Author: Dave Johnson

Today was a similar height gain, time and distance to yesterday with a very steep start out of Dole and then gradual upwards hike over terrain similar to English moorland before dropping down slightly into the tiny settlement of Machhermo at the end. The weather was a bit cooler and less sunshine than previous days. We are now above the tree line at 4400m and getting into snow territory. In fact this afternoon while we were sat in an altitude sickness presentation by the Mountain Rescue medics the clouds rolled in and there was a brief flurry of rain and sleet. Tomorrow should be interesting…

Ok – thought I’d put in a bit about health, which is a real focus area on an adventure like this. There’s plenty of material about do’s and don’ts regarding altitude acclimatisation – I’m not going to regurgitate all that, but here’s what I’ve done. On top of physical training I started taking a herbal mushroom powder supplement called Cordyceps about a month before travelling – the idea being that it would start to stimulate the ability to produce extra red blood cells which carry oxygen around the body. I’m now taking two of these capsules daily to give additional boost. On top of this I gave in to the temptation to get some prescription drugs called Diamox. As well as being a treatment for altitude sickness it helps to reduce the symptoms in the first place. Started taking these at the beginning of the trek and will continue until we are well past the highest point in about a week’s time. So far so good. On the downside, I had a dose of man-flu on the week before leaving the UK. Self-inflicted or not, whilst I shook off most of it, I have struggled to get rid of the blocked nose and niggly cough. Bring on the Sherpa remedy of ginger, lemon and honey tea (or GLH as we call it). This is like Lemsip without the paracetamol and appears to be helping slowly. There is no fever so I’m not unduly worried at the moment. Earlier start tomorrow for the hike to Gokyo and the lakes where we will spend 2 nights.

I am planning to write something about the baggage porters and also more info on the lodges. If there’s anything else you would like to know please leave a comment and I will respond.

I was more than happy to wake this morning after sleeping well, which is a good sign in terms of altitude adjustment. The settlement at Mong-La consisted of about half a dozen buildings – I wondered if the villages higher up the valley would be any bigger. So a relaxed light breakfast of omelette was followed by final preparations for what promised to be a short day walking. We began with a long, steep winding descent for almost an hour, losing 300m height in less than a mile. I’ve written before that I tend to struggle more going downhill, I have to concentrate on where I place my feet and find it difficult to relax. There were a couple of wobbles with loose gravel but I managed ok in the end. There will be more of these to come. The sun was making the going hot as well, some of the people we passed coming up in the opposite direction were visibly struggling – even a couple of Sherpas! Not the case however for the lithe, tanned man in white vest, shorts and running shoes who came past running down the path like a mountain goat.

We had a short tea break at Phortse Tenga, soaked up some sun and went on our way, knowing we had some 400m of elevation gain in the next couple of hours. There were some steep stepped sections but it was not too strenuous, we crossed several small bridges over streams running down the mountain and eventually climbed up to view spectacular waterfalls. All around the views back to Khumbu valley and ahead to our current destination we’re opening up as we got higher. After a short rest stop near the waterfalls we carried on before suddenly rounding a bend and discovering we had arrived in Dole. It was 1pm.

A relaxed lunch of fried eggs and Tibetan bread (which I love) meant the opportunity to catch up on some social media and post yesterday’s blog before having a nap. Writing this now as we wait for dinner. Temperature is falling and the rooms are cold but the dining room has stove. This place is busy and we are hearing stories of seriously low temperatures, snow and ice where we are heading. I’m still quite anxious about what’s to come but just taking one day at a time.

We have started a daily monitoring process of our oxygen levels and any potential altitude sickness symptoms. Nothing to report yet. Today we were up at 7 and out of the lodge by 8.15 expecting a long day. Although the trekking will get tougher as we gain more altitude, at the moment I am pretty comfortable with the demands. Since Phakding we have covered about 16 miles in 2 full days walking and gained about 1400m altitude. Because the paths are uneven, winding and at times narrow and steep, the pace is very slow, which also helps the gradual acclimatisation. So for someone who is accustomed to hitting 20 miles a day even on rough ground, it’s an easy pace to deal with.

