Mahakulung

Today we left Namche to trek to Tengboche, an elevation of 3,860 meters. It was a very challenging day!! The day started with a half hour steep hike out of Namche, and then the trail was fairly up and down for about 2 hours. We stopped for lunch at 11:00 and while this was a bit early, there would be no more lunch spots until Tengboche. The most challenging part of today was a straight up 600 meters which takes 2 hours to complete before reaching Tengboche. Because we are each carrying our own packs, this was really hard. We split our time into trekking for 30 minutes and then taking a 5 minute break. The girls did so well, although Sophie is feeling the effects of the altitude and was not feeling well all day.

The day offered clear blue skies and beautiful temperatures. Clear skies meant that we got full views of Everest!! For most of the morning, Everest was always to the right of us in the distance. The scenery is absolutely stunning! It is amazing to be so close to the tallest mountain. Along the way we met a stray dog who the girls named Berry, more yak, a horse, mountain sheep, an eagle and some cats. Berry probably trekked with us for 2 hours and ate our leftover lunch.

Before trekking EBC we had read about altitude sickness and the effects of altitude, but until you experience it, you don't really get it. The only one who seems to not be bothered by the altitude is Neve. Both Sophie and David are easily winded, so we really are trekking at a very slow and steady pace.

We are currently staying at the Tashi Delek Lodge, which has a nice big sitting room where so many trekkers are enjoying each others company. People are chatting, reading or playing cards. I love the sense of community and meeting new people from all over the world. We even learned a new Nepali card game to add to our repertoire.

Tomorrow we trek to Dingboche, which will hopefully take a bit less time and be marginally "easier."

ClarindaRead more