We set out in sunny weather and were soon taking off layers. Our guide Tendi Sherpa pointed out the snowy mountain Cho Oyu at the top of the valley, 8188 metres high and so white. Tibet is just on the other side of the mountain – wow!
I was nervous and excited about returning to the Solukhumbu Everest region in Nepal. I was keen for more trekking and it was exactly ten years on from our previous visit. Why do I keep going on these adventures? I’m curious, I like hiking somewhere different in the beautiful natural world, and the people make us feel welcome. My parents helped to instil this thing, a fondness for travelling, from my childhood. My dear nephew Steve and I couldn’t get to the Gokyo Valley and Gokyo Ri in April 2015 because of heavy snow at Cho La so we came back to experience it.
We flew into Tenzing-Hillary Airport, Lukla, at lunchtime on my birthday. We were lucky to get clear skies after a few days of rain and cancelled flights. Tendi travelled with us from Kathmandu via Ramechhap and my porter Arun met us in Lukla (Steve had decided to carry his overnight pack). We trekked to Phakding in the afternoon rain, which began through the lovely Solukhumbu archway with statues of local women. We also stopped at the visitor checkpoint. Soon after I was among pink flowering rhododendrons as we followed the mighty Dudh Koshi River up the steep-sided mountainous valley.
That evening at the lodge we celebrated my birthday with Nutella B-ready bars, Kit Kats and pilsner beer. There I go, another lap around the sun.
The trek from Phakding to Namche Bazaar the next day was an elevation gain of 1000 metres, quite a slog up from Monjo. Some track was washed away in last year’s flood so there was a temporary steep up and down section. Helicopters roared up and down the valley throughout the day. Being the route to the famous Everest Base Camp, people were everywhere and we shared some nice conversations at chautaara / rock seats. I felt like a true global citizen coming here, with folks from all over the world who love trekking.
Powered by momos for lunch, up we went. The river was gushing along, milky with glacial melt, to the confluence of the Bhote Koshi and Dudh Koshi. There it was: the Hillary Suspension Bridge, so clear from my memory. We waited for a donkey train to pass then set out across the bridge. It was exhilarating with amazing views and a jaw-dropping space below of over 100 metres. I did that head-shake of wow, disbelief. I do that sometimes these days. I’d made sure my waterproof layers were securely strapped to my day pack in the wind.
Hillary Suspension Bridge, just before Namche Bazaar, Sagarmatha National Park, Solukhumbu
In the last hour of a long day Arun found us on the trail, greeting us with a big smile. He’d already dropped off my overnight pack at the lodge. He and Tendi kindly helped to carry our packs for the last stint. When I arrived at the entrance to Namche Bazaar (elevation 3420 m) I was overcome with emotion. Yes, we had returned. It looked beautiful being abuzz with tourists and locals, young people playing volleyball, the Buddhist stupa with its lights, the big prayer wheels to our right. It was quite a moment. The next day was an acclimatisation ‘rest day’. Nevertheless, it included an uphill workout to Everest View Hotel for coffee, toast and majestic views of the Solukhumbu including Lhotse and Everest / Sagarmatha / Chomolungma just peeking through.
Steve and I on the Everest View Hotel hike, above Namche Bazaar (photo by Tendi Sherpa)
We were pampered by the lodge staff with all meals and accommodation. The dining rooms were warm and cosy and, as always, the Nepalis were friendly and welcoming. In some places I enjoyed hot showers, in other places I just had to go without. Tendi and Arun were excellent and so supportive, caring and concerned for us when we struggled.
We woke to the sight of Oreo-dusted mountains. Yes, we had Oreo vibes and that sounds goofy but Steve and I had a lot of laughs, bouncing off each other with our humour, so hooray to that. It was time to continue up to Dole and the air was thin as we huffed and puffed. After the turn off to Gokyo we trudged up a speccy and dramatic mountainside path to Mong La (3975 m) which was hard going. Pretty tired, we didn’t make a lot of conversation over lunch at the lodge. Then followed a descent to Phortse Tenga, the highlight being an encounter with a Himalayan monal pheasant. Past more bright pink rhododendron flowers, then donning waterproofs for snow (what is this white stuff?), onwards we went. There were pretty waterfalls and clumps of snow at side streams, but the harsh cold really set in towards the end of a 9 hour day (including breaks).
