Dharmasala, 4460m

An overcast day and we're slowly ascending so there's more sky around us and less mountain on all sides. Down jackets needed with no heat from the sun and the only colours are brown, white and the occasional cluster of prayer flags. We got to Dharmasala about 1.30pm for lunch and this is our last pause before the final push to the top. We had to drag ourselves the last section up to the teahouse (more like a shack) and it's feeling like a real struggle.

Elli joined Chris in the world of acclimatisation headaches and we were very glad for the medical guidance of Flo and Manu and the spiritual guidance of our room mate Darius. Our guide Arjun gave us some garlic which made Chris throw up in the snow and sent Elli on a transcendental almost psychedelic trip, but both of us felt a lot better afterwards.

The toilet is a squat toilet in a hut with a broken door and a very dangerous ice sheet over it, so we prayed we didn't need to get up in the night. There's no fire up here - there's nothing to burn - at least we had hot water (costs £10 for 2 litres but worth every penny) and we went to bed at 7pm. Early start tomorrow.Read more