Nepal Trek 2009 - May 20, Lukla to Kathmandu

The last morning in the mountains of Nepal dawned bright and early. We had a 7 am flight to catch and so we were up early for breakfast. I snapped a picture of the kitchen as we were on our way to the dining hall.









Our wash bucket was just outside the dining hall. This was one of the essentials all during the trek - hot (or lukewarm) water, soap and a towel. Up in the alpine zone, it didn't take long for the boiling water to cool to lukewarm or frigid, but, regardless of the temp, hand washing was critical for keeping the gastro-intestinal issues under control.












After breakfast we gathered outside for the short walk to the airport terminal.

L to R: Jon Miller and Sonam Sherpa










A short walk up the hill to the airport terminal, and we were on our way.












It's a short runway on a hill. Very exciting for take-off and landings. The morning was sunny, but the clouds were gathering and the weather was turning bad all through the Kathmandu valley. We were playing, "beat the clock and the weather" on this morning.








Lukla airport entrance.












Check-in was a bit chaotic. Tendi and some of our other Sherpas that would be returning to Everest Base Camp came to say goodbye. Tears were shed, that's for sure. I was certainly sad to say goodbye.







The view of the tarmac as we were waiting for our flight to arrive. We heard an alarm go off and there was a cheer. That was the signal that the plane had taken off from the Kathmandu airport and was on its way.

We had heard that there was bad weather in the valley and that it was uncertain as to whether there would be any flights out of Lukla, so it was reassuring that they were allowing planes to leave Kathmandu. We were scheduled for the first Yeti Airlines flight out.







Jon Miller, waiting.












Chris Marquardt and Jon Miller look bored.














They were playing to the paparazzi.
















My boarding pass.













The first flight out was a different airline. The efficiency of unloading and loading is amazing. The turn around is 5 - 10 minutes.











That's our plane arriving. Notice the clouds rolling in over the mountain.











We were already lined up and ready to go. As soon as the plane came up to the terminal, we were rushing out the door.












The plane was quickly unloaded and our gear was rolled out as we were marching to the door.












A swarm of workers quickly transfer the goods and baggage.











Whew! We're on and ready to go.













This is the next flight's passengers, awaiting their turn. They were the last group to leave Lukla on this day. The weather rolled in quickly and the airport was shut down. We were lucky to be able to make the flight out.









Everyone had their cameras out to take a video of the take-off. It's definitely an exciting one.












The wheels leave the runway just before the runway ends - at the edge of a cliff. Very exciting, indeed.











My last glimpse of the Himalayas. I cried all the way to Kathmandu.












After being in the mountains, it was a real change of scenery to see the Kathmandu valley from the air.











Flying over Kathmandu, it was a real shock to see the buildings and motor vehicles, also.













Touchdown in the rain.












We loaded onto our bus for the drive from the airport back to our hotel in Thamel. We passed by a street market on the way.











Our rooms weren't yet ready for us when we arrived so we had a cup of tea in the dining room. After drinking from aluminum cups for the trek, this was a bit of a luxury - ceramic cups are definitely nicer to drink from.









Several of us went to the New Orleans Cafe for lunch and this was my comfort food of the day - a cheeseburger that was very tasty. After not being able to eat for days on end, and being so very tired of curried cauliflower, I devoured this very quickly. I'm not much of a carnivore, but I have to admit that this was delicious!







Everyone got out their iPhones and iPod touches to check email. The New Orleans Cafe has free wi-fi - another huge luxury.



L to R: Thilo and John










L to R: Jeff and Megan












Hearty appetites all around.

L to R: John, Kyle, Steve










Culture shock - back to the noises, smells, and sounds of the city, not to mention the heat and humidity.







Thamel street photography.














Steve and I went to the embroiderer's shop to pick up our order. We had some stuff put on our fleece jackets.










We also went to a jeweler's and had some custom work done. I got a kick out of their metal scale. The price for a piece is according to the weight of the metal.









Steve and I had to wait until late afternoon for our room to be ready, but it was worth the wait. We had one of the nicer rooms in the hotel - plenty of room to spread our gear around and get organized.










The added bonus was a shower that worked - HOT WATER - hot damn! I can't explain how nice it felt to get clean, really clean, after the trek.









Back to the roof at sunset to see the spectacular thunderstorms brewing over the mountains. We were, indeed, lucky to get to Kathmandu on this particular day.

