....and then there we were - close up to Mt Everest. The pilot confirmed we were flying at around 21300 feet. He couldnt go any higher due to the weight in the aircraft and the thin air - confirmed by the fact the pilot had to work hard to keep the chopper stable, as it was bobbing around all over the place at this altitude. There were some very nervous, but exhilerated passengers in the chopper.... read more

The pilot was incredibly skilled, as you would hope being a rescue pilot as well - the purpose of the B3 helicopter we were in, and he regularly banked round the sides of mountain peaks to fly into the next valley.... read more

When all of us were "safely" seated in the chopper, the pilot climbed in as well, fiddled with his controls, then applied more power to the already whirring rotars. The excitement was building, then very quickly we had liftted off. No sooner than we were airborne a 100 feet or so, the pilot executed a sharp right turn, much to the whoops of delight from the guys in the back. I was smiling a lot, if not a little nervous. We quickly climbed and headed back up the valley we had trudged down slowly before and within what seemed like a minute, we were already circling high over Namche Bazar. Circling overhead of Namche, the pilot was quizzed on his nationality - it turns out he was also an Australian! Too late to get out now! ... read more

Crossing the Larja bridge for the last time - a lot easier than the first... read more

Ready to Leave Namche... read more