The weather so far has been clear hot and sunny until mid afternoon then hazy, cloudy and a lot cooler in the evenings, turning progressively colder at night. We expect sub zero temperatures in the next 10 days as we get into the real high stuff.

The walk from Namche today started with a steep climb up out of the town for an hour or so revealing fantastic views of the valley and peaks behind. We eventually reached Syangboche airstrip where we stopped and had an impromptu penalty shoot out at 3800m. As usual England failed gallantly!!

We then continued to ascend up to a small ridge where we had the best views of Everest and its surroundings so far. Awesome!

Descending into the village of Khumjung we stopped for lunch at a more rustic tea house in traditional Sherpa style. Khumjung’s development has been funded by the Sir Edmund Hillary foundation and is a very well set out farming community with schools, a hospital and well maintained buildings.

After lunch we continued to descend out of the village and passed the point where the EBC route veers to right and our path to the left. We then began a long ascent winding around the hillside as our destination came into view at the top of the pass. The sheer scale of the mountains and valleys is a lot more evident now and with the peace and quiet punctuated occasionally by the sound of helicopters flying through the valleys both above an below us. After a couple of short rest breaks on the uphill stretch we reached Mong La shortly before 4pm. WiFi initially good but the place relies on solar power so at about 8.30pm after dinner everything went off except the lights.

Tomorrow is a half day trek to Dole.

A relaxed day after a good night’s sleep, no aches and pains and no sign of any altitude effects, in fact we will now take daily oxygen level readings as an indicator of how well we are acclimatising.

After a casual breakfast we set off on a short steep up hill walk out of the town to Sagarmatha National Park Museum where there is a viewing point for the Everest massif which is still some 18 miles in the distance. Despite the distance and clouds around, the high peaks were clearly visible for periods and even more impressive when viewed through my binoculars. Spectacular and we expect the views to keep improving as we progress.

We made a short visit to the museum which has some very fascinating insights into the region, Sherpa culture and the history of the mountains along with some very rare pictures and old photos.

We then descended back into the town, which is shaped like an enormous amphitheatre and stopped for coffee and cake at a German Bakery before returning to the lodge for lunch. The tea-houses or lodges are very much like basic youth hostels at one end of the scale or simple B&Bs at the other. Food is generally good and staff are friendly. Everybody seems to know Santosh, our guide, very well so we need to make sure that works for us. We then had the afternoon free, I handed in some laundry, went out for a walk, bought some socks and gaiters on advice and got a book to read – it’s called Into Thin Air, I’ll let you google it if you haven’t heard of it.

We finally sorted out WiFi passes for the EverestLink network and are told that speeds should improve after we are out of Namche. Keeping fingers crossed for that.

We went out for dinner and had Pizza which was OK. Bedtime now and early start for tomorrow when we have a steep climb to start the day and overall height gain of about 550m and going over 4000m for the first time before getting to our destination called Mong La.

Well we slept like babies without the aid of alcohol, which is not banned but ill advised for people gaining altitude (trust me we will make up for that on the way back down in 2 weeks!). Not sure I mentioned Jacek and Tomek are Polish so in my mind I am calling them north and south (figure it out yourself).

We got up about 7am and started sorting bags out before heading down to breakfast. The lodge was very busy – in fact everywhere is busy – it’s like being at a theme park at times..After piling on some calories and stocking up with water we headed off on our day expecting about 9 hours with rests and some 3000 feet of ascent. The morning took us through some small villages following the line of the river and crossing on several occasions using these wonderful metal bridges which bounce under your feet and sway side to side. They are not suspension bridges but are fixed to banks by tensioned cables. The skies were clear and at times we started to get views of snow covered peaks over 6000m high.

