You know, in a very basic way, each day was pretty much the same – get up, get dressed, same breakfast everyday, toast and omelet, and then start walking. Break for lunch, usually momos and fried noodles, a brief rest, and then walk some more to reach the destination of the day. An early dinner, Nepali daal-bhaat – and then early to bed. Now that would have been the smallest blog ever! For me, however, each day meant that we were that much closer to our destination, and I was truly grateful to have made it through one more day!! And although it sounds monotonous, it really wasn’t – the views changing rapidly, every day’s walk with its own challenges, every halt with its own charms – so yes, I do have quite a bit to write about!!

After a 2 night stay in Namche, we were more than ready to move on! After a bit of climb out of Namche, the trail was mostly flat, and it was a clear, sunny day! And within an hour of walking, the best sight ever – a glorious panorama of the distant peaks, and our first ever view of Mount Everest!! Pinch me somebody, MOUNT EVEREST!!!! We were absolutely mesmerized, it was like we had walked into a painting or something – slowed down quite a bit, stopping every so often to take pictures – what an absolutely spectacular display of nature’s glory! Starting with the beautiful Ama Dablam at the very right, then the showy Lhotse, the unassuming, modest Everest peaking out behind Lhotse, flanked on the left by Nuptse – and the Chola-che and Tawa-che peaks to the very left!! The best view was from the Tenzing Norway Memorial shaped like a Buddhist stupa – and we lingered reverentially, absolutely drinking it all in! I mean, seriously, laying eyes on Mt Everest – unbelievable!!

For an up-close view of Everest, here’s Ajey’s daily video!

As we walked, far below in the valley we could see the Hillary Bridge and Monjo village – hard to believe we had come so far in 2 short days!! Views of Everest ended with another sharp descent to Fungithanka, right on the banks of the Dudhkoshi river. We could see the afternoon hike stretching up ahead of us – the Rhododendron Trail marked in pink!! And these were massive bushes – no, almost trees – nothing like the simple rhododendron bushes in our front yard. We were literally walking through a forest of rhododendrons in full bloom – the pathway strewn with fallen petals, bowers of flowers all around us!! Certainly made the steep, very steep trail a very pleasant experience – nothing to it, a stroll through a flowering garden! To be honest, we have never paid much attention to the rhododendrons in our yard – but have a new-found respect for these beautiful flowers now!

As we walked up the trail, clouds drifted in, completely obscuring the mountains and soon filling the valley. We reached Tengboche Monastery, and the fog added to the mysticism and spirituality! The 4pm service was in progress, and the chanting of the monks, the burning incense and juniper, the flickering candlelight all created such a peaceful, serene atmosphere! Although Tengboche is a popular halt for a lot of people on the trek, our teahouse was a little further down the road – about an hour’s walk away in Milunga, at an elevation of 3800m. We had rooms with attached toilets again (counting our blessings!) and we were ready for an early night after a long day – more than 8 hours of walking today!! Although, hands down, this was truly the best day of all – the most scenic, and the most enjoyable too!! True, the clouds hid the mountains, but it was definitely more comfortable than walking under a blazing sun!

Next day dawned cold and foggy – and for the first time, we were walking in multiple layers – even gloves and warm hats. Last suspension bridge over Dudhkoshi came up – and had some fun watching a flock of Himalayan mountain goats perched precariously on a cliff high above, head-butting and fighting each other even at that height! Literally walking through clouds again, couldn’t see Ama Dablam and Tawa-che at all, which meant no stopping for photos, which meant that we were walking much faster than yesterday – and we reached Pangboche within an hour. I asked our guide if there was a restroom available – and there it was, possibly the most unique restroom of the trip! An outdoor shed, with a string to hold the door, and a hole in the floor – situated smack dab in the middle of a yak pasture, complete with 2 massive yaks peacefully enjoying the foggy morning!! Well, anything is better than the great outdoors, I suppose!!

The sun came out shortly after – but now the wind was picking up! Just before we reached our lunch stop at Shonmare, really excited to pass a board marking an elevation of 4000m! Above the tree line now – no more dense pine forests or lush rhododendron blossoms! Barren, rocky landscape with large boulders and scraggly bushes – and the narrow trail along a cliff with the white waters of River Imja cascading in the valley down below. It was especially harrowing when a dunki had to cross – there was literally no safe places, the animals passing by a little too close for comfort! The strain of breathing in thinner air was more noticeable now too – slightly labored breathing, and slower walking speed. This was the most uncomfortable I had been so far. The sun beating down furiously, the relentless wind, the roar of the water – and the path below our feet. Keep going, one step at a time, to the chant of ‘Om Mani Padme Hum’ – walking in an almost trance-like state.

It was a relief when Dingboche came into view, sooner than I was expecting! I was cold and tired, and really needed that lemon-ginger-honey tea to warm up!! The hotel here was quite nice – our rooms were in a newer section, and we had bathrooms again! Yay!! We did have to climb 3 flights of stairs to get to the rooms – which was bit of a torture after the long days!! No plumbing of course, and no hot water in the rooms! The main area, however, did have bathrooms with electric water heaters – a 10 minute shower for $10 was available, extra for towels! Although tempting – very, very tempting – I can’t imagine how cold it would get right after you turned the water off! Seemed like an invitation to hypothermia!! The dining room had a kind of sun room with glass walls – so was reasonably comfortable – we spent the afternoon there playing cards and reading. Dingboche at 4360m was our second ‘rest’ day, so the next day was to be a relatively easy one.

Dingboche’s horizon is dominated by the beautiful Ama Dablam peak – but the fog and clouds were not yet done with us! As our guide Ganesh said – Ama Dablam still not ready to smile at us!! We waited a bit longer to see if the clouds would clear, but finally started our acclimatization hike with Ama Dablam still hidden from view! Pretty straightforward – we had to ascend 350-400m on a trail right behind our hotel. Several prayer stones and stupas marking the way, including one spot with lots of the rocks stacked together to form little pyramids. It was cold, really cold – taking a glove off to take pictures meant freezing fingers! A light drizzle started on our way down, which turned into quite the heavy downpour by the time we were done with lunch – so no stroll through the Dingboche market for us!! Once again, cards to the rescue!!

Above 4000m, our blood oxygen was already starting to drop – we were in the 80s here at Dingboche. Thankfully, with the Diamox, none of us were really seeing any severe reactions to the altitude – nothing more than mild headaches. However, as our guide explained over dinner – the next 2 to 3 days were the most critical – we would be at altitudes at 5000m and over, and it would be crucial to watch carefully for any signs of altitude sickness! A little anxious, but also extremely excited – EBC is so close, I can practically taste it now!! Seems like a good cliffhanger to break on! – the last and final post of our EBC adventure – coming up soon!!