April 15th, 2011… Captains log :) jkjk. I’m currently down out of the altitude, so I’m feeling a hell of a lot better then I was the last 2 days.
Let’s rewind a few days.
April 13th, we leave Lobuche at 6am and head out for Gorak Shep(5180m). We arrive at 1015am, 4hours of walking above 17,000ft feels like hell. We settle into the tea house, and get ready for the trip to basecamp. I am feeling way more confident knowing what I’m getting myself into this year.
After the morning haul, our afternoon stroll would have been blissful, but there is very little blissful about going up and down 100meter hills for 2 hours with 50% of the oxygen available at sea-level. When we got there, the welcome mat was outstanding. A 10foot high pile of rocks, covered in tattered and torn cloth, a flattened piece of rock marked with a sharpie ‘Everest Base Camp – 5364meters’. It may not sound like the end of an epic journey, but trust me, that lump of rock covered in prayer flags should be an 8th wonder of the world.
It took us another 2.5 hours of ‘slowly slowly’ before we finally returned to the tea house for the night. Quick eats, and straight to bed, leaving at 5am for Kala Patthar.