My post from this day can be read here: Back in Kathmandu

Nepal Trek 2009 - May 19, Monju to Lukla

Sunrise over Monju. This was going to be a long day of walking, but the reward was promised to be a hotel room with a private, western-style toilet and a shower. Ha! More on that later in this post, but it was an auspicious start to our day to think about a hot shower at the end of our trekking adventure.








This was one of the prettiest waterfalls we saw on the trek. I just took a quick snapshot of it because I didn't have a tripod to actually set up a proper shot.










We were still seeing pine trees along the path, but as we headed to lower elevations, the vegetation was becoming more diverse with oaks and understory trees.










These door cloths are not only picturesque, but also really good at keeping drafts at bay and the dust from flying into the room.









Firewood is abundant at the lower elevations, in contrast to the yak dung stored as fuel up above the treeline. I much prefer the smell of wood burning rather than yak dung burning, but the warmth from either source is very welcomed by the weary trekker.






I don't remember what village this was.














We had a short rest break in the shade, though. It was pretty warm as I recall - especially walking in the morning sun.











Pemba Sherpa - I loved those mirrored sunglasses.














Tendi Sherpa - back to his ball cap; the pink princess knit hat safely stored in his pack.









That's a lot of weight to carry in the hot sun. The tump strap around this porter's head is there primarily for balancing the load according to our Sherpas.










Phakding - the site of our first campsite.










Laundry time again.














Juniper and incense bush, drying in the morning sun.










I'm sure I photographed this construction site on the first day of our trek. It didn't seem as if much progress had been made while we were gone, but, then, everything has to be done by hand.







I stopped to watch the carpenters working with their hand planes and adzes. It was eye candy for me, and I took the opportunity to get a sightings pic with my Woodcentral hat.










The craftsman with his tools. He was really skillful with them, too.
















The forest at this altitude was a mix of deciduous and evergreen trees.









All along the trail were small farms and family gardens terraced into the hillsides.










Grain, drying in the sun.











The equivalent of a delivery truck in this part of Nepal - one of the yak/cow hybrids.










Porters with their heavy loads.












Aha! The source of those porter baskets.










Trekking in short sleeves. If I had brought shorts, I would have been tempted to wear them - it was a hot day compared to what we had been used to, although I think it really wasn't all that hot outside.







One of the last bridges to cross for the trek.


















Another craftsman at work, carving one of the myriad prayer stones that dot the path.









Gravel is made by hand up here, too. Large stones are hammered inside a metal ring until they are broken down to the right size.










The lower we went in elevation, the more people there were living along the path.










I'm not sure what significance the colors have on these prayer stones, but they are beautiful to see.

















Oxalis - not sure what species.












This looks like a very tasty plant in the cabbage family.












Another crow - there were so many different corvids to see on this trek.














Shoes, drying in the sun - is there a recurring them with "drying in the sun?"












Hmmmmm, surprise, surprise - another primrose.













Another rest break in the shade.












And another primrose - this one comes with a story. I was walking with Kancha Sherpa during the afternoon and I kept stopping to take pictures of plants along the way. This one really caught my attention and I immediately dropped to the ground to take the picture. A porter was coming up the path, watching all this, and he stopped to ask Kancha if I was drunk. I asked Kancha to tell him I was a crazy botanist, but Kancha didn't know the word for botanist.

"How do you say scientist?" I asked. Eventually we settled on the term, "crazy scientist," which is "bolo baigyanik" in Nepali.




On the outskirts of Lukla.










The gateway to Lukla. Steve was waiting for me here so that we could walk the last bit together.










Firewood, stored under the house along with space for livestock.











Back through the gauntlet of shops and shop keepers.









A street game of Carom was being played by some boys off in a little alcove next to a shop.










We arrived late in the afternoon, but there was still quite a bit of activity.










Click on the pic to check out that Starbucks logo - it's a fake one with a mountain instead of the usual logo.

















Here's a cool juxtaposition - "The Irish Pub," complete with a prayer wheel to be spun as you enter the establishment.
















School girls on their way home.









Look! A real room with walls and a door! I lost a few pounds on the trek, my hair is a greasy mess, my feet are very sore and I'm very tired, but I was really happy to be there - until I tried the shower, that is. What was supposed to have been a hot shower was actually an ice cold one. I made a lot of noise such as, "this is the worst shower I ever had the misfortune to take," or something to that effect. Steve wrote down what I was yelling as I was trying to get clean. It's probably not suitable for posting on a family-friendly blog such as this one.

The room did have a western style toilet, but the seat was held on with double-sided tape, which failed the first time the seat was used. It's a good thing we were already used to squat toilets!




