Trip Reports

Everest 3 Peaks 3 Passes - May '14

Written by Leader Mara Larson , May 2014

Everest 3 Peaks & 3 Passes

Everest Trekking the Hard Way!

1 May ñ 25 May 2014

The team consisted of:

1. Shaymus 2. Louise 3. Tom 4. Rob 5. Andy 6. Paul 7. Sarah

Sat at the Summit Hotel with the sun breaking through the early morning showers today it feels like our last 23 days of trekking was both a lifetime away as well as a far longer adventure into the deep of the Himalaya.

We arrived to weather mirroring the mood of the Khumbu this past month, somber skies and somber realities from the tragedy on Everest this Spring. We knew we would be trekking now with different eyes, we also knew we wanted to support the local Khumbu & Thame valleys who were now facing not only the emotions of lost family but the economic reality of a season without the waves of trekkers they so rely on.

So between thundering skies our team miraculously landed in Kathmandu on the 2nd May. Hailing from all corners of the UK we had both Shaymus and Louise returning here from Ireland, first timers Paul and Sarah from the Scottish hills, Rob and Andy escaping academia and London city life respectively, and finally Tom basking in the relative relief of our monsoon start, arriving in from UAE whereís he been ìtemporarilyî residing when not in the Lakes at Coniston.

Iíd prepped the team that weíd be up against some likely false starts with our aim to fly out towards Lukla the following very early morning. Our alarms rang near dawn in parallel with more thunder cracking so we enjoyed a relatively unrushed breakfast before the drive out to the airport arming ourselves with books, playing cards (me), and lots of fluids believing weíd be sat watching the world go by from the domestic airport terminal for most of the day, if not beyond. With true shock it was a matter of minutes, not hours before our flight was called and we were bused out to the tarmac! I admit, after 30+ flights to this particular airstrip, the shock of cloud cover we flew through was more terrifying than mystifying so when the landing came into sight and we stepped down the plane stairs towards the gates of Lukla it was a mixture of shock and sweet relief.

Here we met our local staff, including our Sherpas Dawa, Jangbu and Chote and swiftly made our way out of town towards the hills.

Our first few days continued on this storm system theme and so through Phakding, thru Monjo, and through most of our rest and acclimatization in Namche Bazaar the heavy layers of cloud and rain gave us a deep sense of mystery of what lay beyond. Thankfully even our socked in cloud shots from the famed Everest View Hotel provided more laughs than groans and we set about getting to know more about local village life while the big peaks stayed hidden. Dawa took us to his sonís school in Khumjung, the Sir Edmund Hilary School, where a proud dad handed over new notebooks while we checked out the kidís art classes and stories of the Yeti and friends.

From here Sarah, Paul, and Rob rejoined the team having taken early ëholidayí in Monjo thanks to some food and altitude issues and this reconnecting seemed to appease the weather gods. The rains began to lift and it was only one more day of cloud and mist before the skies decided to reward our patience.

At this stage though, the heavy rains coupled with the early illnesses meant a swift change of itinerary to keep the whole team together. We knew our two passes, the Renjo La & Cho La, would need more time to return to safe trekking conditions after this unseasonable weather, so we reversed route and aimed our trip now east to west across the Khumbu, giving us many more options for escape routes should we need.

Our first major climb is up the peak of Chukkung Ri. Itís a big and beautiful day, with stunning views over the Kongma Glacier and the towering Nuptse ridges. Louise surprises even herself with the powerful effort. Tom, Rob and Shaymus form our summit team. Sarah and Paul have a separate adventure which is also the emotional high of their trip. We celebrate back down in the village that evening in full knowledge that we are now on our stretch of continuous 5000m passes and peaks for the next week straight. Not a trip for the faint of heart!

Our 5000m+ crossing of the Kongma La is the following day, giving us our first major glacial crossing as well as good quality scrambling to the pass. Louise and Shaymus rejoice at the summit. Andy calls it the most physical day of his entire life. Weíre all in awe of the hot juice brought to us by the kitchen staff in the middle of the Khumbu glacier and the remaining climb off the lateral moraine and into the village of Lobuche comes with fresh snowfall. An epic day all around. And a nice and steady 10 hours.

Topped only by the next day, when we arrive early to Gorak Shep, have a brief lunch and Andy, Sarah, Rob, Paul and Tom jet off for our second summit, Kala Pattar. Some summit scrambling follows again and on return Tom announces itís the second best day of his life! The following day the team climbs together into base camp a 100% success and a crowning achievement for Shaymus and Louise who have come back to reach this goal after a failed attempt two years before.

After a trek back out the following day for lunch in Lobuche we say our goodbyes to the Irish duo who head back down the valley, meeting us in Kathmandu. Sarah, Paul, and Andy organize for a side adventure around Pangboche and the high valley contouring around Phortse and up the Gokyo Valley with Dawa. A mini recovery before the final peaks and pass. Rob, Tom, and I head with the remaining porter team up to the staging camp for the Cho La, our most serious of the trip. A clear and crisp morning follows which has us crossing this glaciated pass high above the Khumbu. We meet only two other teams coming the opposite direction as well as two more heading east to west with us. A pretty unique climb nearly all to ourselves and the reward after a relaxing lunch on the rocky summit is a nice long siesta, on the lower slopes of the pass. No oneís pointed fingers yet at whose snoring finally woke us all to get back on our way. But we all have our theories! A second glacial crossing this one with plenty of active rock fall reawakened all our senses before climbing back up to the gentle slopes above the village of Gokyo.

And like something out of a Himalayan dream, our windy but clear descent into the village gave a deep turquoise hue to the holy lake just beside the small village. Sublime. We camped just a stones throw from the river, and here the team regrouped for our final summit up Gokyo Ri. Rob still bursting with energy, must be packing magic pills? Another night up high, our very last in the extreme altitude entertained by some adventurous Canadian kids charming us on their family holiday up through this magical range.

Then the following morning we were up and climbing one last time, ascending to another windy and clear crossing 5000m+ pass. This time itís the Renjo La where exhaustion and relief were the themes of the day. We followed up by lunching along a western lake high up the Thame valley, our first true recovery from the extreme elevations. From here it was a welcome descent through small hamlets of Maralung and Thame, discovering blossoming rhododhendrons alongside the Bodi Khosi gorge before a last couple nights in Namche Bazaar seeing the views which were shrouded in cloud layers three weeks before. Yak bells, singing bowls, and a small re-entry towards civilization with bakeries and morning coffees and 48 hours later we were descending back into Kathmandu once more.

A wildly successful trip with more continuous 5000m climbing days than any on the team had thought possible. Book ended by massive Himalayan thunder and monsoon rains on both ends, the team now en route home filled with memories, a healthy dose of Himalayan awe and exhaustion, and already thoughts wandering towards peaks and valleys farther away. Some dreaming now of high peaks in Argentina, others of beers by the pool in Abu Dhabi sun, our newest member to the trekking fold focuses on two-wheeled adventures back in Londontown, and our ìyouthî packing direct for Borneo tropics with something very high in the none-too-distant future. Maybe even 40,000 and Ω feet...

A lifetime of memories made, thank you all and congratulations on a very successful Everest peaks and passes, the hard way! « Previous report | Next report »

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