Trip Reports

Khumbu Climber - 15 Oct to 11 Nov '10

Written by Leader Mungo Ross, November 2010

Another successful “Khumbu Climber” – 8 out of 9 on the summit of Pokalde, 7 made it to the top of Island Peak – but then we had to abandon Lobuje after a poorly timed dump of snow. So two out of three summits, not a bad result, but what has made this trip so “successful” is the genuine feeling that all of the group have enjoyed their month in Nepal, not gone home disappointed that we missed out on one of our mountains. Alex Buisse has beaten me to it by posting his photo diary of the trip on the website already – his pictures can tell the story better than words – so this is just to say what the photos can’t.

Ten individuals got together in Kathmandu on the 16th of October, shared four weeks in the Khumbu with our superb crew of sherpas, cooks and porters, and have gone home to their various lives richer for the experience. “Banter” hardly describes the mutual disrespect that became established more or less at the moment of meeting, nick-names being superfluous in a world of imaginative use of good natured insult. Even in spite of visits to the medical clinic in Pheriche with casualties of AMS, almost everyone in the group getting the coughing cold plaguing the Khumbu this season, and the helicopter evacuation of two of the group demonstrating the lengths and depths some would go to just to get attention, everyone insisted at the end that the expedition had been a positive experience. Whether any of the group actually DO keep in touch or bother to ever contact each other will remain to be seen – at least they all had the courtesy to take a copy of the contact list!

We flew into Lukla on schedule after all the disruption of the late monsoon weather and after a couple of damp days had endless blue skies and spectacular views – the fall of snow that kept us off Lobuje provided a night of preventing-the-tents-from-being-buried then a Christmas-card morning of building snowmen and snowball fights. Just being in the Khumbu, some of the days trekking, high camp on Lobuje, the night sky, the summit of Island Peak (even with 70 other people!), suffering from AMS, a helicopter ride, dhal baht (again), a very silly card game, Chognba sherpa’s smile, morning prayers in Thyangboche, the party in Lukla, quiet moments alone, meals squashed together in the mess tent – so many highlights, so many memories.

Enjoy Alex’s photos, let them remind us who were there of a great fun month together, and for those of you that weren’t - see what you missed! Thank you Jagged Globe, Summit Trekking, and of course all the group for a fantastic expedition. « Previous report | Next report »

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