Phakding (2600m) - Benkar - Monjo (2800m) - Jorsale - Namche Bazaar (3440m) :: 6hours
	Sunrises pretty early in these parts at least 15 mins earlier than in India. It takes time to reach the valley floor, but you can start getting ready for the trek as early as 530A every day. I got out of my warm sleeping bag and did all the usual morning cleansing rituals except bath and got ready for tea. A typical morning for the trekkers include get rid of warm cozy clothes wear your day clothes, pack all the things into the bags and hand them over to the porters. The porters will start 15-20 mins earlier than you and will reach almost 1 hour before. The standard breakfast on this trek would typically be 2 eggs which ever way you want toast butter Jam and milk tea. Usually a group as big like us would typically order a large/big pot of milk tea which would serve around 15 ppl but as you go higher and hence colder every buddy will consume more tea. After a strong breakfast and our prayer and Omkars we started walking towards the Namche climb. Just 15 mins after Phakding is a huge suspension bridge that take you to the other side of doodh kosi. While on the suspension bridge if you get a chance to stand half way in the middle, please do that the hustling rustling river below and the sway of the bridge will give you a great feeling. After the bridge the trails starts climbing into the woods mostly pine, actually for me everything would be pine, most important is the height. We still were below the tree line into the cool shade, away from the sun burn. Through these woods we first got the view of Thamserku. Thamserku will be along side us for a long time to come now. The walk is all along the doodh kosi river and through the woods. It gets hot and you sweat a lot. At lower altitude you dehydrate because of sweat, and at higher altitudes you dehydrate due to excessive dry air and high rate of breathing. Due to sweat you body can become cold and you can feel very cold if slightest of wind blows around. Its always a good Idea to wear T-shirts of moisture wicking material and always carry a wind breaker jacket.

We stopped at Benkar Guest house and decided to regroup at every hour as the climb was about to start. This also helps if you are a big group and we can run a comfortability check every hour. At Monjo there is a Sagarmatha National Park Office where we need to take permits for the park. Before the office the trail dips down very low almost touches doodh kosi and then climbs back up to Monjo. Once you take permit you once again drop to the valley floor to another huge suspension bridge across our very own doodh kosi. Just across the bridge is Jorsale a small but a neat village with few hotels. Many people if they arrive early in Lukla make up till here, but then this makes a 6-7 hour first day. We had some lemon tea and GuL PoLi in a tea shop if I remember correctly it was 11Am when we reached here. We started our Namchee climb around 1130 when the rain gods gave us a jitter. This was the last thing we wanted.

To our advantage it did not rain, but the threat was ON. After Jorsale the trails walks you on the banks of the doodh kosi and then suddenly starts climbing to a big suspension bridge, this one is really really tall not long but tall. Once you cross this you reach the foot of Namchee hill and from here the steep ascent starts. This is typically a switch back trail gaining at least half a foot every steep you put and there are almost not flat section on this even you reach into Namche. The climb is extremely tiring but I don't want to scare ppl here, it definitely doable. The going might be slow and some times very slow but that is what is expected. The slower you do this section the lesser you loose energy/water /salts and lesser prone to altitude sickness. Always remember one thing; its a race where the fastest will probably make it but the slowest will always reach the finish point. One more thing, keep drinking tang added water on this climb even if you are not thirsty and even if it makes you pee every 30 mins. I would recommend to drink 2 liters on this climb alone. you can fill up your water bottles at Jorsale. Many a time I felt drenched and disheartened but the idea is to keep going, step by step. This climb not only prepares you for the altitude or builds but is a glimpse of what is installed later. Enjoy the views and try to concentrate on the ever changing geography as you climb up.


After almost a 2 hour steep ascent you first get the first site of blue roof, that Namchee. you literally thump the air and immd. signal your friends following you that you saw it... That's what I did and then continued to the first tea stall just outside Namchee. I waited there for Pravin, Pradyumna and Arun who were in distant site. After almost half hour wait and getting rubbed by the tea stall owner on Indian exit from the cricket world cup, I started towards the hotel. Dhaval our fatest and fittest head had booked us into Namaste lodge. just 50 feet above the German bakery in the middle of namchee. We had 4 double rooms, one 6 bedded dorm and one 4 bedded dorm. I was drenched and wet due to excessive sweating but was not having any sign of AMS. I was feeling hungry and immd ordered lunch. The dining room was pretty big and well maintained as all other hotels. Once you get into the hotel the first thing you do is get changed into dry clothes and keep your self warm and drink at least a liter of water. This may come from tea, soups, juices or plain simple water. Girish had a bad time on the climb and was very slow. He was under constant observation of Dr Vishwanath and Parag was sharing the load of his back pack. They were last to reach Namchee and now Girish's health was a growing concern. Now he was also feeling breathlessness and we had to put him on Diamox. The rest of the lot was good with no major signs of AMS or any other
Previous Day	Index	Next Day

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws