Dingboche to Tengboche [Day 13]

Descent to familiar places

I spend the waking hours beating myself up over whether I could have continued with Trek D to Base Camp. However, the severe headaches/migraine were so debilitating it would have been impossible. Yet it is remarkable how, even after a short while, one tends to forget how ill you feel at the time.

The feeling of failure is all consuming - I know I must change my negative thinking. I must accept the opportunity to go to Everest Base Camp on this occasion has now been and gone. It is in the past. I must get over my disappointment and get on with it. 

Looking to the positive, I am walking in the Himalayas and seeing these great mountains with my own eyes. I am getting to know the marvellous Nepali people, always happy despite living in hardship a lot of the time. I have achieved a 'summit' of 4,400 metres which is more than many do in a lifetime. I am therefore going to make the most of the remaining time I have here in Nepal and plan to re-join Trek D if it is at all possible.

Leaving Dingboche

After breakfast, I accompany Trek C as we walk out of Dingboche. Cold at first, it soon warms up. The trail is still very dusty despite the snow and cloud of the previous day. Many of the ascending trekkers have scarves over their faces to keep this at bay.

Route out of Dingboche

There is a lovely line of mani stones on the ridge as we head down towards Pangboche. I have stayed on the periphery of the group, not wishing to upset the dynamics of the team. I have to say this is quite nice, wandering along on my own, just occasionally interacting with members of the team.

Mani stones - always pass on the left

Arriving at the junction for Upper and Lower Pangboche, Machma (Sirdar for Trek C), takes us up the hill to Upper Pangboche.

Upper Pangboche

We descend into the village and stop at the Gompa Lodge & Restaurant. This is located in a yard and there is a smell of wood smoke pervading the area. White stone walls surround us and there is the sound of crows in the background. The sun is beating down and I feel very content and at peace with life. For once on this expedition, I do not have a headache, despite the exercise.

Gompa Lodge

We all remove our backpacks and stack the trekking poles along the wall. Many of Trek C go to see the service at the Gompa - I stay behind to take photos. Suddenly, the clanking of bells alerts me to a procession of yaks. Before I could get out of the way I am surrounded by beasts coming every which way. A young Nepali girl beckons me to safety in her yard and the yaks clank past, eying me with baleful eyes.

A proud and dominant Yak

Yaks take priority on the trail

After lunch, the path out of Upper Pangboche is delightful. We walk through carefully tended crop terraces, all contained by neat stone walls, no mean achievement at this height. The attractive painted Chortens along the trail commemorating Buddhist remains or artefacts.

Commemorative Chortens

We have a colourful walk through the flowering rhododendrons towards the Deboche lodge we stayed at on the way up. This is one of my most favourite parts of the trek as it contours the mountainside and follows the Dudh Kosi river. However, it is a hard final slog up the hill to Tengboche where we were to stay for the night.

I am 'billeted' with two older guys in a very cramped three bed room, with just leg room in between.  Reflecting on my day today, I feel superbly fit with no hint of a headache at all. Was my burden due to altitude... who knows? Even the medics don't seem to be that sure - all I know is that I was in a lot of pain much of the way up the Khumbu to Pheriche, especially in the afternoons.

As we have some time to kill before tea, I decide to disappear off on my own and explore Tengboche. I find a pathway up to the prayer flag ridgeline, where the wind whistles away the prayers, delivering them to the higher reaches of the Everest mountain range. Pure solitude.

Prayer flag ridge - Tengboche

Seed offerings and prayer flags

I have been in the company of others for most of the trek and yet here was real peace and quiet. No sound of man... at all. Just the shriek of the wind cresting the ridge with the flapping prayer flags.

Feeling emotional, about failure to get to EBC, my health, missing my family, I'm not ashamed to say I have a little cry. Why is it shedding tears always seems to help the inner psych, as I certainly feel much better afterwards?

Feeling quite spiritual and at peace

I decide to place an expensive call to my wife to reassure her about my state of health - also to tell her that I am missing her loads. Furthermore, I don't want her accessing the web to find a report that Trek D had arrived at EBC and then find I'm not on the photo. This would worry her no end.

She is upset I hadn't been able to continue to EBC... but I reassure her that I am functioning well now and will give more detail in an email to our son tomorrow when I reach Namche.

I am now sitting in the teashop with two members of Trek C, Chris and Jacquetta, enjoying a mug of hot chocolate. Both are delightful company. Jacquetta Megarry is an author who writes/publishes trekking and walking books. I manage to remember her website, a wonderful resource for anyone interested in walking and trekking: www.rucsacs.com.

I have had a really good day which makes up for some of the disappointment with the trek. I feel it can only get better here on in... and yet I am looking forward to getting home too.

To kill more time I wander into the Tibetan Eco Centre and watch a film on Buddhism. This religion seems to have a lovely approach to life... being peaceful, gentle, happy and helpful to others... all things we in the western world can improve at.

I return to the lodge where all the Sirdars and porters are singing around a roasting yak dung burner - a wonderful atmosphere. I sit with the Trek C members whilst they give a recital of their 'trekking song'. John (the trek leader) has a guitar and is playing along. In response, the sherpas and porters sing a terrific melodic ditty that has everyone clapping to the rhythm.

