Entries from Expedition Dispatches

Namaste everyone!

Well, we did it! Everyone successfully made it to Everest Base Camp on a beautiful day. We had a relaxing start to allow the day temperatures to rise enough so that the hike would be pleasant. The team hiked for almost 3 hours to reach base camp or EBC as we call it, stopping along the way many times to take pictures and enjoy the grandiose views.

Once here, we were greeted with the best food, thus far, for lunch and several team members decided to enjoy hot showers while it was still warm and sunny. Although the temperature wasn’t high, the intensity of the sun at this altitude made it feel quite warm to us.

Everyone is doing great and looking forward to a good night’s rest after the day of trekking to get here. We are sleeping on the Khumbu glacier in a campsite chopped out of the ice. Our camp is surrounded by mountains and glaciers in nearly all directions. It’s incredibly stunning to say the least.

Tomorrow the team will make some phone calls to loved ones back home to say hello. So, if you see a bizarre number on your phone appear, please answer. We are calling from our satellite modem since there isn’t WiFi or cell reception here.

That’s all for now!

Casey and Crew

Today proved to be a much less stressful day than yesterday.   Waking up to five thousand vertical feet of relief directly out your window, fabulous crisp Himalayan air and the absence of a bajillion people trying to run you over is pure bliss.  Combine that with French press coffee, pancakes, eggs and homemade chapati bread and the day is off to a good start. 

After breakfast we got our porters loaded up to carry our unneeded gear ahead to our next lodge then hit the trail for our first miles towards Everest Base Camp.  What is so unique about this area is this trail is not only a trail but an interstate, superhighway, autobahn, or backwoods country road; it is the single line on which literally everything in this area gets moved through.   If you want a beer, it came up on a human’s back.  If you want French fries, noodles, toilet paper, clothing, or anything else under the Himalayan sun, it was moved by legs of some kind.  No automobiles have ever driven this path, nor will they.  It is the way things used to be. 

After three delightful hours of walking, we stopped at a small tea house for lunch then polished off the remaining 2 miles to Namche Bazaar, capitol of the Khumbu Region.  This last two miles gained us more elevation than the previous four so by the time we rolled into or lodge we were ready for a rest.   Despite being over 11,000 feet, the team is feeling good and looking forward to an even more mellow day tomorrow.   We are enjoying decent weather in the morning and light rain by the afternoon.   A great combo for walking then drinking tea and beer.  

Stay tuned for our rest day adventure tale. 

Adam Knoff

Wake up, eat breakfast, hike, drink tea, order dinner, eat dinner, order breakfast, go to sleep, and repeat.

We hit the dusty trail once again, making our way closer and closer to Everest Basecamp. Yaks jingle jangled along the trail letting us know their presence so we could move aside and let them have the right-away. We weaved up and down, right, and left through the boulders in terrain that looks out of this world. We got our first views of the Khumbu glacier and then a great view of Everest. Our best views came on our hike up Kalapatar. Halfway up everyone got views of basecamp and the Khumbu icefall. The whole picture is coming together, and the mirage is disappearing. It’s hard to see where one mountain starts and another ends. Everyone is getting excited to arrive in basecamp, especially now that we have seen it from a far. Tomorrow is the day but for now we will all get a good night’s sleep after a sun-filled dusty day on the trail.

Till Basecamp,

Casey, Hannah, and team

We made it to the Khumbu!  Normally I wouldn’t sound so excited but this was not an average day of travel.  

Our day began with a modest 3:45 am wake-up call from our comfortable air conditioned rooms so we could get all of our luggage and bodies to the airport by 5:15.  Our flight to Lukla was scheduled to depart at 6 which in theory would put us out of the smoggy Kathmandu valley and into the mountains at 7 am.   Everything is good in theory until a human makes a silly mistake or Mother Nature takes the reins.  In our case it was the later that began to send our perfectly good plan into a tail spin.  

