RMI Expeditions Blog
Hello again.
We woke to another beautiful sunny day here in the Khumbu. We started early to beat the traffic and the team made good time, yet taking time to enjoy this peaceful and majestic place.
There were still dozens of loads headed for basecamp as always, because much of the needed supplies arrive via plane or from a few days away by mules.
We also ran into several more friends on the trail headed for Everest and it was nice to say hello and wish them the best.
With a little luck we hope to be back in Kathmandu tomorrow morning!
Keep your fingers crossed for us.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
Posted by: Christina Dale
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Everest BC Trek and Lobuche
Elevation: 16,950'
High winds blew cold snow in our faces the entire three-hour trek to Gorak Shep today. Buffs up, gortex layers on, and hands balled up in our gloves gave us some protection but it still leads to chapped cheeks and tired climbers. We met up with the other RMI team, led by the famous Casey Grom, for some tea and jokes along the trail. They are heading down to the land of hot showers and warm evenings as we head up to Everest Base Camp tomorrow. Some of our team took the afternoon to rest and relax while others braved the winds and hiked up Kala Patar (18,500 feet). We had beautiful views of Nuptse and the Khumbu Glacier but Everest didn't want to show its true height to us today. Hopefully this wind slows and we have an easier trek into basecamp tomorrow.
RMI Guide Christina Dale
Hello again everyone.
All is still well here in the Khumbu as the team members made our way back into Namche. It was a busy day on the trail with climbers, trekkers, yaks, and porters all bound uphill to basecamp. We slowly made our way through the maze of traffic and enjoyed one last good view of Everest.
Along the way we ran into several old friends from my past trips and stopped to wish everyone good luck.
Tomorrow we'll be moving out early on our final leg of the journey back to Lukla. So please keep you fingers crossed we have good weather and can make our flight back to Kathmandu the following morning.
RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew
Hey everybody, this is Casey Grom calling from the Everest Base Camp Trek. Just want to let everyone know that all is well here in the Nepal. Unfortunately, we had some technical difficulties with our SAT phone and had some Wi-Fi issues here. We had a big storm the last couple of days which kind of knocked some things out. But everyone is doing great. In fact three days ago, we walked into Base Camp on a beautiful sunny warm day. We were welcomed by our gracious staff at Everest Base Camp, and they had a big spread of food set out for us and made everybody feel incredibly welcome. That evening we got a start of a snowstorm that dumped somewhere in the neighborhood of I don't know six to ten inches of snow. The following day, yesterday, they set up this big shower tent for us and we were able to get everybody through a round of hot showers there at Everest Base Camp. Literally just a couple of stone's throws from the Khumbu Ice Fall.
So this morning we woke up to pretty blustery skies and said our goodbyes to our team at Base Camp and and have made our way back down valley. We are currently back down in Pheriche, and there is snow still all the way down here. In fact, as I said, I think it knocked out their their solar systems for the last few days. So, we won't be able to get any pictures out, but hopefully tomorrow when we had to Namche there should be plenty of cell service, and there should be some Wi-Fi down there. So just updating everyone letting you know things are going well. Everyone's happy and look forward to getting down to even thicker air down there at 11,000'. I'll get some pictures out then. Thanks for following.
RMI Guide Casey Grom
Posted by: Christina Dale
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Everest BC Trek and Lobuche
Elevation: 16,175'
We woke up to a light blanket of white covering the yaks, high peaks, and trail. Walking to Lobuche was peaceful and quiet with no wind and soft steps in snow. It is nice to trek with one layer on and light gloves. Chilly when we stop but perfect hiking temperatures.
We passed over Thok La today where there are carins, rock piles, of memorials for climbers who have passed away in the Himalayas. It is a peaceful spot with colorful prayer flags blowing in the wind. Some of the climbers have plaques with poems or quotes reflecting their love for these mountains. Now we are at Lobuche resting at 16,000 feet and visiting the world's highest bakery.
The team is finding their stride well. Packing our duffel bags in the morning for the porters to take then helping themselves to our ample supply of French press Starbucks coffee (thanks RMI). Breakfast typically consists of eggs and toast or porridge. Then we hit the trail and walk with water, layer, and photo breaks mixed in. Lunch is at a tea house where we order soups, pizzas, or rice dishes. Then a few more hours to our village for the evening. It's nice when the rhythms of the days start becoming easy to people and we fall into a relaxed mode of exploring these valleys.
RMI Guide Christina Dale
Way to go Sherry and Ed! Love following you all on your adventure. Absolutely amazing! Love you both!! xo Colleen & Will
Posted by: Colleen on 3/27/2019 at 9:15 pm
What an amazing adventure for you all. Let my sweetheart Robert know I’m following everything you post and I get all his pictures. Can’t wait to hear about absolutely everything. Be safe and enjoy every moment .
I miss you .