We don't look too worse for wear, I think.














No stones to sleep on, either, plus room to reorganize all our gear. What a luxury!











After some time to clean up, we gathered in the tea room and started supper.












Our cook made us another cake, this one with Chris Marquardt's "Tips from the top floor" logo.











Jon recorded it all for "The Rest of Everest" podcast.












After dinner and dessert, it was time to give our Sherpa staff their pay and tips. I think you'll be able to tell from their expressions, that they were pretty happy about getting paid for a job well done.










The kitchen staff was paid first . . .














then it was Chirri's turn. I loved that smile!














Mingmar next.












The next staff members were our trail Sherpas. This is Kancha.












One of our two Pasangs.














The other Pasang, Kancha's younger brother.












Last one up was Karma - our sidhar.


We had the most amazing staff - thank you Mountain Tribes - you guys are the best!

Nepal Trek 2009 - May 18, Loshasha to Monju

I'm going to start this blog post with the brief journal entry I did for this day:

"18 May 2009; Monday, 6:58 pm; Monjo --

"Today's trek was pretty rough - from Namche Bazaar we had the 3,000 foot hill to navigate - knee buster from Hell. I am so tired! The scenery was spectacular, with three suspension bridges to cross."

The brevity of that journal entry is a good indicator that I really was quite exhausted. I'm not known for my short letters, essays, or blog postings. That I was so tired at 6:58 pm I couldn't scratch out more than a couple of sentences is atypical for me.



As we left Loshasha, we were still in some spectacular mountain scenery. The alpine biome had transitioned into a scrubby shrub-dominated biome, and as we walked downhill we started to get the first pines and Rhododendrons of the morning.






Here you can see the transition between biomes as you view from the snowline down to the pine forest.









These middle elevations are also where the settlements begin to be much larger with obvious signs of cultivation.









At one of our rest stops there was this yak who seemed very much like a house pet. It was pretty curious about things going on around it.










It was trying very hard to get this woman's attention while she was busy doing some chores.










She finally had to give it a scolding to make it behave. It reminded me of an overgrown puppy.










Rest break for this porter. He's taken the weight of the pack off his shoulders and removed the tump strap from his head. Those walking sticks are essential for this task as well as providing balance for climbing the steep hills.








This view on the way up was very inspiring, but somewhat bittersweet on the way down. On the one hand, it gave a perspective of just how far we had walked to reach Gorak Shep and the views of Everest from Kala Patthar. On the other, this view was a reminder that we would be leaving this now familiar landscape.






This is the view toward Lukla, which would be reached during the next day's trek.









Prayer flags flapping in the wind have a unique sound. I hope I never forget how it felt to see these at the stupas and shrines along the path to Everest.








Back to Namche Bazaar, the largest settlement in the Khumbu region. I had a much better appreciation for this place after having stayed in Dingboche, Lobuche and Gorak Shep.






Ahhhh, stupid me. I didn't buy yak bells in Namche Bazaar, and Thamel in Kathmandu didn't offer ones that looked like they had actually been worn by yaks. The sound of yak bells is another memory I never want to lose.

There is something very comforting about the sound of yak bells. On the trail the tinkle of these bells warned you that yaks were approaching from behind or ahead, and it gave you time to get out of the way - especially on the steep pitches. If you were stuck behind a yak train, it gave you time to rest because their pace was always a bit slower than a typical trekking pace. At our campsites, the sound of these bells was our evening, morning, and, sometimes, nocturnal music.


One of the stupas at Namche Bazaar.













Wash time in the public fountain.












The lower elevation section of Namche Bazaar.











The view from the trail, just before you head down the knee-buster hill.










The last houses before you head downslope.









It was pretty warm once we headed down the mountain and I felt so sorry for the porters carrying these heavy loads uphill. They were sweating buckets, and grunting with nearly every step.

I think this was pretty much my last photo for the descent as I needed to pay close attention to every step. By this time my feet were really hurting, and I think I busted a toe on the way down.




This was one of the suspension bridges we crossed this day. It must have been after we had some time to rest.










The gateway that marks the exit to Sagarmatha (Everest) National Park.









Monju, at last.












I think we were all pretty tired from this long and strenuous day of trekking. John Coleman looks about as down as the local dog in this picture.









I think this is a holly hock. It was growing as an ornamental plant at the Monju guest house.

















Chris Marquardt and Monika Andrae.










Our tents at the Monju guest house.