Landing in Lukla, which sits at 9,000 feet literally dug into a mountain side is considered one of the most challenging places in the world to land a plane, so conditions need to be just right.  Today they were anything but.   By 10 am we actually loaded a bus, got transported to the plane, sat on that hot and sweaty bus for 30 more minutes then got word the conditions deteriorated suddenly so all flights were on then off again sending us back to the terminal.   By 1pm, 8 hours after arriving in the terminal we had moved a total of 20 feet.   As reports of continuing bad weather reached us, we knew our chances of flying were dwindling.  

So enter Plan B.  If a fixed wing can’t fly, sometimes a helicopter can.  And fly it did!  After another hour and half of finagling we rounded up two birds to take the entire group, with luggage to Phakding, our scheduled place of rest for the evening.   Wait, wasn’t there bad weather up there? Yes, and because of that we had to make an unplanned landing well below our village to avoid sinking clouds and big scary mountains.   So enter Plan C.  

The group flew in separate helicopters with one group making it on their second attempt and myself and Eva still stuck below.   After much head scratching about how to reconvene the next day, our pilot motioned Eva and I to quickly load up so he could make a last ditch attempt at keeping the group together.   By some blessing of karma, the clouds parted just enough to make it happen and we landed literally as the clouds began to close in again.   With blades still running we jumped out, threw the luggage off the helicopter and off he went.   We were both glad to be on the ground and not heading back into the ensuing white out.  

As the bird disappeared we counted our blessings and began our efforts to find the rest of our team.  Twenty-five minutes after landing we were all reunited drinking tea at the Sunrise Hotel in Phakding.   

A warm fire, big dinner and a couple beers prepared us for a well deserved sleep.  

I was impressed how the team kept a positive outlook and rolled with the punches despite an unpredictable outcome.   

Tomorrow we begin our actual trek towards Namche.   Follow along for hopefully a less intense entry tomorrow.  

Cheers, 

RMI Guide Adam Knoff

All is well here on the trek!

Today we left Pheriche and hiked further up valley to Lobuche, we slowly made our way along the winding path that we share with other trekkers, porters heavily laden with loads bound for Base camp, and yaks who aren't as keen to share the trail. We made good time and enjoyed the astounding views before reaching camp for the night.

In the afternoon we were hoping to catch a glimpse of the Khumbu glacier, but sadly the clouds gathered and obscured our views. So we’ll have to wait until tomorrow.

Everyone is currently relaxing in our tea house enjoying the warmth of a yak dung burning stove. There has been plenty of good conversation within our team and other trekkers on the same journey as us.

RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

Namaste from Kathmandu.  

Day 1 of our Everest Base Camp and Lobuche Expedition is in the books.  I would say yesterday was the official first day but I don’t want to start confusing people this early into things.  

Despite where we sit on the official green light of our multi week adventure, one thing isn’t confusing, this team is not afraid to drink a beer!  Yesterday, whatever day of the week that was for those of you reading this now, we all met for our first team lunch and within minutes were making a toast to all of our bags showing up, all of us showing up and to offsetting jet lag with alcohol.   I liked everyone from the get go.   The rest of the day brought some shopping, resting and a nice dinner.  

Today we started with a wonderful breakfast at our Hotel Yak and Yeti, quickly followed by a fun city tour.   We saw ancient Buddhist temples, a Hindu cremation ceremony and monkeys cute enough to want to bring home but would likely eat all your food and kill your cat.   

These are all beautiful sights with lots of history and meaning but to me the most intense part of this city is the traffic!  If anyone reading this has a family member on said trip, don’t expect them to come home and be the same person, especially crossing the street.   We all have a much different “margins of safety” when dealing with moving vehicles now.  Don’t attempt to stop us, just close your eyes and count to ten.  

After surviving our last walk to and from the restaurant zone, we are now packing for our anticipated 6am flight to Lukla, one of the most challenging runways in the world and gateway to Everest.   

We will report on the flight and first stretch of the walk tomorrow.   