It was warm work and we stopped for a tea break having initially gained height then lost it again. After that we seemed to keep going downhill and by lunchtime we were at the same height we started yesterday in Lukla, now realising that all our climbing was going to happen this afternoon. So more carbs and protein for lunch and more ginger tea with honey and lemon, but now the meat ban is imposed! As a big meat eater one of my biggest concerns coming here was knowing that the meat quality is not good in the mountains and it’s not a good idea to eat it. So from now it’s eggs, cheese, vegetables – sounds like fun….not.

We set off after lunch without Santosh whose lunch was late for done reason. He promised to catch us up later. Almost immediately we started to gain height gradually but at a slow pace to limit our exertions. After a short drop we crossed the final bridge of the day. The longest, highest and windiest so far. After that the steep climb began up some switchback paths and we gained around 500 feet in a very short distance. I paced myself with a group of donkeys carrying bags and supplies. Going past the donkeys and yaks can be dangerous, particularly if you are on the open side of the path with no protection from a steep drop. We came to a rest station and took time for a breather, during which Santosh did actually catch us up. After that rest there was another steep climb with a further 500 feet gained in about half a mile.

The path then climbed more gradually before contouring round the hillside and into the impressive sight of Namche Bazar, the largest settlement between Lukla and Everest. We will spend 2 nights here as part of the acclimatisation process, with mini hike tomorrow and maybe a first view of Everest itself. Dinner was good, and tonight I have a room to myself – internet slightly better but no joy uploading videos to FB and photos to this blog.

Photos are posted to Instagram @vauventriers and Twitter @vauventriers or on Facebook.

The flight to Nepal from Dubai was very smooth – strange to learn that one of the FlyDubai stewards was an English guy from East Yorkshire whose parents live in village about 4 miles from our house!

We arrived in Kathmandu slightly ahead of schedule and then had the long process of visa completion before a short car ride to our hotel where I discovered that it was me and not the trekking company who should supply the main kitbag to be carried by the porter. Quickly resolved with our guide, Santosh, who found one for me to borrow, but an unavoidable unpack and repack exercise to get the weight right after a quick meal.

The time difference between Nepal and UK is 4hours 45 mins and our brief was to be up at 3am for a 3.30 departure by car to get to Ramechap airport by 8am. So after about 5 hours sleep on flights I managed only 1 more hour shut eye before getting up again before I would normally go to bed!!!

We left the hotel shortly after 3.30am and had a long car journey initially in the dark out of the city around winding hillside roads which seemed to deteriorate more as it got lighter. A few hairy moments with other vehicles but generally quite entertaining. The small airport at Ramechap/Manthali was crowded with trekkers heading out and returning from their expeditions and flights coming and going almost every minute. After a wonderfully chaotic checkin and security process we awaited the prospect of the 20 minute flight to the most dangerous airport in the world.

Shortly before our flight was called I realised my padlock key and attached wedding ring had fallen out of my bag at some point during the chaos. A quick sweep of the area and a check of my bag pockets revealed nothing and I had no choice but to board the plane without finding them.

The small plane flight was short and fun in very good conditions but the excitement of a successful landing at Lukla was overshadowed by my feelings about losing my keys and ring. I searched through my bag 2 more times without success and we ordered some breakfast in the tea house where we were having the trek briefing. Shortly after this I had a thought that maybe the keys had lodged in an external pocket of my bag or even caught on strap. Amazingly I found them trapped between the back of the bag and the waist band. They had survived all the chaos and the flight and so my spirits were super high as I took my first altitude sickness pill and we left to officially begin the trek at about 11.30am in bright sunshine.

The walk was going to be a fairly undemanding 5.5 miles to Phakding, we were in no rush and would be losing altitude from 2850m to 2600m. We made 3 stops for tea breaks and lunch ( my first chance to eat MoMos) and took time to enjoy the scenery.

We passed through a couple of smaller settlements and crossed 3 river bridges before arriving at our lodge tea house for the evening around 4.15pm.

