 |
| Level ground leaving Lobuche... nice and easy. |
We woke up early to get a good start on
everyone else in Lobuche. It was said that there were only a few
guesthouses in Gorak Shep, our next destination, and I didn't want to
risk spending another night in this infested slum. Still, as we were
getting ready at 6 am there were already entire teams setting out
before us. We hurried and ate our egg breakfasts, paid for the
deficient accommodation, and set out.
 |
| View from atop the rocky bluff-- those little black dots on the left side are people trekking below |
Mike and I went ahead to try and get
to Gorak Shep quickly so we would have rooms for the night. The
first 40 minutes was rocky, but flat and easy. There was a short but
steep ascent up a rocky bluff. Then up and down, up and down, up and
down cold and windy winding paths. By the last ascent we had caught
up with the first groups to have left Lobuche that morning and ended
up passing them. We made good time (1 hour, 58 minutes to be
exact) from Lobuche to Gorak Shep.
We checked in at the first lodge we
came to (Himalayan Lodge & Restaurant-- 300 NRS/night) and got
two rooms. We dropped off our bags and doubled back, finding the
girls about a half hour behind. We helped them with their gear and
guided the way. It was only a little after 9 am when all of us
arrived in Gorak Shep (5164 m/16,942 ft)-- the original base camp for
Mt. Everest. The day was young and the morning's trek had been one
of the easiest of the whole trip. We decided to take advantage of
our extra time and make a day trip and hike up Kala Patthar, a nearby
mountain sitting below “the impressive south face of Pumori”. I
stood and looked up at Kala Patthar, dark and rough. “It doesn't
look that bad,” I said. In the following hours I would eat those
words.
Kala
Patthar
Just
next to the our lodge in Gorak Shep is an open field of dirt, an
ancient lake bed, with a makeshift helicopter landing pad made from
large rocks. On the other side of this dirt lot is the foot of the
mountain Kala Patthar. It pales in comparison to the size and beauty
of its surrounding neighbors, Lhotse, Everest, Nuptse, and Pumori.
It is dark and dirty and littered with giant boulders. There's no
wonder Kala
Patthar
means “black rock” in Nepali. It looks dead, like a mountain of
the moon. Still, I was surprised to hear that it takes 2 to 3 hours
to reach the top. Again I mumbled to myself, “It doesn't look that
bad.”
 |
| Shortly after starting the hike up Kala Patthar-- the town below shrinks and the mountains grow. |
After
already having hiked 2 ½ hours that morning, we set out to tackle
Kala Patthar, where the views of Everest are second only to Everest's
peak itself. Mike and I started out with strength and energy and
before long the girls were behind us and out of sight. The weather
was decent. Almost immediately I realized that the ascent was
steeper than it appeared. We stopped about half way up for a short
water break, to catch our breath, and to check out the view so far.
Below, the settlement of Gorak Shep now looked like nothing more than
a small campground.
We
climbed and we climbed. Ridge after ridge, I thought I'd be able to
see the top but nothing was revealed except more even ridges and even
more rocks. So on we went and soon enough, the top was in sight. I
battled the wind and dug into the hard, cold dirt and pushed forward
until there was no more trail. Sharp and unstable knee to waist-high
boulders now covered the ground and the hike turned into a scramble.
Using
my hands for balance and leverage I proceeded just behind Mike, only
being able to take three steps at a time without having to stop and
catch my breath or sit down from dizziness. The unforgiving terrain
and temperature combined with being sick and with exhaustion began to
weigh heavy. I was more fatigued from the early morning hike than I
realized and the extreme elevation was taking it's toll. There had
been previous sections of the trek that were difficult and there had
been more than one time where I was uncomfortable, to say the least.
But at this moment more than any, only a few dozen rocky meters from
the peak, I was truly struggling. Even Mike the Mountain Man-- who
before now had been healthy and seemingly unaffected by the altitude
and the physical labors of the trek-- was having trouble making his
body do what he needed it to do. I felt exhausted, nauseated, and
lightheaded. Mike and I looked at each other. We looked at the top.
So close-- maybe 50 yards away--So far. I sat to catch my breath
one more time and gathered my composure. I lifted my head and looked
above at the nearby summit. It was wrapped in strands of prayer
flags and I stared at them blowing in the wind like a finish-line. I
got up and pressed on.
I
climbed and jumped and fell over boulder after rock. The prayer
flags started to get closer and soon the 8 or 9 people waiting at the
top had faces. I sucked in the thin air as we scrambled forward over
the last few rocks and to the top. The top. I made it. Mike and I
high-fived, sat down, and ate a Snickers at 18,300 feet (5,550 m). I
looked around at the panoramic view and after only a few minutes of
rest I felt fine.
From the very beginning, the trek had been full of ups and down, both literally and figuratively. But at that moment everything was worth it. We
took pictures of the mountains and of ourselves and when the wind
started to pick up even more we decided to go back down. Twenty
minutes into the descent... “No way... Is that...? It is... Holy
$*#%!”... it was the girls.
We were happy to see that they never
quit. I have to say, I was really impressed. Today had been
incredibly demanding and they were determined to make it to the top.
Mike and I decided to go back up again, this time with Britt and
Leanne. We took more pictures at the top and as the temperature
continued to drop and the wind steadily picked up we raced back down
Kala Patthar. When my feet touched that sandy lot at the bottom I
felt happy. I felt bruised. I felt sick. I felt accomplished. But
most of all, I felt like a nap. The following day was a big one-- I would finally attain my goal and journey's end of reaching Base Camp.
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