Everest Base Camp Trek

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My Trek To Mt Everest Base Camp Days 1-2

After missing the Megabus down to London I got myself the first flight down in the morning and spent 12 hours waiting untill I flew out. Flights were pretty much uneventful.

After spending an hour getting through passport controll I entered the madness outside the airport as I desperately tried to find someone who had a "world expeditions" sign. I seen a guy who had it wrote on a small bit of cardboard. Him and another guy then fought over my bag and I was thinking "fuck I've been conned again" but then someone confirmed my name so it seemed a little more legit. The guy then asked for a tip and having only converted dollars to rupees minutes before , I handed him a 10 rupee note and he asked for more so I gave another 10. I later worked this out to be 12p (No wonder he was angry) but I had no idea how much anything was.

Travel to the hotel was chaos as like the Phillipines with no rules , seatbelts etc I also seen a monkey crossing the road taxi driver didn't care. The Radisson hotel I'm staying in is pretty decent. I'm in a group of 15 made up of Canadians, English , Australian and Indian. The first night I was taken to a traditional Nepalese resturaunt they put a red dot on my forehead as a blessing and then made me sit at our table(which had no seats) with my legs crossed. having joints and the flexibility of iron meant that sitting like this was the most painfull and uncoumfortable experience ever. The 8 course meal was amazing , people danced , someone came out dressed as a peacock. Great meal , not a great seat.

Crossing the road here is also well dodgy , pretty much a lottery!

Went to bed at 10pm woke up at 3am been awake since , went a sightseeing tour of Kathmandu , first place we went was some Bhudist holy thing. Had big eyes painted on a dome. Then we went to another place that was really nice untill I looked across the other side of the river to see them throwning a dead bodys onto a fires to cremate them With the smell of burning flesh being inhaled I was not the happiest guy. But then I seen a monkey!

Cheered me right up and then... the monkey ran away.

I later found another monkey and I fed the hairy little boy a full packet of skittles. They love to taste the rainbow! Highlight of the trip so far!!!

Went into Thamel had more good food a few beers and got a taxi back to the hotel. On the way back another taxi reversed into us and then sped off! Our taxi driver overtook him and blocked him off , got out the taxi and took the keys out the other guys car. They then argued so me and my roomate got out the car and got another taxi!

Getting on the first flight to Lukla tomorrow at 7am got a nice 4am wake up. Its the most dangerous flight in the world so I plan on being suitably drunk for it.

Winging it all the way!





First things first!

I am alive!

Same plane , same destination different day. Lucky!!

Days 3

Started the day early got the first flight out of Kathmandu at 7am on what appeared to be a tin can with wings. I was very hungover as I went out the whole night before. The plan was loud , small and there was no door on the cockpit. Flying over Kathmandu I got the first views of the snow covered Himalayas. The peaks I could see I got told were just "baby peaks" As we went over the final ridge the plane suddenly took a nosedive towards a mountain. At the last second it pulled up and we landed on the uphill runway. Never have I been so scared in my life at a flight...and hearing the news today being scared was well justified. Once we landed most people started clapping only for someone to interrupt the moment of joy and added "we've still to stop" because if we never stopped in time we would have smashed into the mountain face. Got a few cups of tea in Lukla , someone gave a local kid and m&m and he then slavered all over my arm while I was sitting. We trekked a few hours to Ghat at 2600m our camp had 2 man tents , which were pretty decent , spent the afternoon walking down to the glacial river which flows all the way down the Khumbu valley. Water was absolutely freezing. Me and a few others then played bowls with stones for a good few minutes before it became boring , I then walked to the next town Pakding for a shower and some chips. The food so far has been not bad (theres only so much that can be done with potatos) but anticipating this I brought with me Nandos sauce! Every meal is amazing! Worst sleep I've ever had that night kept waking up taking gasps of air and having mad dreams.

Day 4
Ghat to Monjo 2800m

Early mornings are cold here , but this means good clear weather with no clouds intterupting views. Got given a dogs bowl full of hot water at the front of my tent , like a dogs drinking bowl infront of its kennel. Crossed lots of dodgy suspension bridges. Asked our Sherpa if there was any dangerous animals here like snakes spieders etc he said no I then asked if there was deer and he said "yes we have deer , bears , wild cats and snow leopards" with the exception of deer I would have said that all the above are dangerous. The daytime weather is far too hot I've packed all thermal clothes. The porters here are amazing they only weigh 55kg and are carrying loads of upto 120kg using a strap around their neck! I am struggling to carry myself and a small bag! Had more strange dreams but got a tent to myself. Also been pissing like a racehorse after getting up to get out my tent 5 times I finally gave up and used a bottle , which eventually filled up and I had to once more brave the cold night. Getting pretty bored after the walking is done , just been going to bed at 7-8pm not much else to do.

