Nepal - Mount Everest - South Col | Expedition-Logistics

Nepal

Everest — South Col

Mount Everest (29,034')

Overview

Difficulty Rating: Mount Everest, ED
Experience Level: Advanced
Duration: 65 days
Climbers: 8
Guides: 8
Land Cost: $62,000

Dates

Mar 19 - May 20, 2010

Expedition Code

NEME-10-03190520

Expedition Goals

Mount Everest is arguably the most coveted mountain in the world; the highest peak on earth, it is rugged, remote and exotic. Our route is the South Col Route (Nepal side), the route first climbed by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953.

While the South Col is not a technically difficult climb, it is certainly not the "tourist route" the posers would have you believe. The difficulties of climbing at these extreme altitudes are many; climbing on Everest is physically demanding and requires great reserves of energy and determination. Our climbing schedule allows for two summit attempts, and includes extra days to allow for unfavorable weather during those attempts.

Prerequisites

Participation in this climbing expedition requires advanced mountaineering skills. You must have a solid working knowledge of the techniques for staying warm and dry while climbing, traveling and camping in extremely cold conditions, and the proper use of ice axe and crampons. Additionally, you must be comfortable moving over steep snow and ice up to 90-degrees, following grade 5 ice, ascending and descending fixed lines while wearing a pack, climbing 5th class rock (up to 5.8) in mountaineering boots, and be proficient in commonly accepted belay techniques. High altitude experience with no history of serious illness, glacier travel experience, and technical ice climbing experience are required without exception. For reasons of personal and team safety and success, it is imperative you arrive for this climb in excellent physical condition.

Itinerary

Day 1 — Arrive in Nepal; transfer from airport; hotel check-in. Arrive in Kathmandu (4,265’), where an Expedition-Logistics guide will be waiting to greet you. After a gear inventory and hotel check-in, we call it an early evening to recover from our travels across the International Date Line.

Day 2 — Casual wake-up; acclimatization in Kathmandu; administration & logistics. Today we take it easy, attend to administrative details with the Nepalese government, and explore this bustling capital city. Kathmandu is a popular travel destination with interesting people, international cuisine and excellent shopping in its many markets.

There are really two Kathmandus: There's the Thamel district, and there's everything else. Thamel is where all the trekkers, climbers, rafter scum, and tourists hang out. Every other shop is a gear shop, selling used climbing impedimenta and Patagonia knock-offs. On the upside, Thamel also has a number of pretty fair restaurants that serve cow and beer. Thamel is where we stay while in Kathmandu.

This afternoon we visit the 3000-year-old Monkey Temple, and Durbar Square, with its shrines, temples and the Old Palace. This evening, get to know your guides and teammates at the welcome dinner and expedition briefing.

Day 3 — Early wake-up; fly to Lukla; trek to Monju. This morning we leave the city life behind as we board a 20-passenger DeHavilland Twin Otter for the short but scenic flight to the village of Lukla (9,400’); the jumping-off spot for the high peaks of the Himalaya.

Morning departures from Kathmandu are regularly delayed due to fog or clouds can often delay early morning flights, so patience and a sense of humor go a long way. Likewise flights out of Lukla, where frustrated trekkers and climbers waiting to fly back to Kathmandu can be delayed for hours or even days.

Landing on the tiny, sloped Lukla runway is about as white-knuckle as it gets. Once on the ground at Lukla (Nepali for “place with many goats and sheep”), we meet our Sherpa support team and yak drivers, and then grab an early lunch while they load the gear for our five hour trek. We begin on a wide trail leading down to the Dudh Kosi River, where we join the main trail coming up from Chaurikharka. From here, the trail takes us along the river’s east bank through forests of fragrant juniper, pine and fir, to the village of Phakdingma (8,699’) where we stop for lunch. After lunch we continue on to the village of Monju (9,301'), where we overnight.

Day 4 — Early wake-up; trek to Namche. Today we follow the Dudh Kosi — the “Milk River” — as we trek through pine and cedar forests to Namche. We make a number of river crossings on high suspension bridges which as far as anyone can tell are held together by the combined force of the hundreds, maybe even thousands, of prayer flags that people tie to them. Throughout the day we are treated to fantastic views of Lhotse (27,939’) and Everest (29,035’). At the village of Jorsale (9,100’) we pay a fee to enter Sagarmatha National Park.

The trail gets steeper, and after a 1,969 foot climb we arrive in Namche (11,300’). After catching our breath, we set up camp and relax amidst a breathtaking mountain panorama. Namche Bazaar sits at the junction of the Dudh Kosi and a lateral valley leading to the frontier pass of Nangpa La (18,000’), and is home to a number of shops, restaurants and tourist lodges, a bank, post office, and the headquarters of Sagarmatha National Park.

