Base camp…made it!!!

Gorak Shep © Blossfeldi... | Dreamstime.com

I’m afraid I’m barely recognisable in the photos I’ll be bringing back to prove it as we’d been walking for 9 hours that day at altitudes of between 16k and nearly 18k and it was getting colder and colder so the only bit of me showing is probably my frozen nose. What made it far far worse was that the place we were staying for the night, a lodge at Gorakshep nearby, turned out to be the most dire accomodation of the lot. You don’t go trekking in the Himalayas and expect luxury; everything has to be carried up by yak or porter (mostly young teenage boys), but this lodge was like something from the wild west with exhausted people hunched over a yak dung fire in the main room, a wild eyed man coming in and asking if anyone had seen or heard anything of a tall Dutchman who was overdue on his return from the summit, the loo was a communal hole in the ground, the communal shower room was freezing, which was no surprise as the door opposite it was kept open and it was snowing heavily outside, and the bedrooms – no light, only furniture – 2 beds with a duvet and pillow on each that looked as if they hadn’t been washed for a 1000 visitors – and you are frozen cold and exhausted – dire isn’t the word! We had a terrific snow storm that night and all I could think as I shivered in bed was ‘what if we can’t get away in the morning?’

Sherpa and Yak crossing Suspension Bridge - © Cascoly | Dreamstime.com

But we did. Hallelujah! a very long and slippery day but absolutely beautiful. Walking down has proved a revelation. Gradually all the symptoms of altitude sickness disappear, you are mostly going down so the awful breathlessness is not a problem, you can actually enjoy the magnificent scenery, you know the lodges you are going to be staying in so there are no longer the terrors of the unknown – the lodge yesterday at Pangboche had clean sheets and electric blankets no less – I kept mine on all night and just revelled at 3 am in my cosiness.

Pangboche © Granitepea... | Dreamstime.com

Only one more challenge to overcome – the flight from Lukla in 2 days time. The short runway is on a downhill slope over a huge drop; assuming the plane manages to fly off it alright it has to head for a mountain immediately opposite, only turning sharp left at the last moment… well I shan’t know anything about it as my eyes will be tight shut.

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