The lodge is filled with us Brits down one side, South Koreans down another, French at one end with the Nepali sherpas/porters at the other. To our surprise, Harry (who is in the music business and worked with George Martin), announces that there is a Choonhae Juliana Lee in the room (a famous Opera singer from S Korea).

Juliana is on her way to EBC to sing for the South Korean Summit Team, but will give us a short impromptu performance. Harry said this will be the highest altitude that Juliana had ever sung before... and has to be careful with her voice. Juliana promptly stands up, introduces the song 'Arida - a National Folk Tune', and burst into voice. She gives a stunning performance and brings the house down. What a memorable evening.

As I depart for bed with my head torch on, in the periphery of the light I notice the old Tibetan mastiff that I'd seen padding around earlier. Poor lad and obviously in discomfort, he scratches away at his numerous sores and boils, as he lies down to sleep. I feel quite fortunate - at least I'll be comfortable in my sleeping bag... poor thing.

Tibetan mastiff

Lukla to Monjo [Day 3]

Thrilling flight

My alarm goes off at 0312hrs... it is disturbing to be woken that early, especially after so little sleep. It was difficult to sleep properly - we were kept awake until 0130hrs with Nepali New Year celebrations!

Mike disappears into the bathroom for a quick shave - with me shortly after. Quickly dressed, we go down for our early morning tests. We walk round to a small quadrangle at the rear of the hotel, where the equipment is waiting for us. I place the blood pressure cuff on my arm as the Kathmandu bird life tweets in the early morning light. A dog wanders over to see what we were doing.

We must be a strange spectacle, doing steps whilst monitoring O2 saturation and heart rates. The dog settles down in the yard, occasionally looking up and yawning. I know how he feels.

My results for today are: Resting - O2 96; HR 96; Breathing 11. BP 118/90; 128/81; 129/79.  After Exercise: O2 92; HR 131; Breathing 18.

A rickety bus takes us through the deserted streets towards Kathmandu airport, to pick up a domestic flight to Lukla. After a scrum to get our baggage through the departure hall, we finally board the twin prop 16 seat aircraft. This is cosy... one seat either side with just enough room for the aisle.

I decide to sit near the back... the stewardess brings us cotton wool for our ears and a boiled sweet to counteract air pressure. It is a smooth take off with a great flight between towering mountains as we fly up the valley towards Lukla.

Call sign 9N-AHE

Studying the emergency evacuation plan

Lukla (2,821 metres)

The landing is an experience in itself. There cannot be that many landing strips where the plane approach is nosing down, yet the runway actually goes uphill! All very unnerving, especially as there is a deep valley and steep hillside just before the landing strip starts.

Lukla Airport - safely disembarked

Lukla landing strip - an outgoing flight

First awe inspiring view of the mountains

We disembark and wander up to the first lodge to await the rest of our party. There are two individuals who had to get the next flight. Hot lemon drink is distributed and we have the first experience of Nepali loos... a stone hut with a tin roof and a hole cut in the floorboards, with a mound of excrement below... nice.

We have a lovely walk up the Khumbu, through Nurning (2,492 metres), Phakding (2,610 metres) and Benkar (2,630 metres), calling regularly at teashops to wet our thirst. Already one guy has bowel issues and my headache returns with a vengeance. Much of the blossom has fallen from the shrubs and trees at these lower levels.

Yak transport for our surplus kit

Mani stones

One of the many suspension bridges

The iconic Buddhist 'Chorten' or 'Stupa' of Nepal

The well maintained trekking trail

I am still experiencing a bad headache so decide to take 1,000mg paracetamol to try and alleviate the pain. We are gaining altitude towards Monjo (2,835 metres) and already the temperature is starting to fall, requiring a top layer and hat. There are very basic washing facilities here... two outside sinks with no hot water, accompanied by porcelain 'squatting loos' in floor.

Practice makes perfect

A nice evening meal is served up (dhal - lentils) with rice, mixed vegetables and potatoes... with hot lemon drink for fluids. Two of my fellow trekkers entertain with a heavy discussion on how to calculate the pressure of water in a pipe, moving on to how to calculate the capacity of the Jagged Globe holdalls... very cerebral!

Refreshments

I retire to bed at 2030hrs and have a good night sleep... that is until I wake to a loud bang and high-pitched squealing right next to my head. You can clearly hear rats are scurrying up and down inside the wooden walls of the room... two must have met head-on and have a right scrap. The joys of sleeping in lodges.

Footnote
Agni Air - Dornier 228-101. Registration 9N-AHE

In August 2010, Agni Air flight AG-101 departed at 07:04 on a normal domestic flight from Kathmandu (KTM) to Lukla (LUA), Nepal. At 07:18, the flight crew received reports that clouds were closing in on Lukla. It was decided to return to Kathmandu. A diversion to Simara Airport (VNSI) was impossible because that airport was closed because of bad weather.

The pilot attempted to fly a visual approach to Kathmandu runway 02, but the last radar contact was at 07:25. There had been a tragic accident - the Dornier Do 228-101 [9N-AHE] crashed into a hillside near Bastipur, Nepal and all fourteen on board were killed.