Namche Bazaar is the economic and religious center of the Sherpa people — the Sherpa Capital — bustling with traders and tourists. It is the largest and most prosperous settlement in the Khumbu. They come here from the high mountain region and the lowlands to deal and trade in spices, textiles and jewelry. It is not uncommon to find people trading at the bazaar who have trekked over the high passes from Tibet.

Day 5 — Casual wake-up; mandatory rest day. Today is a rest day to promote recovery and allow for proper acclimatization. It is important to remember that rest and recuperation are vital to the acclimatization process and the prevention of altitude sickness. Our well thought-out and proven system of active acclimatization – incremental increases in altitude and exertion in combination with sufficient recovery time and proper nutrition – has paid off time and again with a consistently high success rate summit days.

This morning we have options: Those who wish to sleep in may do so, while those with energy to spare may opt to take a short trek to Khumjung, just above town, for an amazing sunrise and panoramic vistas of Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam. Today we also visit the Sherpa Museum for a look at Sherpa traditions, culture and their legacy of high altitude mountaineering.

Namche presents the last opportunity for effective communication with the outside world. Several recently opened Internet cafes provide email access via satellite uplink.

By this point you've learned a cultural lesson. That is, in Nepal, 99% of the country eats the same meal twice a day, every day: daal bhaat. Daal bhaat is basically boiled rice with a thin lentil soup poured over it, often with some spicy pickled something-or-other and maybe some boiled spinach. To eat daal bhaat, simply use the hand-shaped utensil at the end of your arm. More specifically, your right hand; your left one is used at the opposite end of the alimentation process.

Day 6 — Early wake-up; trek to Thyangboche. This morning we’re treated to breathtaking views of Ama Dablam as we trek above the Dudh Kosi on our way to Thyangboche (12,887’). We descend through lush rhododendron forest towards the river, cross at Phunki Tangka (10,663), and climb uphill to our destination, arriving in about six hours time.

The Thyangboche Monastery is the central holy place for the Khumbu Region; it contains ornate wall hangings, the accoutrements of the lamas, and a 25-foot statue of the Buddha. The monastery was recently rebuilt after having been destroyed by a fire in 1989 which destroyed priceless religious scrolls and paintings. The views here include Mt. Everest, Lhotse, Ama Dablam, Nuptse (25,771’) Cho-Oyu (26,906’), Kantega (22,235’) and Thamserku (21,674’), and are priceless in their own right. Tonight we camp next to the monastery and perhaps might be treated to a ceremony and audience with the Lama.

Day 7 — Early wake-up; trek to Dingboche. Today we trek northeast through the village of Pangpoche (13,000’), a high year-round settlement in a valley where the Imja Khola joins the Dudh Kosi. Pangpoche is home to a monastery thought to be one of the oldest in the Khumbu region, and where Buddhism is believed to have been introduced towards the end of the 17th century.

After lunch in Pangboche, we cross a swinging bridge over the Imja Khola, and then climb steadily along the trail high above the river. As the valley broadens, we cross a tributary from the Khumbu Glacier and arrive at our overnight destination at the village of Dingboche (14,300’), a collection of traditional stone dwellings surrounded by wheat fields.

Day 8 — Casual wake-up; mandatory rest day. Today is a rest day to promote recovery and allow for proper acclimatization.

Day 9 — Alpine wake-up; trek to Chukhung; acclimatization climb of Chukhung Ri. We continue our active acclimatization with a predawn trek to Chukhung Ri. Departing from Dingboche by headlamp, we follow the valley in a gentle ascent, with Ama Dablam and the high ridges leading to Amphu Labtsa pass on one side, and the south flanks of Nuptse on the other. Several hours later we arrive at the high mountain village of Chukhung (15,120’), just in time for a sunrise breakfast break. Refueled and refreshed, we leave the last habitation in the valley and continue across mixed rock and grassland, passing in the shadow of the largest wall in the Himalaya, the south faces of Lhotse and Nuptse. On the summit of Chukhung Ri (18,238) we are treated to views of Ama Dablam to our south and Imja Tse farther up the valley. Afterwards, we descend to Chukhung, where we overnight.

Day 10 — Casual wake-up; trek to Lobuche. This morning we trek back down valley to Dingboche, where we turn up a fairly level valley leading to the village of Lobuche. After some time on the trail we reach the terminal moraine of the Khumbu glacier. From there, a steep ascent takes us to the hamlet of Duglha (15,157'), just beyond which there is a plateau filled with chortens (shrines) remembering the Sherpas and climbers who have perished in the high peaks.

A short distance out of Duglha, we reach our day's destination of Lobuche (16,175'), the highest year-round village in the valley, and a low altitude base camp for climbers of Everest and Lhotse. Lobuche is pretty much just a hole. That’s the only way to describe it. That’s the way most everyone describes it. A hole. With a couple of tea houses. It's very smoky from the yak crap fires, and as an added bonus the outhouses will disgust you in new and innovative ways. If you had to give Nepal an enema, Lobuche is where you'd stick the tube.

