Base Camp and back

This has been a grueling six days/nights, during which I have been living/surviving at more than 17,000 feet above sea level, including trekking/slugging my way to the top of Kalapatter at 18,600 feet, which provided great views of the sun rising behind Everest.

I am in relatively good shape and spirits. I don’t want to complain because I signed up for this adventure. But, the reality is that this has been much more difficult mentally/physically than I ever imagined.  Not sleeping for more than 30 minutes at a time (at which point I wake up gasping for air) and then trekking for many hours each day is, lets say, challenging.  Plus, the weather changes are dramatic, from 50 degrees in the mid-day sun to single digits and snow at night, creating frost inside the tent. And the food is not exactly what we are used to at home. When you have to go to the bathroom, it’s a hole in the ground. It hasn’t been easy on anyone and it’s amazing what the Nepalese people endure. One of the climbers in our group has come down with a respiratory infection and two on the kitchen staff became so ill that they had to go to the hospital, several days down the mountain.

On April 5^th I made it to Base Camp for the first time (I had to come down that night to acclimate) and on the 6^th I went up again with Chaz and Rob who will attempt to summit Everest next month. I spent the past three days/nights interviewing Sherpas/climbers, and exploring the village-like atmosphere surrounding by the largest mountains in the world.  Our camp site is right next to the Khumbu Ice Fall, which is one of the most treacherous aspects of climbing Everest.  Part of the reason is that the ice is constantly shifting.  Every few hours we hear a thunderous noise that is an avalanche nearby.  We were far enough away from the danger, but it is spooky since we were sleeping in tents on a glacier.

Today I left Base Camp with Jangbu Sherpa, Om Kristna (camera person) and Yula (porter).  We hiked for eight and a half hours down the mountain (including 15 minutes for a peanut butter sandwich and coffee at lunch).  It was very hard to walk for that long, with numerous aches and pains, but we did it.  My three Nepalese companions helped me a great deal.  And, I learned to become my own Sherpa by talking kindly to myself, being totally engaged in the experience and giving myself a confidence boasting push when needed.  Now we are in the town of Pheriche where I got to use a phone to wish my daughter Jasper a Happy B-day. We will sleep here tonight and tomorrow we make our way further down the Himalayas, a little closer to home sweet home.