Archive for November 2012

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EBC Day 12 – Kalapattar

The day before had been the first day of the entire trip where I would actually have considered myself to have been exhausted. Perhaps that is why my dreams at that point were so vivid.. or maybe it was just the altitude? The dream that I had that night was strange and very muddled, yet was somehow very clear. Some researchers think that the decreased oxygen levels at altitude somehow affect the recollection Read more

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EBC Day 11 – Everest Base Camp

That morning, a sad farewell took place in Lobouche (elevation : 4940 m) amongst a group of hikers from New Zealand. One of the party members apparently had been suffering from a bad headache and had just begun mumbling unintelligibly. It was wisely decided that he would need to make a quick descent back down to lower elevations, whilst the rest of the party continued up to Gorak Chep (elevation Read more

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EBC Day 10 – Dingbouche to Lobouche

I left Dingboche (elevation : 4530 m - I stayed in 'lower' Dingboche though at an elevation closer to 4300 m) that morning completely enraptured after having watched the glorious sunrise crawl slowly down the face of Ama Dablam (elevation : 6812 m). The early part of the trek to Lobuche was pretty straightforward, with barely any elevation gain until reaching Dughla for lunch, which bode well for a few of the members Read more

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EBC Day 09 – Acclimatisation at Dingboche

The plan was to spend a day acclimatising once again here in Dingboche (Sophie's group was doing the same, before heading up to Lobuche via Dughla the next day). I had decided to carry on with them for the next day or two and to skip the high-altitude pass of Kongma La since the pass was not on the GHT pass list. This meant that instead of trekking up to Chukhung from Dingboche, climbing up Chukhung Ri and then Read more

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EBC Day 08 – Tengbouche to Dingbouche

I woke up early to join a group of other hikers that were heading to the Tengbouche Monastery (Nepali : ट्याङबोछे गुम्बा) for the morning puja, an act of devotion that involves acts such as bowing, making offerings, and chanting. As we approached the monastery, a monk leaned out one of the second-storey windows and blew on a huge conch shell called a 'sankha' - a trumpet that is customary to be blown before the Read more

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EBC Day 07 – Namche Bazaar to Tengbouche

Even though it was bright and sunny that morning, the temperatures outside hovered just above freezing - a sure sign that winter was just around the corner. Despite the cold, I quickly packed up my gear, eager to get back out on the trail and on to Tengbouche. After making my way up the narrow shop-lined alleyways to the northern side of Namche Bazaar (Nepali : नाम्चे बजार) (elevation : 3440 m), I turned right Read more