Namaste everyone. This morning we left our tea house in Phakding and headed up this stunning valley toward Namche Bazaar, which is the largest village in this famous valley. We hit the trail just after 8:00 along with quite a few other trekkers. Everyone did really well on the hike, and no one seemed to mind pausing often for the endless mules and Zopkeos (cross between a Yak and a cow) carrying loads headed up valley and basecamp as we made our up the trail. It was reasonably busy on the route with trekkers and climbers, but the traffic seem to flow pretty smoothly. The team crossed a number of high suspension bridges without a problem, even with a light snow falling. Overall it was a really enjoyable day as we climbed up to just over 11,200' where Namche sits. RMI Guide Casey Grom and Base Camp crew

Hello from the Khumbu Valley! We started our day here pretty early, meeting in the hotel lobby at 5 a.m. After checking out of the hotel, it was a short ride to the domestic airport where we weighed all of our duffels and backpacks before getting tickets and slipping through a very laid back security check. Normally there’s a little bit of waiting before heading out to the plane, but today things moved along pretty quickly. The flights to Lukla have a reputation of being a little intimidating and bumpy, but thankfully today’s flight was pretty smooth and uneventful. It’s about a 30 minute flight in a small 16-passenger Twin Otter with stunning views of the Himalayas. We landed on the small runway in Lukla that’s only about a quarter mile in length and has a slight uphill angle. After we touched down, the plane was unloaded and our local Sherpa guides hired a few porters that will be carrying our duffels throughout the trek. We made a brief stop at a local tea house to have breakfast and get situated before hitting the trail. We hiked for about four hours today with few stops to rest and to take in the beautiful scenery. We arrived at our camp for the night in a village called Phakding just in time for a well earned lunch. The team got settled, had naps, or explored a little before walking a short way to one of the many monasteries here in the Khumbu Valley. Luckily for us the monks were having a prayer session and allowed us to sit in while they chanted and blew their horns. It was very surreal and a wonderful way to start this adventure. All is well! RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

On The Map

The Everest Base Camp team finally has arrived after some very long and tiring flights. Everyone is doing well after a well deserved night of rest here at the peaceful and appropriately named Yak & Yeti Hotel. We started our day with a nice big buffet breakfast, then had a team meeting to discuss all the gear and review the details of the adventure that we are about to head out on. After our meeting we headed out on a brief tour of Kathmandu were we visited the beautiful Monkey Temple, and the famous Boudhanath Stupa. It's quite the culture shock visiting this busy city packed with nearly 4 million people. The streets are packed with people, motorcycles, and cars that honk endlessly. I'm sure everyone is looking forward to peace and quietness of the Khumbu where we head tomorrow. RMI Guide Casey Grom