These are my swollen, blistered, bunioned, calloused, and, most of all, miserably painful feet. They taught me some valuable lessons during the trek: 1) yeah, they hurt - get over it and walk; 2) just do it; 3) baby steps get you there eventually; and 4) who has time to worry about how feet feel when there are so many interesting things to see?







Next morning's tea time; 6 am sharp.

This ritual was one of my favorite things about the trek. Mingmar and Chirri were so sweet to us.











No matter what the weather, snow included, Chirri and Mingmar were there at 6 am to serve us a cup of tea. Thanks, guys!

Nepal Trek 2009 - May 17, Dingboche to Loshasha

"Morning! Tea? Coffee?" This was our daily wake-up ritual, although Steve and I were usually awake before the wake-up call. Chirri (on the right) and Mingmar (left) came to our tent each morning at 6 am to bring us hot tea.

"Yes, please - two teas, two sugars, Thank you!"

"You're welcome!" - the latter was always said with a chuckle. Sherpas don't have an equivalent phrase in their language.



Ah, yes - the conveniences of trekking. Sometimes you had access to an indoor porcelain squat hole, but most of the time the facilities were either a toilet tent with a trench dug for the temporary stay, or something along this caliber.













An outhouse with a squat hole. There was always some form of plant material to kick into the hole for composting. The windows in the back provided some much needed ventilation. One trekking rule I discovered was, "don't blow your nose in the outhouse." Trust me on this one.









For the record.










Gathering before the trek begins. There was always someone that needed to use the facilities before hitting the trail.









This is Tendi, our lead trail Sherpa, in his pink "Smurfette" hat. We all got such a kick out of this hat. I'm sure a trekker left it for him from a previous excursion.













The day was very overcast and so the mountain views were not with us this day. I just reread my journal entry for this section of trail and I must have still been very ill. The entry talks about exhaustion and wishing that I could clear my lungs and nose. I had to give up my pack again, so that's a sure sign that I wasn't feeling well at all.





The scenery from here was missed on the way to Dingboche, also. We were in snow that day and so the views were new to me. I hadn't remembered seeing the alluvial fans coming down off the slopes - another clear sign that the Himalayas are eroding away as they are going upwards.





The trail wasn't too bad in most sections - rocky, but following the river for the most part.










From Dingboche on towards lower elevations, there are signs of permanent settlements all through the region. The stone walls are well maintained and you can see signs of agriculture.









The streams are full of glacial milk - the microscopically ground sediments that come off the glaciers that feed them.
















Time for a workshop session - this one on videography, I think.










Chris Marquardt looks like a pirate saying, "Arrrrgh."











Jon Miller










Pasang Sherpa - he always had a beautiful smile.











Sonam Sherpa - he served as our guide for the trek and in Kathmandu.










More workshop tips being shared.












Here's a look back up the alley.











The ubiquitous porter, carrying a load that is beyond belief.









Most of the porters carry a T-shaped stick that is used to take the load off their shoulders during their rest breaks.















Burlesque music, please! Jon got a bit warm and decided to take off a layer.











As we returned to lower elevation, more and more settlements appear. Every flat surface along the valleys are used.









The "pure" yaks will soon be left behind as we go to lower elevations. They are adapted to the alpine zone. Below 13,000 feet one usually sees the yak-cow hybrids.







Another tea house under construction. This is a sure sign that tourism drives the economy of this region.










All of the construction is done by hand, including the shaping of stones.










We saw more yaks than ponies, but there are a number of ponies in the villages and you occasionally see one on the trail.










I always enjoyed passing through one of these gates. There are prayer wheels lining the walls inside.








Tengboche, perched atop the ridge.











Lovely, lovely irises. I love them all. I should have been an iris systematist.










I didn't notice the suspension bridge that was strung beneath this bridge on our way up the trail. I think that was because we didn't have a clear view of it from the other side. I much prefer the thought of crossing the sturdy bridge rather than the rickety suspension bridge.






A mountain pony - love that curly hair!












One of my favorite pics of Chris Marquardt. He always had a serious (pissed?) face on when I snapped his photos. He told me this was a look of determination.















The Stupa at Tengboche. We stopped in Tengboche for lunch. I wasn't feeling well and ended up going inside a tea house to warm up while the rest of the group had lunch outdoors. As I recall, it was windy and chilly. I was cold and needed to warm up.













Below Tengboche, we descended into the Rhododendron forest. The smell of the trail was earthy through this biome.







The rhododendrons were in peak flowering near the top side of their elevational range. As we descended, they were well on the way to producing seed and the flowers were past prime.