We arrived at the Alpine Cottage Lodge in Dole (4100 m) to be greeted by a central fireplace, a cosy dining area and a group of cheerful trekkers from Denmark. Glad to stop and rest, I was exhausted, cold and didn’t have my usual appetite that evening. Actually I was quite unwell and Steve also had a health issue that day. So we made the call: a rest day in Dole then we head back down to Namche. It wasn’t a hard decision but anyway I won’t go into details about my health problems here. I was very grateful for Marianne and Karsten’s help and kindness.
A highlight of the rest day was that it snowed! I watched some fellow trekkers dancing in it, waving their arms around, filming with their phones and catching snowflakes on their tongues. It was adorable – they said, ‘we’re from the tropics!’. Steve wrote his name in the snow in huge letters. Before the snowfall I managed a short walk around the village for some fresh air. Sitting outside in the sun with my book and electrolyte drink, albeit briefly before it was too cold, was nice too.
Rest day in Dole. Just relax (photo by Tendi Sherpa)
The trek back down was do-able and I had good medication. We said farewell to the Alpine Cottage Lodge and thanked the owners for their hospitality. The blue sky morning just outside of Dole was beautiful with mosses on the trees lit by the sun. Butterflies came and went. Tendi pointed out Cho Oyu, the ‘Turquoise Goddess’, which was awesome. Heading south, we took in views of the mountains Kantega, with its two hanging glaciers, and Thamserku. Simply glorious in the clear morning weather. With dustings of snow in front of us, the whole view seemed to sparkle. To the left was the hillside village of Phortse. We saw the Himalayan monal again in the exact same spot. Was it the same bird? Maybe. It shone against the dull vegetation, feathers in blue, green, crimson and orange.
Views of the mountains Kantega and Thamserku in the morning sun
Cho Oyu, the 'Turquoise Goddess'
Himalayan monal pheasant (photo by Tendi Sherpa)
After we settled in at Namche Bazaar and the temperature was milder I felt glad about the decision not to go further up the valley to Gokyo village and Lakes. Steve felt the same way. Just let it go.
On the rest day in Namche, Tendi, Steve and I went for a short walk just uphill to a wonderful viewpoint. In sunny weather, we saw Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam from the grounds next to the Tenzing Norgay Sherpa statue and memorial. So good! Then we walked to the other side of Namche to appreciate the Buddhist paintings on rockfaces surrounded by pine trees. Later on Tendi and I visited Namche Bazaar’s Gompa. We met the monk and he let us enter the monastery with its colours, deities, candles, holy water and scrolls. We each lit a candle and prayed – it was a serene moment.
Buddhist stupa at Mong La
Amazing views of Everest / Sagarmatha / Chomolungma and Lhotse from the Tenzing Norgay Sherpa monument
Prayer wheels at the Gompa, Namche Bazaar
Over the following two days we trekked down to Lukla, overnighting in Ghat. The first day was quite long so what a treat to be invited into Arun’s auntie’s home in Phakding for afternoon tea. It was an unexpected highlight of the trip, sharing the tastiest momos and hot drinks with Arun’s family. We made up for the language barrier with smiles and laughter. Tendi brought out delicious mandarins from his rucksack. I admired the set-up of auntie’s kitchen, so different to ours but very functional, especially the huge flask of coffee. There was a little boy on his device, a teenage girl, the husband in his traditional Dhaka hat. I think they appreciated how delighted we were to visit.
I love rhododendrons (photo by Tendi Sherpa)
In Lukla, Tendi gave us official Sagarmatha National Park certificates of achievement and surprised us by ordering Aussie style chicken schnitzels for dinner. We farewelled Arun that day as well. It was fine to change the dates of our flight out of Lukla and van transfer back to Kathmandu three days early. More days in the big city for sightseeing and relaxing before we journeyed home.
Dinner in Thamel, Kathmandu with our guide Tendi Sherpa
Thanks to our trekking agent Kalshang for his kindness and thoroughness with all the arrangements, and to Arun for being so cheerful and happy to carry my big rucksack. Thanks also go to Tendi. I was very grateful for his caring nature, for taking beautiful photos of us and sending them via Messenger, for holding my hand sometimes when I descended steps seemingly built for giants. Plus many more things he kindly did to help us. And big thanks to my nephew Steve for being such a treasure of a travelling companion.
Goodbye and go well Nepal. Namaste.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0)
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