Trekking through the Khumbu: Day 18-32 Chukkung to Shivalaya

After getting back to Chukkung, Luke received weather information about the next portion of our trek which was to ascend the technical Aphu Lapcha pass (no idea if that's proper spelling) and head into the Hinku valley and climb Mera peak. The information came from Jamie McGuiness, a well respected guide who leads people up Everest each year, and it wasn't good. After one more day of clear weather, a lot of precipitation was expected. Due to the high altitude and technical nature of the pass, Luke decided to err on the side of caution and alter our plans. The new plan was to walk back down to Lukla and then continue our decent before climbing up to the sacred Dudh Kund lake and possibly climb another 6000m peak.

NOTE: I do not remember all the names of the places we stayed on this portion of the trek

So many boulders to play on!

8501m Lhotse with Island Peak on the far right side (tiny in comparison)

Had to get a picture with Tawa Sherpa wearing a hockey sweater.

Cholatse (I think) 6440m

Lhotse at sunrise from Chukkung

The decent down to Lukla took three days, and while it provided some nice views, it was a bit disappointing not to be able to get into the Hinku valley and climb Mera.

Dapa-San preparing a feast

As we descended past Lukla the scenery changed drastically. We were surrounded by clouds and forest and passed through many little villages. It provided us a good picture of rural Nepal where many of the Sherpas that work in the high mountains live (the area is known as the Solu-Khumbu).

Nice little school in the countryside

On day ?? we reached the village where we would leave the main trail to make our way up to Dudh Kund. This portion of the trail had no teahouses and would require us to camp for three days before reaching the lake. Unfortunately this plan too was eventually scrapped because the porters apparently didn't have sleeping bags to go this high (not sure why exactly or if this was just an excuse because they would rather take the easy main trail). Anyways, the new plan was to take the main track down to Shivalaya where we could catch a bus back to Kathmandu.

Cook/porter Mingmar crossing a bridge at the lowest point of our trek (~1300m)

Kiersten entering a village

Locals checking us out

One day on our was down to Shivalaya we stopped at one of the largest monasteries in the region. It housed hundreds of monks in small little houses scattered along the hillside.

Monestary on the far right with the small houses for the monks on the left

We were invited inside and went down to the kitchen to watch the nuns prepare a meal. I don't think I've seen that many potatoes being prepared at once in my life. They were all very friendly and allowed us to take pictures

Preparing the potatoes

Group shot outside the Monestary (L-R: Ruth, Luke, Guido, Kiersten, Brett, Romany, Sarah, Steve, Chris, Nima)

In the kitchen below the monastery

Lunch time!

This super nice lady motioned for me to come forward. She then made me cup my hands which she filled with Tibetan yak-butter tea. I don't think I would drink it regularly but it wasn't too bad.

Little local girl

Smashing some sort of grain with sticks

Entertaining a local kid with mountain bike videos on my IPOD

After a few more days of walking we regained a lot of elevation and ended up climbing Pikey peak 1 and 2. Both just slightly over 4000m. While not exactly high mountains, they provided amazing views of Everest region. We all looked back in awe at the mountains we were standing just underneath a few days ago. It really gave us a good idea of how far we had come on this trek.

On the way to Pikey peak

This gives you a good idea of how massive these mountains really are

Tenting below Pikey peak

Local girls dressed up for a wedding happening later that day. By this point we were out of Buddhist country and back into Hindu land.

After Pikey peak it was only three days or so before Shivalaya. We continued to descend through local villages and forests. Nothing that noteworthy happened

Beers at 9am after climbing the last hill before descending to Shivalaya

Shivalaya and the end point of our 32 days of trekking

There was supposed to be a before and after shot. Chris and I searched everywhere for a barber to give us mustaches after this shot but none were to be found.

A little gift for our porters to help them celebrate the end of the trek and a job well done

Our porters waiting for tips at the end of the trek

So thus ends 32-days of amazing trekking in the Everest region. After having this experience I now two things for certain: I want to explore more of Nepal and I want to climb more of its amazing mountains.

Next up on the blog will be photos from Pokhara and our trek through the Annapurna region. Tomorrow Kiersten and leave Nepal and head for Delhi for some Indian adventures. I will do my very best to keep this blog as up to date as I can.