Day 5 Ghat to Namche Bazaar 3400m

I thought today would be easy but I was wrong , I struggled for 5 hours to get upto Namche Bazaar the air is thin here and every step in the last hour I took about 5 minutes getting my breath back.

Got my first view of Everest today! Amazing

Anyway I am spending the next two nights here so I can acclimatise. It has internet etc after that I'm going into the unknown. Its an absolute trek from my lodge on the top of the ridge down to the town.

Ran up 12 stairs earlier and spent the next 20 minutes in bed fucked.

Anyway , good to be alive for now...still got to fly back.





First off would like to thank the Falkirk Herald for finding the seediest picture ever!

On the 4th of October 15 out of 16 of us made it to Everest Base Camp and the next day only 4 of us managed to summit Kala Pattar! Now All I've got to do is walk 3 days back to Lukla and get on the dreaded flight. However due to weather there have been no flights for the last week. So good chance I could be stuck a while longer. But if all goes well I should be home on Friday the 12th to hopefully attend this party that the Falkirk Herald has mentioned. Honestly never thought I would even reach base camp after getting altitude sickness!

Day 7 (Namche Bazaar to Deboche)

One of the longest days so far , mainly because we descended to the valley floor and then climbed even higher than we started at. Wore my trainers today as I never had the strength to lift my boots from the ground anymore. Stopped for lunch at a place called Thyanboche , had a big lunch which only meant that after lunch was going to be hard and it was! The whole way up I was at the back walking slow to save energy as I kept getting intimidated by bees and had to occasionally make a sprint to lose them. It was 4 hours of constantly going up it felt like a never ending spinning class! Meanwhile on my ipod Miley Cyrus was telling me "its all about the climb" at this point I would have happily been dropped off at Base Camp took some photos and left! I seen a sign for horse for hire and was very tempted to walk in and say "I need a horse" Once at the top we visited a monastery , had to take our shoes off then we walked in and our guide said to follow him. The monks were halfway through there chant when the head monk stopped and argued with our guide. We were then thrown out of the monastery for being "disrespectful" the head monk had a head like a peanut and was the angriest monk I've ever seen, most likely a shaved neutered bulldog in his past life , since they believe in all that. Spent the evening playing bannanagrams.

Day 8 (Deboche to Dingboche)

Weather cleared up today and gave clear views of Lhotse , Nuptse and Everest. The path we were on went dangerously close to the cliff and there were lots of landslips. Getting higher the trees dissapeared and the land became more baron. Started to get really cold so needed to put on extra layers. Once we arrived at Dingboche 4330m again we had dinner (with nandos sauce) and played cards and bannanagrams. Halfway through our game a woman came in with handfulls of Yak Shit and started burning it in the oven thing for heat. While it may make good fuel something has to be done about the aromatic side of it.

Day 9 "Rest Day"

Woke up with a nosebleed and a headache , body is falling apart.

Climbed a hill to roughly 4600m took over 2 hours to get up and only took 23 minutes to get down. Never wore hat or glasses today and I was punished by the high altitude sun. Whole face was burnt and my headache got worse. Got to see the worlds 5th highest mountain Makalu.

Day 10 Dingboche to Lobuche

Woke up feeling the worst I've felt so far , had this been a school day I would have got my mum to phone me in sick. Weather kept getting hot and then cold it got really annoying taking off and putting on clothes. Had lunch in a place called Dhukla by far the place I hate most so far. Had to sit outside on the ground to eat or lunch , not amused. When I got to Lobuche I literally collapsed my headache was so severe I couldn't even make it up the stairs to get medical help. I took several painkillers but nothing worked , eventually I got someone to get help and they took my heart rate and oxygen saturation levels. My oxygen count was 52 first time and then 75 , they spoke in Nepali for a while and I just nodded like I knew what was happening. I was given diamox as I had been diagnosed with altitude sickness a Cerebral Edema (Swelling of the brain) and I was given Diamox to counter this. I could barely open my eyes and I felt so annoyed as the next day was the attempt to make basecamp. I woke up in the middle of the night feeling completely revived and I was so happy. Two other people on the trip got it and got put in a bag and got taken back to sea level air pressure, I really didnt fancy jumping in what looked like a giant red sealed condom.

Nandos sauce opened in my bag and went over all my clothes! Threw the bottle in the bin in a rage.

Also learned not to ignore the symptoms of altitude sickness. Could have been fatal!