The terrain was undulating, decent paved and rocky paths but we had to pay attention to avoid the numerous Sherpas, donkeys and yaks carrying expedition gear and commercial supplies.

So Day 1 is done and we are warmed up, Jacek and Tomek are great fun to be with and good walking companions so I’m really looking forward now to the rest of the adventure. All 3 of us are sharing a room tonight so I hope we sleep well and they can put up with my snoring.

A long day ahead tomorrow!

So, after almost 2 years of telling myself I need to get back on my blog and continually failing to listen, here it is…a new challenge…not what I originally envisaged, but something many people will have on their bucket list and possibly never achieve…

Having taken a “rest” in 2018 I was planning a similar long distance charity walk in the U.K. and had even started mapping it out and looking at dates. All this changed in November due to a simple Facebook post from an ex work-colleague, Jacek, announcing his mission to take on a series of challenges to raise money via a family foundation to support children in education in Africa. The first of these challenges was to be a trek the Himalayas in Nepal to Everest Base Camp in May 2019 and anyone interested could join the trek party…

No brainer? Well, my first thoughts were “interesting, not on my list, out of my comfort zone, but still maybe”.. So I consulted with the chief decision maker in the family and my rock of support aka Cath. Not only did she confirm that I should definitely do this challenge but also cut short my indecision by tagging me to Jacek’s post and the job was done and everything else is on the back burner. As it turns out, only Jacek’s brother Tomek and myself are joining the trek, hopefully 3 is not a crowd!

The preparation routine has been slightly different for this challenge – no detail route planning as we are with guides, but some searching on Google Earth nevertheless. Logistics has been essentially finalising dates and booking flights (I write this in Dubai Terminal 2 waiting for Jacek and Tomek to arrive for our flight to Kathmandu). As a result of this lack of detailed planning I feel less emotionally invested in the route itself, but it will be a journey of greater discovery and surprise because of that. In terms of physical preparation I took a less intense approach, trying to mix up gym based cardio and leg strength work with some rugged hill walking but not attempting to overdo distances. After a “year off”, it has been great to spend more time in the wild again and get the feeling of my body becoming fitter (skinnier in Cath’s opinion!). In Nepal we will not be walking more than 12 miles in any day, the challenge will be overcoming altitude acclimatisation and the terrain rather than the distance. We start at 2800m above sea level and will reach 5545m at the highest point of the trek.

The last 2 tangible pieces of the preparation jigsaw are acquiring new equipment and most importantly “the cause”. In terms of gear, there were a few things I had to get, mainly a down jacket suitable for high altitude, a proper size 30l daypack and ice spikes. I resolved the footwear dilemma by having my trusty Altberg JOGLE boots resoled – they will take the brunt of the workload again (incidentally I was cleaning them just 2 days ago and discovered an external tear on the upper ankle seam, immediately Cath to the rescue with a visit to a shoe repairer and some Gorilla glue just in case!)

As mentioned above, Jacek and Tomek are trekking to raise money via their family foundation to support children in education in Africa. Following my experiences of the Pennine Way in 2014 and JOGLE in 2017, I decided once again to walk in support of Prostate Cancer UK – it is a charity I believe in, can identify with, and has been supportive of me also. If you are reading this and haven’t donated yet, please follow the link www.justgiving.com/davejtrek2019 to make a valuable contribution.

Last bit to come to terms with is the mental preparation. I am not great with heights and steep drops so that’s my comfort zone issue. I’m also daunted by the risk of altitude sickness, flying into the most dangerous airport in the world, and the fact that 3 days ago there was a mini-earthquake near Kathmandu. But fear builds adrenaline and that’s what I want.

So here goes, the brothers Plewa have arrived, I’ve had my jabs, got some altitude sickness pills, Cath has stocked me with dried fruit, chocolate and cereal bars, the adventure begins – next stop Kathmandu.