Part 1 of 3

On October 29, 1979, I was born. Fast forward 30 years to today and I can’t help but look back and question what happened.  What happened during those 30 years of my life.  The dreams that I continued to put off till next year because I seemed to have enough time in the present to delay.  Don’t get me wrong, I have seen quite a lot that most others would not have the chance.  And for that I am thankful.  But is it really enough?  No.  Don’t think it will ever be.

I have always had a fascination with Mt. Everest.  There is just something about being on top of the world that is ever appealing.  So when I finally decided fly to Nepal with two weeks notice, I knew that this birthday would be one to remember.  Operation Everest Base Camp would commence with the intention to reach Base Camp on October 29, 2009.  I will preface this by admitting that I have not seen the inside of a gym in more than 6 months and the last mountain I climbed was more than 3 years ago.  But I was determined to trek and do so without a guide or porters.

My good friend Rich Nguyen, also a novice climber, joined me in this birthday expedition.  The following is from memory and partial notes I took down when my fingers weren’t too cold to write.

Day 1: Lukla – Phakding (2610 Meters)

My first nose bleed of many begins on the tiny flight from Kathmandu to the mountain town of Lukla.   I have the middle seat and it is difficult to look out the windows over the heads of other passengers trying to photograph the Himalayan Mountains.  Instead I look ahead through the window of the cockpit as be begin to descend to the airstrip on the side of a cliff, no bigger than a soccer field.  What a ride.  We navigate through the sherpas trying sell us packaged treks and find the trail head.  This is it.  The beginning.  Hard to fathom that in 8 days I will be able to see the top of the world.  The trail is mostly downhill, which gives us a lot of confidence as my pack ended up weighing more than 40 lbs. Our first night’s stop is reached within a few hours and we are greeted by a man from India on the trail.  He shows us to his tea house.  A modest building with no more than a dozen small rooms with even smaller beds.  The price for the double room is $1.30 USD.  We go to the dining area to keep warm as there is a wood stove and surprisingly a TV set. The owner changes the channel from his son’s cartoons to HBO which is in the middle of Die Hard 3 – easily the worst of the series. His son begins to mimic Willis’ lines. I smirk and eat my dinner.  Eight PM, lights out.

Day 2: Phakding – Namche Bazar (3440 Meters)

After brushing my teeth, I stare at myself in the mirror for several minutes.  I try to remember that moment.  The smell. The texture of the wall. The cold. I take it all in before the journey continues. When trekking for nearly two weeks, you have a lot of time to just think. Think about how heavy the pack is. Think about how your feet are feeling. Think about the food you’re missing.  Think about your life and what will come next.

A few hours into the trek we come upon our first big obstacle.  One of the toughest assents of the trip leading up to the trading village of Namche Bazar.  Switchback after switchback trails leading up to 3440 Meters.  Slowly putting one foot in front of the other, I question why didn’t I work out just a little bit before attempting this.  Sherpas carrying more than 150 pounds on their backs pass us like we were standing still.

Buildings begin to appear on the side of the mountain in the distance. It is quite stunning as the sun begins to set on Namche Bazar.  Once a popular stop on an old trading route from Tibet, the town is probably busier than ever catering to foreign trekkers.

Day 3: Acclimation day in Namche Bazar (3440 Meters)

Today we decided to begin our dosage of Diamox – a drug that is used to treat glaucoma, epileptic seizures, benign intracranial hypertension and of course altitude sickness. A cold I have been trying to keep at bay for the past week finally surfaces.  It’s ugly.  Hard to breathe.  I stock up on medicine.  According to the acclimation schedule I stole from a trekking company we are supposed to go for a higher climb today and then come back down to rest.  Of course we blow this off in favor of a casual walk around the majestic village perched on the side of the mountain.  Not that we’re over confident in our abilities, more the opposite.  We’re just tired and sick and the lodge has decently fast internet that keeps us occupied for the time being.

We decide to shed some pack weight and store it at the teahouse until we come back through.  Anything I was hesitant about before stays.  I camera gear I brought with me was a Canon 5d II, 35mm f1.4, 135mm f2, a Leica M6 with black and white film and a large backup battery to charge my other batteries as i go.  That large backup battery is getting left behind.  I have three batteries for the Canon with options to charge occasionally on the trek.  I will be fine.  Film for backup.  In total we shed about 14 lbs.

Day 4: Namche Bazar – Tengboche (3860 Meters)

Walking.  Beginning to get above the tree line now.  The air is considerably colder.  I wrap a handkerchief around my nose and mouth to help warm the air before breathing.  The medicine I bought yesterday for my cold seem to be doing the trick. However, the light headedness the illness brings gets worse with the altitude.  The trail hugs the side of the curving mountain scape as the Himalayan giants are now separated from the smaller mounds of Earth.  Tibetan prayer flags accompany the trail more frequently and Buddhist structures become a more common sight.  There is something about this area that just seems more spiritual.

The village of Tengboche is interesting at first. The focal point is a large Buddhist monastery. Monks can be seen going about their day while trekkers stare and take the occasional photograph. There is one bakery and one internet cafe.  I am too tired to photograph so I opt to visit the monastery on the way back from Base Camp. Most of the teahouses are full but we find substandard room at an incredibly inflated price.  We take what we can get and enjoy a small bowl of mushroom soup for dinner. Seven PM, lights out.

Day 5: Tengboche – Dingboche Shomare (4010 Meters)

After a small lunch, a terrible nausea comes over me.  Like a bad hangover without the previous night’s fun.  I walk about 20 meters and then I have to rest on a rock.  I repeat this for almost an hour.  Rich patiently waits as I lay down for a while.  The clouds are large and white. Typical you would think, yet something different.  They slowly trek across the Himalayan horizon. I try to stand once again that only ends in dry heaving.  Tomorrow we are supposed to take a rest/acclimation day in Dingboche, but we will have to settle for half way as I am too nauseous to continue.  We stop at a teahouse in Shomare.  I go to bed without eating and sleep for 14 hours.

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