. They’ve just completed a climb and have shared great tips about how to prepare and arrange your trip:

“A lot of people hire porters and guides when they are in Kathmandu and spend a lot of money while doing it, but we decided to hire one porter/guide when we got to Lukla. We had people hounding us (even to the point of stalking - they would just walk into our hotel room when we least expected it) to no end to hire them for our trek, but in the end we picked a guy who showed us a license and spoke English reasonably well. His name is Ngima, and we literally couldn’t do the trip without him. These porters go above and beyond. We thought he would just be helping us with carrying some of our stuff, but he assisted us in everything we did, everywhere we went.

So, we set off for or trek, not knowing what to expect. We would be heading from Lukla to Phakding to Namche Bazaar (where we would be spending two days for acclimatization) to Tenboche to Dingboche at 14,400 feet (another acclimatization day) to Leboche to Gorek Shep to Everest Base Camp at 17,600, and then a grand finale at Kalapathar at over 18,000 feet, where we would get our best Everest views. Let me just warn you, coming from sea level, altitude sickness is certainly not overrated.”

They also share what they will miss and not miss about this adventure:

Things We Will Miss About Trekking to Everest Base Camp (at 17,400 feet):

1. Waking up every morning to the most amazing views right out our window.

2. Being surrounded by clean air and good people.

3. Drinking way too many Tuborg beers until all hours of the night with Jamling Norgay at 14,400 feet in Dingboche, which in turn led to whiskey (that can’t be denied in Nepal - for the boys ONLY) and attempts at dancing and singing to the Grease soundtrack (on my part, of course). I’m telling you, that altitude will do a number on your voice… “Cho” means “cheers”, by the way.

4. The camaraderie with the other trekkers, through tears and all. The mountain can do a number on some people. One of my last images of Nancy is when she was pushing herself to get up Kalaphatar (at 18,300 feet) to hang her prayer flags, as she was really struggling and didn’t make it to Base Camp. Even though she didn’t make it to the top, giving her a hug after she hung those prayer flags over half-way was a very touching experience, and I’m glad I could be a part of it.” (more…)

Things We Will NOT Miss About Trekking to Everest Base Camp:

1. Squat toilets. (Especially when Gremlins are involved, right Chris?)

2. Diamox. Sulfa and Sulfur are VERY MUCH the same thing - and will cause an allergic reaction if you have an allergy to either of them. Lucky for me, the altitude sickness pills people take preventatively or when they get extremely sick… that I just so happened to be taking preventatively… very allergic to them. I found out the hard way.

3. The same food every day. Tuna sandwiches and fried egg noodles, there seemed to be a pattern. Oh, and the apple pie was never what you were expecting.

4. Garlic soup. The worst thing ever, which has to be the best thing for you. YUCK. It was the number one natural cure for altitude sickness and it was awful. (more…)

For KevHolls complete list as well as more tips on how to plan your trip, visit their travel blog.

More on climbing Mt. Everest and visiting Nepal:
Nepal Travel Guide
Mt. Everest Travel Guide