RMI Guide,

Adam Knoff 

Namaste Everyone,

The team woke to beautifully clear skies again and views of Everest right out our dining room window. We’ve settled into our daily routine of getting up and packing our duffel bags before meeting in the dining room for breakfast and plenty of Starbucks thanks to RMI sending it with us. After breakfast we steep outside to get a better sense of the temperature before adjusting our layers for the hike. Once on the trail we do our best to maintain a steady pace, with stops every hour or so to stay hydrated and take in the views. There is plenty of other hikers and yak trains headed in both directions to negotiate as well.

Today we hiked for a little over five hours including breaks and a light lunch to get to our next tea house in Pheriche, which sits at about 14,000 ft.

Everyone did great and enjoyed the stunning views of Ama Dablam, one of the most iconic peaks along the route to Everest Base Camp.

RMI Guide Casey Grom and the Base Camp Crew

Good evening or shall I say good morning,

After 2 nights in Namche, it was time to leave and make our way further up the valley. A tasty breakfast, a last message sent, and quick sit on the toilet wrapped up our morning routine before hitting the trail. Today’s hike was once again more beautiful than pictures can capture. The trail carried us along the hillside bringing us to the view we have all been waiting for...Everest. Haze cloaked the mountains giving almost a mysterious look to them. Ama Dablam, Lhotse, and Everest all stood proud. Words and pictures can't describe how impressive they are...one must simply be here to experience it.

All day the mountains stood in view almost calling us further down trail. After a handful of hours walking the dusty trail, sharing it will yak and zyopkyo, we arrive at the Tengboche Monastery. Here we received a puja ceremony by one of the monks who prayed for our safe travels. Each one of us placed items to be blessed and recieved both a khata and a sungdi.

After the ceremony we made our way downhill to Deboche where we will spend the night. Heated blankets greet us on our beds. There will be no cold toes tonight. Tomorrow, we hit the trail again to our next destination. Day by day we get closer to basecamp.

For now, we head to bed as the rest of you begin your day. 

RMI Guides Casey, Hannah, and Team

Hello again everyone back home.

It was another enjoyable day here in the Khumbu Valley, the team woke up to bright beautifully clear skies, and mountains in every direction. We had a nice relaxing breakfast and then decided to visit a Monastery in Thamo. It’s home to female Buddhist Monks that are Tibetan refugees. They apparently escaped over the boarder which is only a few miles away and have made this home like the Sherpa community did some 500+ years ago. When we arrived the nuns were milling about and tending to their greenhouse that they use to grow their vegetables. We purchased a few prayer flags and prayer beads to help support them and then made our way back to Namche for lunch.

Then evening was spent exploring Namche and doing a little bargaining for a few gifts. 

All is well and everyone is doing great.

Casey and Crew

Greeting everyone,

When on trips like this a team develops routines. Our daily routine begins with copious amounts of tea and coffee. The favorite flavor thus far is anything lemon ginger. After our bodies were filled with our hot beverage of choice, we hit the trail. Before we got too far into the trail (all a few hundred feet) we stopped at a bakery. The apple strudel has been said to be the best a team member has had outsode Austria. Loaded up with goodies we begin our journey for the day. We followed crystal blue water as we made our way uphill. Long bouncy cable bridges zig zagged us across the river. The stretch of the trail should be called the trail of stairs since we climbed what seemed endless amounts of them. But with every step we took we went higher and got closer to the mountains. Halfway through the day we got our first glimpse of Everest...man is she beautiful. This sneak peek gives the team motivation to push uphill.

After sharing the trail with fellow hikers, mules and zyopkyo (half cow, half yak) we arrived in Namche. Colorful buildings and stone walkways greet us. Souvenirs outside the store front capture our eyes. Puppies scamper about. Namche has a majestic feel. Hotel camp de base welcomes us with more tea, snacks, and Wi-Fi. The team has earned them all. Naps and shopping occupied our afternoon before sitting down for dinner with not tea this time but hot cocoa. Tired eyes and bodies are welcomed by comfy beds as we settle down for the night.

Today has been a good day. Tomorrow brings more adventure and more pictures. 

Goodnight, all,

RMI Guides Casey, Hannah, and Team