I think I slept with a goose. Every morning when I wake up I find several white feathers all over me from the down sleeping bag. I also wake up with a slight soar throat of which I was worried could be caused by yesterdays fog walk. But eventually it went away again, thus it might just been from the dry air when I was tucked from head to toe inside the sleeping bag.
Other than that the morning becomes to be a routine: slowly get out of the sleeping bag, recover the clothes and shoe soles I had in the bag with me to dry/keep warm, get dressed as long as the body still is warm, and then already start packing in order to be ready to leave after breakfast (which today was porridge with apples).
It was a sunny and bright morning and we were able to see the views Dingboche was hiding from us yesterday. To the left of the the valley leading to Chhukhung Lhotse proudly stood. But we were waling towards the other valley that gets us back on the Everest Base Camp trail.
The first part of the hike was — as almost always — quite steep, leaving me breathless before I’ve even started. But soon enough I was rewarded with a view I always wanted to see: a wide, sparce, grass valley with high peaks towering around it. It was so very impressive and I wouldn’t have mind just sitting there all day.
Walking thru the grassland we encountered yaks and some birds that kind of looked like pigeons. It was an easy and steady walk, even with the cold wind pushing us from the back.
We stopped for tea at Dughla (4620) only for fearfully looking at yet another steep, stony path that lied ahead; there was a cliff going up 200 vertical meters on less than half a kilometer.
I’m not going to deny it, it was hard! After each 20 steps my lungs felt totally empty and I had to rest. While taking these emergency stops I realized how many people have joined the path again. Since Dingboche was off the main trek to Everest Base Camp we have now rejoined the “highway” with the scores of trekkers and porters.
Slowly but surely I arrived at the top of Thokla Pass (4830). Everyone who mastered the hill just kind of crashed among the many tombstones that are build on the pass, remembering the many tragedies of past Everest expeditions. But as we caught our breath we could marvel over yet another spectacular view.
Unfortunately Tengi and I also lost sight of our friends Ching-Hai and his guide. But we’re confident they also get there eventually.
The last 50 minutes towards Lobuche (4910), our stop for the day, was witnessed by several tall peaks, peacefully towering above everything else. The sight of the mountains reaching up to 7000 were making all the huffing and puffing from before well worth it.
Tengi was able to point at two 7000 peaks that he had climbed before. They both looked rather challenging to me, but well, a guy who was on top of Everest eats mountains like this for breakfast.
Now we’re resting at the “Above the Clouds” lodge, where we arrived just in time for lunch (macaroni with tomato sauce). We’re scheduled to push thru 5000 meters above sea level by lunch tomorrow. Tengi told me that the path will be easy walking from here on now, but with the lack of oxygen everything can become quite a challenge.
Anyhow, other than that, all is fine. Since leaving Lukla I only had one real shower, but I think my stink isn’t too bad yet. Legs and feet are ok, too. Just some small blister on the heel of my foot but nothing hurtful.
After a short nap I got woken up by some noisy Russians, who were settling for the night here, too. So I got up and joined the folks in the dining room. The owner lady pointed me to a seat next to the oven in the middle of the room. The oven wasn’t very effective, but at least it was a little warmer. So there we sat — a French couple living close to the border of Switzerland, the owner lady knitting “Everest B.C.” caps she’ll have for sale, a porter, two guides, one of the Russians and me — enjoying our down time.
My lecture of choise is “South” by Sir Ernest Shackelton, about his true Antarctica expedition that went awfully wrong and his crew had to survive in the snow and ice for hundreds of days. When I bought it at a used book store in Kathmandu I thought their suffering in -40 C will give me some comfort when I feel cold.
Dinner started again with a garlic soup followed by veggie friend noodles. After that we again sat around the oven which finally seemed to give off some heat.
Before going to sleep I caught a glimpse of the big full moon. Today the moon is closer to the earth than usual, which also might be a reason for may erratic sleep and vivid dreams. I just hope all the bad predictions are wrong — especially thinking about my dear friends that live in earthquake prone zone.
Peter's up, out and about 