Day 11 Lobuche to Basecamp

Feeling full of energy the morning was really clear got amazing views of some of the highest mountains on our planet! When we made it to Base Camp it was a bit like arriving at John O' Groats , not a great deal to see since its not the climbing season, but felt good that I had reached one of my goals. Got photos with me wearing the hat my Grandad had told me to take with me , and also collected some stones that people had asked me to bring back. Was good seeing the Icefall which climbers attempting Everest have to first pass through , there were blocks of ice bigger than some houses! There was also an ill dog at the basecamp and someone asked if it was someones pet and I said " yeah or the chinese teams dinner" I said it too loud and got a nasty look from one of the team. On our way back I stopped for a piss and the same chinese guy made a smart comment to me. My headache returned and I started getting really angry at everything. A guy stepped infront of a photo I took and I was very close to giving him a 300 spartan kick off the mountain! I asked for more medicine that night but the guide refused. I got feel my brain swelling again and I had tablets from home that "are kinda similar" to diamox according to my mum , I had no idea how much to take so I took 2 and hoped for the best.

My fingers became numb and finally my headache stopped. Went to bed and got up at 5am to attempt Kala Pattar

Day 12 Kala Pattar and return to Dingboche

5am we left and it was freezing outside , well below zero. As we approached the mountain people were already coming down having failed in there attempts. I was last upto the summit about 20 minutes behind everyone else , only 4 of us made it to the summit. When I got up I got told we had to leave or we would be late , I didnt care and said to the Sherpa I was staying for as long as I wanted. Got one of the best views in the world , Everest was staring right infront of me, eventually the Sherpa made me come down. Annoyed that I only got 30mins at the summit! Definately writing an angry letter when I get home! I got in trouble when I got back , got fed a quick breakfast I was exhausted and walking like a drunk!

"Give him 3 eggs" said the group leader. I've just climbed to 18,000 feet 3 eggs isnt going to do a fucking thing! The next few hours of walking back were hard I was stumbling and falling over and the group leader said "why you walk funny you going to fall off mountain" hours later we arrived back at Dingboche

Had nightmares about Bannanagrams

Miss my nandos sauce.

Days 13-14

Were spent looking at my shoes and the ground trying to avoid falling and stepping on yak shit. Getting annoyed at spending nights in the freezing cold in a tent. The guide book says that "There is still much to see" there isnt.

Been an amazing experience , now I just want to get out of here , hopefully the dodgy plane journey is ok! Going to the monkey temple in Kathmandu in a few days to experiment in what they will and wont eat.

Thanks for all the donations , its not been easy but I've achieved the 2 things I set out to do.



Day 15

Pretty uneventfull long walk down to Ghat , that was untill my life was almost ended. I had my ipod on whilst walking so I couldn't hear anything. Suddenly the two people infront jumped to the side very quickly, I thought there would be a Yak behind but they wear bells so I was confused at how they noticed so late. I turned round and there was a yak standing very angrilly. I took my earphones out as everyones faces were in absolute shock. "Do you know how close that was?" someone said. Oblivious to me a yak had charged down the hill at me and jumped from the wall with its massive horns only inches away from impaling me. I seen none of this I was in my own world lost in the music. But everyone that was watching on in horror said had I been inches behind and the horn wouls have impaled me.

Went for a shower and got told they only had a bucket shower , I assumed this would be a large bucket with holes in it. But sat in this familys living room the woman boiled the kettle then poured it into a large solid bowl. I was then escorted upstairs to a tiny room with a hole in the floor and a window looking out onto the fields.

The Sherpa who owned the house had summited Everest 3 times and does treks himself alot cheaper. Next year I might attempt Ama Dablam 22,349 feet if anyone fancys it give me a shout.

Day 16

Walked back to Lukla , flying out in the morning tomorrow , theres a scottish and irish pub and a starbucks here. Happy hour is in an hours time , need to be suitably drunk to calm the nerves for tomorrows flight. And if something happens someone please give the papers a better photo for fucks sake lol!!

Trek complete! Now just 2 days to enjoy in Kathmandu

The flight back to Kathmadnu was probably worse than going out due to everyones nerves. We had a late night in Lukla drinking in the selection of 3 bars. Upon getting back to the tea house me and Chris were starving , they had left the kitchen open so we went in and helped ourselves to handfulls of cooked potatos and stuffed our faces. My room mate never returned that night , he was last seen passed out in starbucks.

In the early hours of the morning I was woke by him throwing things at the window to get in! Few hours later we were on the first flight. Standing on the runway I calmed everyones nerves by saying " That doesn't sound right" as the plane started up. To which the girls angrily replied "shut up Dave!"

Once again we had an airhostess , all she done once we were airborne was walk the isle and asked if anyone wanted a mint! As the plane headed towards the end up the runway everyone was shouting "up up up" and to my relief we were in the air. A few of us had dinner and beer when we got back I accidentally ordered 3 main courses thinking that "chicken dumpling" would come as a single chicken dumpling. It didn't.

Found a nice resturaunt in Thamel where me Chris and Stefan sat and watched the madness on the streets below unfold. I ended up buying 30 animal hats for around £1 each! Bargain

I really hope to return to Nepal very soon

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Photos

DSCF4968
Everest behind me

Me and Grandad
The reason why I undertook the trek and my greatest inspiration

Making the local paper at home
Such a bad photo lol