Love, Kelly
Posted by: Kelly Donovan on 3/26/2019 at 10:48 pm
Posted by: Christina Dale
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Everest BC Trek and Lobuche
Elevation: 13,950'
We spent the day hiking up to 16,500 feet above Pheriche to the summit of Nagarjun. For some of the team it was a personal record every step! At the summit we had amazing views up valley to Lhotse, Makalu,and Peak 38. We could also see Imja Lake which is a large body of water held back by an ice dam. The fear is that one day the ice dam will melt or burst and a wall of water will flood all the downstream villages. An excavator has been flown in to dig a spillway for the lake so it won't release all at once. Unfortunately, the small excavator doesn't seem to match the size of the huge ice wall holding the water back. We hiked up in sunshine and light winds but on our descent clouds blew in and we made it back for hot soup as the snow started.
I had to use my forceful voice to keep this team going slowly as we climbed so no one would overextend themselves during our first visit to high altitude. What was fun, was watching our strong team cruise downhill with confidence. Now, with tired legs, we sip tea and prepare for a restful afternoon of naps and books. What a life!
RMI Guide Christina Dale
Is Lakpa one of your guides? He’s the best! Say hi from Jim and Doreen from Lummi Island for us- small world!
Posted by: Doreen Richmond on 3/27/2019 at 4:00 am
Hello Everyone
It's incredibly beautiful, peaceful, and the mountains are grandiose. We've been very comfortable hiking each day in the sunny weather, then bundling up in our warm sleeping bags each night as the temperature drops.
Once we've arrived at our new village for the night we check in to our rooms and take a small nap/break. We then often meet around 5pm for a little tea, popcorn, and card playing.
Dinner is often around 7 pm and the menu is pretty much the same at every tea house with plenty of soups, simple pasta, potatoes, and typical Nepalese Dal Bat.
After dinner we relax and have a brief review of the day ahead and then it's off to bed.
A few of us also hiked up Kala Patar to get a better view of Everest.
Spirits are high as we push closer to Everest Base Camp and if the weather cooperates, we should arrive tomorrow.
That's all for now -
RMI Guide Casey Grom
On The Map
Dereesa, What an experience you must be having, it looks like a a trip you will never forget! Wonderful pictures! Take care, see you soon! Suzanne
Posted by: Suzanne Diers on 3/27/2019 at 10:44 pm
Hey! I met Casey last year in Pheriche at the tea lodge we were lunching at in Pheriche. He was leading an expedition and we were trekking to EBC. It was so nice to meet him and the other folks on his expedition.
I’ll be back to the Solo Khumbu region again next year in 2020 to trek the Gokyo Lakes route. It’s off to Macchu Picchu this spring for me.
Good Luck on your Everest summit Casey! Happy Climbing:)
Cheers.
Jamie
Posted by: Ms. Jamie A. Groth on 3/26/2019 at 1:22 pm
Posted by: Christina Dale
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Everest BC Trek and Lobuche
Elevation: 13,950'
We are finally using some of our warmer layers as we pull in to 14,000' here in Pheriche. The day went super smoothly with the team feeling strong, eating well, and chatting along the trail. We made a morning tea stop in Pangboche to visit the oldest Monastery in the valley and see the yeti skull and hand. We can't wait to have a live yeti spotting hopefully high on the glaciers of Lobuche Peak.
RMI Guide Christina Dale
It wouldn’t be a climb without one of Michael’s “calendar” shots! Loving the updates!
Posted by: Katie F. on 3/24/2019 at 7:07 pm
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 took a short walk to an overlook of the Khumbu glacier where we could just make out Everest Base Camp far in the distance.
Everyone is currently relaxing in our tea house enjoying the warmth of the fire. There's been lots of cribbage and plenty of good conversation with our team and other trekkers on the same journey as us.
RMI Guide Casey Grom
On The Map
Friday, March, 22,2018
Hello everyone,
All is well here in the beautiful Khumbu Valley. Today was a scheduled rest/acclimatization day, so we did just that. After breakfast we made a long slow climb up the big hill that’s just behind our tea house. We climbed just up over 16,000ft to help our bodies adjust to the upcoming altitude of Everest Base Camp. The team did great and throughly enjoyed the amazing views in nearly all directions. We could see Cho Oyu the 6th highest and Makalu in the far off distance which is the worlds 7th highest mountain, as well as countless other huge mountains. It’s very surreal to be higher than anyplace in the continental US and be surrounded by so many big mountains.
We spent the remainder of the afternoon relaxing at the tea house chatting with other trekkers and recovering from our day’s outing.
Some of the team took showers again and the rest of us rewarmed ourselves by the big wood stove that burns dried Yak dung, just as the Sherpa people have done for centuries. We are a little ways above tree line and firewood is scarce, but Yak dung is plentiful.
RMI Guide Casey Grom
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Be safe, please tell April we miss her and are so happy and proud she got to experience this amazing trip
Posted by: CHRIS ALLIS on 3/27/2019 at 4:30 pm
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