The Top of the World

I wanted to do this post for quite some time now, but decided to save it for the last day of 2023. Because it means a lot to me. As a proud dad! Not that I didn’t embark on some nice trips myself this year: Seville and Dubai with The Significant Other. New York City together with Big Boy. But the families undisputed travel queen of 2023 is Big Girl. Because back in October she went to see the top of the world. No, she didn’t climb Mount Everest. But, fulfilling a dream, she went on an epic Three-High-Passes-Trek to the Everest Base Camp. Continue after the jump to see more of her trip of a lifetime to beautiful Nepal…

Big Girl for sure knew what she was getting herself into. With a passion for the mountains, she already has some crossings of the Alps under her belt. Her favorite sport is bouldering. The one thing you can’t train for here in Europe is how to cope with the heights, as the trekking to the Everest Base Camp starts at heights where you do high alpine trekking here in Europe. Leaving her work as a pediatric nurse behind, Big Girl flew to Nepal for a 23 Day trekking adventure to Everest Base Camp. Not via the classic route from Lukla and Namche. But by venturing to the highest mountain in the world via side valleys and crossing three high altitude passes with heights beyond 5000 meters. After two days in the Kathmandu area, the small group took a small plane to fly to the Everest area where the trekking started in earnest.

For sure, seeing the highest mountains of the world was the ultimate goal of Big Girl’s trip, but meeting Nepali children and locals during the trek was also an enriching and unforgettable experience. Their warm smiles and welcoming nature added a special charm to the journey up the valleys.

How great must it have felt to hike the same paths and bridges so many famous climbers have walked as well on their way up to the foothills of the iconic mountains.

The first days of the trek passed through beautiful valleys up to altitudes of already 4000m, with the Yaks, the long haired domesticated cattle found throughout of the Himalayas, being frequent onlookers.

Big Girl took the effects of the high altitude quite well. The group, led by two Nepali guides, also carried a portable pressure chamber for any emergencies, but thankfully this precautionary measure was never needed. That said, stomach bug and headaches were still frequent companions of the group.

Before the first high pass crossing, the group did an acclimatization trip up to 4800m (which is about the height of Montblanc, Europes highest mountain). The next day at 5am in the morning, the group climbed up to Renjo La pass with an altitude of 5360 meters. The average temperature during the ascend was a freezing -10 degrees celsius. With the weather deteriorating, Big Girl and the others successfuly made it to the top, but unfortunately the four summits with 8000+ meters were all hidden in the clouds. Fighting nausea from the altitude effects, the group made it down to Gokyo where they stayed the night.

The next morning Big Girl and the others climbed the summit of Mount Gokyo Ri (5340m), and from there the enjoyed a brilliant view of the four giants: Cho Oyu with 26,750 ft (8,150 m) the 6th highest mountain in the world, Mount Makalu 27,825 ft (8,481 m) the 5th highest mountain of the world, Lhotse 27,940 ft (8,516 m) the 4th highest mountain of the world. And the King himself, Mount Everest, 29031 ft (8848m).

When Big Girl sent these pictures (there was occasional internet access at the lodges the group stayed) and I saw her smile with Mount Everest behind, I was about as proud as a Dad could be. What an accomplishment. Continuing on to the Everest Base Camp, the group climbed down Gokyo Ri and then crossed the glacier you can see behind Big Girl. How crazy….

The next day brought the second high pass crossing of the trek, up and down Cho La pass, with an altitude of 5420m. This brought an unobstructed view of Ama Dablam (6814m), which is my personal favorite mountain on this planet. While I in person, in all likelihood, will never see it with my own eyes, Big Girl sent me plenty images to enjoy.

From Cho La, the path descended down to Khumbu valley, the valley of the Everest.

Day 15 of this memorable trekking tour through the Himalayas brought the ultimate goal of the trip, the visit of the Everest Base Camp. Sleeping at 5200 m the nights before and after, the group trekked up to the camp at 5364 m. As in early October there is no climbing season on the Everest, the camp was quite deserted and their’s to enjoy, including posing on the iconic EBC rock (the summit of Everest is the black mountaintop visible behind the two foreground mountains in the top right corner) and a trip to the Khumbu Ice Fall.

The next day, leaving the Everest behind, the group reached the highest altitude of their three week trek by crossing the Kongma La Pass at 5540 m, a whopping 18175 ft, with more stunning views of the snow capped Himalaya.

From there on it was all downhill back to Namche (gate to the Everest), with more stunning views of majestic Ama Dablam. From Lukla (the most dangerous airport in the world), Big Girl and the others flew back to Kathmandu for the end of the memorable trip to the top of the world.

Big Girl, with determination, passion and perseverance, fulfilled her dream of trekking through the Himalaya seeing the majestic Mount Everest. An accomplishment that made me so proud. And a testimonial that it is always worth pursuing your dreams and turn them into reality. Which is a great closing statement for 2023.

All photographs taken by Big Girl (or someone else with her iPhone)

Have a great last day of 2023

Marcus

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