BY AMAR SHAH
We were a group of 4 who had planned our trip on our own and were off to Kathmandu and from there to Lukla, the place from where the trek starts.
Altitude Sickness
First I will give a brief about the problem of altitude sickness that most of the trekkers and climbers face while going on the Everest Base Camp trek. The best way to avoid altitude sickness is to drink a lot of water (more than double the normal quantity that you have at your place of stay). The water is to be had whether you are thirsty or not. Just keep on drinking it. We did carry liquid chlorine which is available at Thamel in Kathmandu which can be used to disinfect the water that you get on the way. Mineral water bottles are very expensive. The second thing is that you climb slowly and with extra days as breaks to acclamatise as this will prepare your body to withstand the thin air and low atmospheric pressure and oxygen content as you climb up. The common medicine used for high altitude sickness is Diamox. The drug used in emergency is dexamethasone if you have the symptoms of altitude sickness. The first symptoms of altitude sickness is disorientation (cannot walk in a straight line or unable to tie your shoe lace or irritability of the mind). This are symptoms we should keep in mind and look for in any of our fellow trekkers. My experience says that if we keep ourselves well hydrated with excess water intake than it is not much of a problem till the base camp or till kala pathar. We had a case of altitude sickness amongst us and more on that will come later.
The Difficulty Level and Weather
Let me also give you a brief about the trek. The weather in May when we went was not very cold. I mean it was not extreme and we were lucky to have good sunshine almost everyday. The daily trekking is about 6-7 hours and the net average climb everyday is about 500 mtrs. Only once when you go to Namche bazaar the climb is about 1000 mtrs. In the mountains I don’t believe in telling the distance in kilometres. It is the altitude and the time of the trek which is important. So you just need to prepare for the altitude. Stop smoking if you are a smoker well in advance and don’t even touch a cigarette at such high altitudes. The most important requirement which I discovered is a strong will to reach the top of Kala Pathar and see Everest.
As it is said “Where there is a will there is a way”.
Lukla to Phadking
Lukla is at an approximate altitude of about 2800 metres and the moment you land there you do get a slight headache due to direct exposure to high altitude. And of course the most exciting part is the runway of the Lukla airport which goes straight down to a 2000 feet gorge if the plane fails to take off. After resting for some time we were on our way to Phakding which was our first halt.
The trek is very beautiful and you are walking alongside the river and crossing over it once using the suspension metal rope bridge built by the swiss. Phakding is a small settlement at an altitude of about 2500 metres. So it was a good change to come down from Lukla and get acclimatised and take some rest.
Phadking to Namche Bazaar (3400 meters)
The next day we started for our trek to Namche Bazaar which is the biggest town on the trek. This trek as per my experience and knowledge is the most difficult in terms of net altitude that you climb. Namche Bazar is at an altitude of 3400 mtrs. So it was a net climb of about a 1000 mtrs. On the way we came to the gate of the Sagarmatha National Park (the area in which Everest is). After giving the toll which is different for Indians and foreigners we were on our way keeping in mind the warning which was written on the board (Altitude kills Go Slowly). It was a difficult trek and we reached there in the evening. Namche Bazaar is supposed to be the richest district of Nepal as all the lodges here are booked with trekkers and climbers going up or down. It is the largest settlement on the trek and the best place to stay a day more to acclimatise.
We stayed for a day and had a short trip to Khumjung where Sir. Edmund Hillary has built a school for the village children. We also visited the hotel built by the Japanese at this high altitude. Namche bazaar being a big settlement you can get a lot of equipment as well as porters to carry your load. We did hire one porter from here to carry some of our load
Namche Bazaar to Tengboche ( 3867 meters)
From Namche Bazaar we were on our way to Tengboche. The trek passes through beautiful meadows and I think it is the most beautiful stretch of the whole trek. Once you reach the top at Tengboche after a difficult steep climb of about 2 hours you are treated to a beautiful sight of the Monastery. Make it a point to visit the monastery and sit quietly for some time. The atmosphere is just superb. If you get a clear sky at Tengboche than you can see Everest straight down the valley. Unfortunately we were not so lucky.
