Hello again everyone. Today the team took an "active rest day", instead of just sitting around and relaxing we hit the trail for another adventure. First up was a visit to a seldom visited all women's monastery in the village of Thamo. It's about an hour and half from Namche and is a little of the beaten path. This monastery is home to 28 women mostly who have escaped prosecution from Tibet. Their ages range from 16 to 88 and they exist solely off of donations. A few of them came out to greet us and gave us a brief tour of the new monastery they are currently building. We stayed for about an hour, had some tea and either bought a few items or made donations to help with their cause. Next we made our way uphill to visit the first school established here by Sir Edmund Hillary in Khumjung. It sits between several small villages and has the most amazing views thus far. We could see Everest, Lhoste, Ama Dablam and countless others. We then headed back to our tea house in Namche where the team is resting and enjoying the hot showers. Everyone is doing great and looking forward to tomorrow. RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

On The Map

It was another beautiful day here in the Khumbu with clear skies and astounding views. Our day started with breakfast at 7:30 with eggs, toast, porridge, jam and plenty of fresh coffee (thanks Tucker). We hit the trail just after 8 and made our way up the valley crossing numerous hanging bridges covered with prayer flags. Tea houses lined the trail almost the entire way making it easy to stop for a rest, eat and snap a few photos. We made good time even while sharing the trail with other Trekkers and the countless yaks carrying loads in both directions. Along the way we were treated to a nice view of the far off Mt Everest (still about 25 miles away). There was one big hill to climb before reaching Namche Bazaare where we'll spend a few nights in order to properly acclimatize. Everyone is doing great and currently are out exploring Namche (population of a few thousand) which is the heart of the Khumbu and Sherpa people. RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

On The Map

Today the team left the hustle and bustle of Kathmandu and flew on a nearly perfect day into the Khumbu Valley. We landed at the famous and sometimes a little scary Lukla airstrip without any issues. It was a beautiful 45-minute flight into the Himalayas with amazing views of the mountains and even a glimpse of Mt. Everest itself. We hiked for a few hours along the only trail that leads up to BC (Basecamp). There are no roads here, just a winding footpath that is busy with trekkers, climbers, porters, and yaks carrying loads for the Everest expeditions. The team is currently relaxing at one of the many tea houses situated here in the lower Khumbu Valley. It's an incredibly beautiful and peaceful place to be, and I'm quite certain everyone is excited to be here. RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

On The Map

Hello everyone! After our really long flights (nearly two days) the team arrived yesterday and had a early dinner and then off to bed to catch up on some much needed sleep. Today we had our official team meeting and discussed the adventure ahead. After our meeting we headed out into Kathmandu to explore a little before we head into the mountains. Our first stop was to the Swayambunath, aka the Monkey Temple. It's a beautiful temple that sits above most of the city with views in all directions and is incredibly important to the Buddhist population here in the city. Next we paid a visit to the Pashupatinath Temple which is where the Hindu's bring their dead for cremation, and it was very surreal to be present while this ceremony was taking place. We then made a quick stop at the Boudhanath Stupa which is the second largest Stupa in the world. After our city tour the team made our way back to our hotel and finalized our packing and finished the day off with a nice meal at the Famous Rum Doodle where they have saved autographs from all the climbers and Everest summiteers over the years: Sir Edmund Hillary, Reinhold Messner and many others. It was a pretty full day to say the least. Everyone is doing great and looking forward to getting into the mountains and stretching their legs. RMI Guide Casey Grom and crew

On The Map