Day 11 — Casual wake-up; trek to Gorak Shep. Today's trek to Gorak Shep is long but relatively flat, following a glacial moraine. The real butt-kicker, though, is the altitude. Gorak Shep (17,350') is a small settlement next to a dry lake bed which is perennially covered in a fine dirt, and is the final acclimatization point before Everest Base Camp. It feels like we're almost off the edge of the map.

Gorak Shep means dead raven in Nepalese, although no one really knows why; you can't swing a shep cat there without hitting a Gorak. There is no farming or livestock here; the settlement's sole reason for being is pretty much just to cater to Everest climbers and trekkers. In fact, Gorak Shep was the original basecamp for the mountain. Since there are no roads, and since everything has to be transported on somebody's back, be it man or beast, the price of what there is to buy in Gorak Shep is even more inflated than what you'd expect to pay at, say, Wrigley Field. So if you feel so moved to spend 8 bucks for a Coke and a Snickers bar, well ... go on with your bad self.

Day 12 — Early wake-up; Kala Pattar summit; trek to basecamp. This morning we get an early start as we head for the top of Kala Pattar. Leaving Gorak Shep at first light, we trek a short distance across the broad, flat expanse of the dry lake bed. The lake bed is relatively flat, contains a small pond and a helipad, and is used as a supply drop-off point and storage depot for Everest expeditions. After a very short time we arrive at the base of Kala Pattar and begin moving up a series of steep switchbacks that eventually level off and traverse to the east side of the mountain. The trail becomes steep once again for a while until we reach the short summit ridge, and we arrive at the summit of Kala Pattar amid hundreds of prayer flags.

Kala Pattar is a must-do for most Everest climbers; a mellow acclimatization climb, and the best vantage point from which to view Everest in its entirety (from basecamp you can't see the summit of Everest). In addition to Everest, the views of Pumori (23,494'), Lhotse, and Nuptse from Kala Pattar's summit are worth a million bucks.

After descending back to Gorak Shep, we eat a hearty lunch before tackling the final short leg of our approach to basecamp. We head up the glacier for a short while and arrive at Everest basecamp (17,500’) in the afternoon, heads pounding and feeling like a fat man and his brother are sitting on our chests. Good times.

Basecamp is on the moraine just below the infamous and sometimes deadly Khumbu icefall. It is an assembly of climbers of every flavor and nationality; rock-stars and dirtbags alike; a tent city with almost all the comforts of home, including espresso makers, satellite phones and laptop computers.

Days 13 - 14 — Casual wake-up; acclimatization in basecamp; administration & logistics. These days are rest days to promote recovery and allow for proper acclimatization. It is important to remember that rest and recuperation are vital to the acclimatization process and the prevention of altitude sickness. Our well thought-out and proven system of active acclimatization – incremental increases in altitude and exertion in combination with sufficient recovery time and proper nutrition – has paid off time and again with a consistently high success rate summit days. During this time we will inventory and organize our considerable stores of food and equipment, review climbing and emergency procedures, and settle into our home away from home. Also during this time, our leaders and climbing Sherpas will be assisting with the work of securing ladders across crevasses and fixing ropes high along our route.

Day 15 — Early wake-up; climb to Camp 1; overnight. This morning we break out the headlamps and get a predawn start as we negotiate the infamous Khumbu icefall. It will be a severe physical test of high altitude climbing with a pack. The Khumbu icefall is two-thousand vertical feet worth of house-sized seracs teetering on the brink of collapse and ladder bridges spanning enormous crevasses, and is without question the most serious objective hazard of our expedition. It is imperative that we become proficient and speedy at walking across the ladders while wearing crampons and negotiating the fixed lines that characterize this section of our route. Our climbing schedule requires us to cross this hazard numerous times. Oh, did we mention it'll be ass cold?

Our route through the icefall changes from day to day with the constant shifting and collapse of seracs and opening and closing of crevasses. We arrive at Camp 1 (19,500’) in the afternoon and spend the remainder of the day taking in the views and acclimatizing. Camp 1 is at the top of the icefall, at the start of a relatively flat, snowy valley known as the Western Cwm (pronounced "coom"; it's Gaelic for valley). The Western Cwm leads to the base of the Lhotse Face; a wall of ice and snow on the neighboring Lhotse (27,920’), up which we'll have to climb on our way to the summit.

Tonight the glacier will growl menacingly under our tents as crevasses open and close deep down below. Camp 1 will serve as a temporary camp until we establish our advanced base camp at Camp 2.

Day 16 — Early wake-up; descend to basecamp. It’s another early start for us this morning as we leave Camp 1 and descend to basecamp. Our transits of the Khumbu icefall will always take place in the predawn hours to take advantage of the stabilizing effects of the low temperature. Did we mention it'll be ass cold? Oh, yeah.

We make it down to basecamp in time for a hearty lunch and hot drinks and spend the remainder of the day resting and recuperating.

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