Tengboche to Dingboche
Our next destination was Dingboche . The trek to dingboche is not very steep but now you are walking at a higher altitude and above the tree line so the landscape is barren. The climbing becomes a bit more tiring due to the altitude. After a walk of about 6 hours we reached dingboche which is situated in the foothills of the beautiful Ama Dablam peak. This is also a place where you can stay for an extra day to get acclamatised to the higher altitude. We did stay here for an extra day and had a good sunny day to relax.
Dingboche to Lobuje (4940 meters)
After a good extra day rest and acclamatisation we started our trek for Lobuje. The climb is just about 500 mtrs but the altitude now makes it even more tiring. We reached Lobuje which is the last big inhabited pace before base camp. There are several lodges out here to stay. The most difficult thing to do here is SLEEP. I just woke up every half an hour without any external disturbance. The body was adjusting to the high altitude and so could not sleep soundly. But once again I would like to remind everyone that keep yourself well hydrated (in fact over hydrated). Woke up next day with a strong will as today was the day I was going to see Everest.
Lobuje to Gorakhshep (5200 meters)
The trek from Lobuje to Gorakhshep is a climb of about 300 mtrs only but the climb takes some time as you get tired due to the low oxygen content. On reaching Gorakhshep which has about two lodges (staying here for the night is not advised due to the high altitude) but we had decided that we will stay here as we had to go to Kala Pathar and base camp.
So on reaching Gorakhshep in about 2 hours, we kept our ruck sacks at one of the lodges and immediately started off for Kala pathar.
Kalapathar (5545 meters)
Everest cannot be seen from the base camp as its view is obstructed by the everest west shoulder. So to see Everest you have to climb a small hill which has black stones and no snow, called Kala Patthar. It is a climb of about 345 mtrs from Gorakhshep. As the sky was clear we started off immediately as weather tends to change in the afternoon and the visibility goes down and if you are unlucky Everest gets covered with clouds.
The climb to kala pathar was the most tiring trek I had ever done in my life. It was a half an hour trek if we do it at sea level, but at 5200 metres plus it was a challenge involving both your mind and body. Every 2-3 steps that I used to climb my mind asked me why are you here and why are you climbing, just go back. I used to stop take some breaths and gather my will power and start climbing again. The peak of Pumori became visible once we went up a little.
Pumori on the left 
First clear sign of the everest in right corner
After climbing half way I could see the first sight of Mt. Everest. A faint peak in the back drop. Now my mind was telling me to go back as I had already seen Everest. Had to gather all my stamina and will power left to keep going.
On reaching the top of Kala Pathar at an altitude of 5545 metres I had a clear view of Everest. There it was right in the centre towering over the neighbouring peaks.
The view from the top of Kala Pathar is just out of the world. You are surrounded by peaks all above 7500 mtrs and in front of you are the three peaks amongst the tallest five in the world. It is also a very humbling experience as at a height of 5545 mtrs you still feel at the bottom as you are surrounded by towering peaks all around
We stayed there for about say 2 hours and took photos. Let me tell you one more thing because of the low oxygen content and fatigue you just can’t feel the rush of joy when you are at the top. You are just sitting there and watching. There is no celebration at all. Once you come back home you can actually relive your moments and feel the joy and sense of satisfaction.
A friend of mine developed symptoms of cerebral edema on the way down from kala Pathar and we had to abandon our plans of staying back at Gorakhshep and after taking a tablet of Dexamethasone the two of us climbed down immediately to Lobuje. The other two went to the base camp the next day and came down.
We had an interesting encounter when we came down to Lobuje. It was evening and the temperature was cold and there was light snow falling. We were tired beyond limits as we had been trekking since morning. We just decided to enter one of the lodges and sat down at the table. I started talking to my neighbour and was lucky to find out that he was the doctor coming down with the Indian Army contingent who had just summited Everest. This was a divine coincidence and I talked to him about my friend’s altitude issues and he checked him up and advised us to rest and go down tomorrow and gave us more dexamethasone tablets to be taken if required.
After sleeping overnight at Lobuje we went down about 600 mtrs to Pheriche the next day and my friend was perfectly fine.
We were running out of cash (carry a lot of cash as you never know how much you will need) so we came down two camps at a time. From Pheriche we came to Tengboche and after a small stop went down all the way to Namche Bazar in one day. Next Day we trekked all the way to Lukla to catch the flight back to Kathmandu.