The decidious trees were leafing out. This valley will have a very different look in midsummer than it had in late spring.







Kancha Sherpa. He had a terrible toothache on this day. He had the tooth pulled the next day as we passed through Namche Bazaar.

Kancha carried my pack during the climb up to Tengboche. He's Pasangs older brother and I really enjoyed getting to know both of them on the trail.







Steve - he was feeling pretty good this day as I recall.








The rhododendron forest yields to a pine dominated one as we progress down the mountains.









One of the legumes in bloom. If anyone has a clue as to the identity, please post a comment.











Let's see, we've done suspension bridges, steel frame bridges, flimsy wooden plank bridges, and sturdier wooden bridges.









A species of dogwood.














Wild strawberry.












Something in the Asteraceae. Pussy toes comes to mind? Any guesses as to ID?













A species of wild rose.











Another legume species - anyone know this plant?

















This one is a puzzle - I could use some help identifying it.




















Iris - they're so beautiful!










I think this is a cotoneaster.














Euphorbiaceae.












Tea time!















Nap time! Jon Miller and John Coleman are studying the insides of their eyelids.

Nepal Trek 2009 - May 16, Gorak Shep to Dingboche

Ten days up, but we had only four days to get back to Lukla. We would have had five days if our schedule hadn't been discombobulated from being snowed in an extra day in Dingboche on the way up. You'd think going downhill would be much easier, and it was from the point-of-view of being able to go faster, but downhill is very tough on the joints - especially knees.

Our morning companion was the Khumbu glacier as we hiked along the lateral moraine. I really enjoyed the scenery up here near the glacier. The mountains were so majestic and the views were stunning everywhere you looked. I just can't get over the impact this area has had on me. Watching the mountains erode in real time - all those boulders flowing down the valley on the glacier. The Himalayas are still rising, but they're being torn down at the same time.



It looks like these yaks are carrying loads of potatoes - probably on their way to Everest base camp.


















We took a rest break at the same spot we rested on the way up the glacier. Steve draped some prayer flags around this memorial cairn. He wanted to honor the memory of Tendi's brother, who died on Everest just a week or so earlier.





Another look at Nuptse before we lose the view to clouds.









Some of our Sherpa staff, taking their rest break while Steve is having his picture taken at the memorial cairn.








I'll always remember the sound of yak bells from this region. They are essential to the economy of this area - everything moves up the mountain either on the backs of yaks or human porters.







We arrived at Lobuche at mid-morning. I hadn't really paid much attention to Lobuche on the way up to Gorak Shep since that was one of my low days in terms of how I was feeling. It was interesting to see it from this angle - it's a very small village that seems to be there just for the traffic from climbers and trekkers.






We took a rest break here. There were some temporary shelters scattered amongst the rocks. The fellow on the right is using an overturned satellite dish as a clothes drying rack.





A lammergeier, or, bearded vulture. These majestic giants are old world vultures, but they have feathered heads rather than bare ones. There's a small tuft of feathers at the base of the beak, which is why they are called bearded vultures. The last time I saw one of these in flight was in 2003, in South Africa's Drakensberg range.



I think this might be a female rose finch, but I have to take a look at my birds of Nepal book to get the identification sorted out.











There goes the lammergeier again.








One of the Lobuche peaks - maybe Lobuche east?











Another view of the temporary camp in Lobuche.









A yellow-billed Chough.













Robin accentor











Another view of the robin accentor
















We again passed through the memorial cairns at the terminal end of the Khumbu glacier.










What is so sobering to me is that there are so many cairns here.










This is the one dedicated to Scott Fischer, an American climber who lost his life in the 1996 disaster that is described in Jon Krakauer's book, "Into thin air."







































It really felt good to have a rest break here before we tackled the knee buster terminal moraine down to Dhukla.









Newly draped prayer flags are very colorful and not too frayed. The ones that have been there for a while are faded and ragged.









This is the terminal moraine for the Khumbu glacier. I think it's about 200 meters in height, but maybe it just feels that high as you're climbing it - going either direction. It's definitely a knee buster coming down.




We had our lunch outdoors at Dhukla. While we were sitting outside the tea house, a group of trekkers passed us by on their way up the terminal moraine. What was so unusual about this group is that they had two wheel-chair bound members who were being carried on the backs of porters.

After lunch it began to snow and mist and so I put away my camera for the afternoon and concentrated on trekking. Here's my post from that day of trekking, sent from Dingboche.