Fellowship Day 16-18 "The Home Stretch"

Day 16
Namche to Phakding (3250 m / 5 hours ?/11318 ft)
Walking distance is approximately 6 to 7 hours after having breakfast you will cross different Benkar, Jorsale, two Hillary bridges at the confluence off the Bhotekosi and Dudhkosi river. After crossing these you will have rest in Phakding.

Day 17
Phakding to Lukla (2800 m / 4 hours / 9186 ft)
4 hours walking takes you Lukla and has many shops, pool houses, electricity and you will have nice hot showers. There will not have any day flight to Kathmandu at noon.

Day 18
Fly to Kathmandu O/N in Hotel Vaishali

They should be arriving home tomorrow evening. We are all very excited. I'm curious to see if they really 'didn't lose any weight. So curious to hear their experiences, their trials, their accomplishments. I was thinking last night how many 13 year old girls can say they have climbed to base camp Everest. Mo will be in a very small minority as will the rest of the 'boys' eventhough it is more common for men to climb. Anyway, get ready for the onslought of Everest pictures once they are downloaded and ready to post. R told me he took over 2000 pics as did Dave and Allan. R was also supposed to be taking video journals with the cam corder, hopefully I can figure out how to load them onto the blog and you can experience true "survivor" moments.
Stay tunes to find out who gets voted off the mountain next! :)

Fellowship Day 15 "It's all down hill from here"

Got a phone call from R and the kids on New Years Day! It was so good to hear their voices. Mo and R still sounded as jazzed as the day they left. Big T sounded in good spirits too, but had an obvious head cold. He didn't say it, but my mothering instinct told me he is ready to be home, back in his comfort zone.
As far as they could tell no one has lost a lot of weight which was one the biggest concerns as there were several of them who had no room for error in that regard, R being one of them.
They are combining the next two days into one in hopes to get home a day sooner. I hope all goes well!

Lobuche to Pengboche (2900 m / 5 hours / 12795 ft).

You can feel this trail similar as hiking to Namche. You can get a fertile crescent shaded by trees for which you wish to have look. You can the houses of Sherpa and Tibetan, can feel the Mt. Ama Dablam dominating from the far side of the valley, which shows you the real picturesque mountain of the region. Further you can explore the local temple (Pengboche Gompa), the oldest in the Khumbu region. You can too meet the friendly lama (monk) and can see the famous "yeti scalp" as well as some lovely paintings.

Pengboche to Namche (3450 m / 5 hours / 11319 ft).

Now the trail retrace same way back and stop at Tengboche, during the November - December full moon the colourful Mani Rimdu festival is held here with much singing and dancing. Height 3480m.

*The English skills in this itinerary leave somthing to be desired, but at the same time makes for comical reading.

Fellowship Day 14 "High on a Mountain Top"

Gorakshep - Kala Patthar (5545 m/18192 ft) - Lobuche (4930 m / 6 hours / 16174 ft)

The trail becomes rougher now as it makes steeper ascent when it crosses several side moraines past the Gorakshep. From here onward you will find the trail in constantly changing all the way across the moraine through the snow and glaciers. Route finding techniques here include looking for stone cairns (heaps of stone and rocks) as markers, a sure sign of the correct trail. After rounding a bend, the trail leads to the base of the small peak - Kala Patthar. We start early to climb the viewing peak Kala Patthar to see sunrise over Everest. The ascent is steep, so it is important to take it slow and maintain a steady pace. It takes up to to 2½ hours to reach the summit at 5600 m (18372 ft), the highest point on the trek, and the best vantage point to view Everest. Here the view is outstanding, with 360 degree panorama of the mountains, and emotional experience. We return by the same route down to Gorakshep and then down the valley to Periche. Tonight you should sleep well, benefitting from a significant descent. Walking time: 8½ - 9 hours. Final altitude: 4200 m. (13779 ft)

Classic view from Kala Patthar

Fellowship Day 13 "BASE CAMP"

Lobuche - Everest Base Camp (5364 m/17598 ft) - Gorakshep (5170 m / 7 hours / 16961 ft)

The trail ascends along boulder fields and glacial debris to the edge of the Khumbu Glacier then continue up to Gorakshep 5160 m (16929 ft), nestled below the coned summit of Mt. Pumori 7191 m (23592 ft) and the sheer west face of Nuptse. Excursion to Everest Base Camp if there are any climbers just return from Everest Expedition.

Fellowship Day 12

Dzongiha to Lobuche (4930m/16174ft)

The trail ascends the broad, gently sloping valley from Dzongla. In many places the trail crosses small streams on boulders. You can look back down the deep valley from Phalang Karpo to see how much elevation you have gained. The views of Tawoche and Cholatse are particualarly good from this portion of the trail as it passes through country reported to be the habitat of the snow leopard and yeti. Beyond Phalang Karpo the trail climbs steeply onto the terminal moraine of the Khumbu glacier then contours down to a stream, crossing it on a bridge just before the village of Thukiha. The trail climbs up the moraine to a row of stone monuments of dead climbers (thanks, I didn't need to know that), then drops a bit and follows the western side of the valley to Lobuche, a summer village that boasts several well stocked hotels.

Lobuche

Kharkas (stone hut)

Fellowship Day 10 & 11

Day 10

Goykyo to Chhyungima (Dragnag) (4680m/15354ft)

A long day and the most difficult part of this trek. We will cross the southern end of the Ngozumpa Glacier, pass by the stone huts of Thagna Kharka then climb steadily up a narrow and steep valley which opens up to a wide shallow valley leading to our camp at Kharka, Chhyugima 517m/16962ft.

Day 11

Chhyugima to Dzongiha (4845m/15895ft)

You have to descend from the pass, cross a small glacier, negotiate the ice fall at the end of it and descend via Leisyasa to our camp at Dzongiha Kharka 4730m/15518ft, a high altitude summer pasture directly benieath the north wall of Cholatse Peak 6440m/21128ft.

Fellowship Day 9

Rest Day for acclimatization
Trek around Gokyo Ri, the views in the Gokyo region are tremendous. For the best view climb to Gokyo Ri, the small peak obove the lake. This peaks of 5318m/17447ft, it's a 2 hour climb to the top of the peak, providing a panoramic view of Cho Oyu, Gyachung Kang, Everest Lhotse, Makalu, Cholatse and Twachee. Those with more time and energy can make a trip up the valley to another lake marked with the name Ngozumpa on the maps or even beyond to a fith lake. There are several small peaks in this region that offer vantage points for the surrounding peaks.

Just one of the amazing views they will be seeing.