Lukla to Namchee Bazaar - The start of Everest Base Camp

The trip started with our flight to Lukla.  The Lukla airport is definitely a chaotic place.  We thought our flight was going to go in about 2 hours, but all of a sudden we were up and on the plane.  The flight wasn't nearly as scary as I expected.  Probably because the weather was perfect.  On a day with worse weather, it may be a pretty rough flight.  It was neat to see the small landing strip on the side of the mountain. The land was very smooth though. 

Starting the trek feels a little weird.  We are half way through the trip, but it feels like we are starting over.  Lower elevation, warmer temperatures, new people.  After our flight to Lukla, we hiked to Phakding to spend the night.  It was a nice place and quiet. The rooms are generally small with two small beds.  You only go in the bedroom to sleep though.  Most of your free time in the evening is spent in the common areas.

Our room in Phakding, which is typical of the trek.

The next day we hiked to Namchee Bazaar.  This was a pretty tough hike.  It had a lot of up and down for awhile, before it climbed about 2600 feet up.  Namchee Bazaar is unique from the other towns we've seen.  Most of the towns are a single row of teahouses and shops along each side of the road.  Namchee is built similar to an amphitheater.  I think it would be impossible to live here and not be in shape.  You constantly walk up and down to get anywhere. 

Tom above Namchee Bazaar.

For our acclimatization day, we hiked over to Khumjung.  We past a group of school girls heading the same direction.  They were probably in 4th grade.  They hike 1-1.5 hours and 1200feet of elevation one way everyday just to goto school.  Seeing what some of the Nepali people do makes you appreciate how much access we have to schools, food, safety, health clinics...

Of course, the best part is that we are finally getting views of the large Himalayan mountains we came to see.  We've had several opportunities to view Everest.  We've also been having great weather, so the views have been fantastic.  The flights to Lukla were cancelled for 7 days straight before we got there, but luckily the weather cleared and we flew.

Everest and Lhotse to the right.

Next we will trek to Tengboche where there is a festival going on.  After that, we hit our first high pass, the Kongma La (also the first time we will get above 18,000 feet), and head towards Everest Base Camp. 

Ryan and Tom with Everest, Lhotse, and Ama Dablam.