Hey! For those of you who don’t know, I was the Alumni Squad Leader for V squad who launched in August 2017. Normally SQLS go to month 8 and month 11 debrief but because of staffing at month 8, I asked to go to month 6 instead which was in Nepal, my favorite country. Because I was going to be in Nepal, I thought, why not hike to Everest Base Camp!
One day as I was sitting with Jeremy, my Squad Mentor, he randomly stated, “What if we invited V Squad to hike it with you?” To which I replied, “Can we do that?!” After a couple of conversations with the regional logistics guy, our coaches, and one witty email later, five members of V squad decided to hike with me and do life as ministry along the trail!
To read their blogs click below:
Rachael, Taylor, Amber, Will, Rachel
*For the next twelve days I’ll be posting pictures and stories from the corresponding day on my Instagram: allison_sandra!*
Now, for the overview! (To read what EBC trek taught me read the next blog)
DAY ONE: After a 5:30 departure time we arrived at the Kathmandu airport…to wait. Flights to Lukla are notoriously cancelled/late because of either weather in Kathmandu or Lukla and flights had been cancelled for the past 3 days! As a group, we’d been praying that we could leave the day we were supposed to, and we did! After only a couple hours of delays our flights were announced and we were off on the 30-minute GORGEOUS plane ride to Lukla. Day one was short and sweet at only 5.8 miles and after arriving and eating dinner we promptly fell asleep at 7:30pm.
DAY TWO: Night one let us know that we sorely underestimated the cold we would be encountering! Bundled under a thick quilt, our sleeping bags, and a couple layers we all decided we’d get an extra blanket and wear extra layers for future nights! It was one of the longer days but we still had all the excitement and energy, so the 9.5 miles didn’t feel that long. We had our first view of Everest (babbbbby little peak peaking out over another mountain) and got to the best village along the trail—Namche Bazaar. Our guide hooked us UP with heated showers, and heated beds.
Excited to finally make it to Namche!
DAY THREE: When we read acclimatization /rest day on the schedule we didn’t realize what acclimatization day actually meant—until we were hiking up a couple hundred meters, straight up. Fun fact, acclimatization day means hiking up significantly high, taking a tea break, and then hiking back down to sleep at a lower elevation. Have no fear, after we got back, we stayed in our heated beds and had some actual rest time that afternoon!
DAY FOUR: After the really hard hike the day prior, I was a little nervous about how the hike would go because we were told there was a really big uphill at the end, but surprisingly, it was one of the more enjoyable days for me! Turns out, acclimatization days are actually really helpful! Getting into Tengbouche was incredible because one step you’re trudging uphill and the next you’re on this plateau that has an Everest view! Also in Tengbouche is a monastery that we were able to visit.
Me, Tay, and our guide Raju (pronounced Razu)
DAY FIVE: The views on day five were incredible. We got a couple different perspectives by starting out under the tree line and then mid-way we left the tree line (4000m!) and got a completely different landscape. The only downside about leaving the tree line is the lack of oxygen and increa in wind. Dingbouche is usually a cute little town with bakeries and café’s; however, we hiked during the winter off-season so most of the shops and tea houses were closed. The upside of this is we really got to know the group of people we were hiking with! Our room in Dingboche was facing the afternoon sun so it actually warmed up enough to feel your fingers!
DAY SIX: Another acclimatization/rest day! This one was even steeper; BUT, it was significantly shorter! At only 2.3 miles (but 1200 vertical feet up and down), it was our shortest day. At the mid-way point we took lots of pictures with friends that we’d made and were contemplating going all the way to the top until our guide said it was too windy and cold to do it (which we weren’t too sad about 😉 That afternoon ended up being really crazy as a Chinese guy at the teahouse across the street was suffering from really bad AMS (once someone writes a blog about it I’ll link it here. It was a pretty crazy experience.) At this point we had gotten to know our guide and porters pretty well and learned a Nepali game called, 10 Killer. Between playing with them, chatting with friends we’d made, and huddling around the stove that was our only source of heat, evenings became a big family gathering.
Our Canadian/Australian/British/Nepali friends
DAY SEVEN: Very chilly morning with frost on the inside of the windows! It took 30 minutes of climbing uphill to feel safe to remove my big down jacket and mittens without worrying about losing digits. After some Nepali flats (AKA up and down and up and down and up and down) we reached a small village where we took tea before the hill of all hills. An hour of straight climbing up, Rach T named it the calorie incinerator. As you reach the top you enter the memorial sight for all the hikers who have lost their lives climbing Everest. Walking around and reading all the plaques put a perspective on the incredible opportunity that we were getting and thankfulness grew anew. At our tea house for the night, there was this greenhouse room that was blessedly warm. For the first time in 7 days we were able to be warm enough without two down jackets!
Coffee and warmth!!
DAY EIGHT: The day we’d all been waiting for had arrived—Base Camp Day! At this point cold and windy had become the norm and the altitude was playing a significant toll. It took three hours to hike to Gorek Shep where we took a quick tea and cookies break and set out for the 5 hour round trip to base camp! The trail was again, Nepali flat over super large boulders and loose rock—but we were all going to make it! Once we reached base camp there were allllll the pictures and as soon as we were starting to leave the wind started to pick up with a vengeance. Although it was a bit anticlimactic because although we had reached EBC, we still had to hike down; it was a super cool moment for me. I can do hard things.
DAY NINE: Today we started our hike back down. The plan was to hike in three days, what took us eight to get up. Water was frozen at the first three villages and when we finally arrived to where the water wasn’t frozen it started snowing! The 12 mile hike took us over 8 hours and I was exhausted. Most steps were done on auto pilot – but let me tell you, the smell of the snow and water mixed with dirt and plant life of the valley was incredible. I took off my face mask and had to blow snot every couple of minutes, but hiking for a couple hours smelling this heavenly smell may have been one of my favorite parts. That night I went to bed around 7pm and had a super sweet time with the Lord, reflecting on what he’d done so far and talking about what’s to come.
All the snow!
DAY TEN: It was supposed to be a “short” day—only 5 hours. But what they don’t tell you is it’s 9.5 miles of rolling hills all crammed into five hours. Rach T had food poisoning the night before and all of us as a team were fighting for her as she did the whole trek through food poisoning. She’s a champ. We all knew that at the end of this day was Namche. And in Namche were hot showers and hot beds—the first in a week! The last hour were bends around this mountain where each one you thought would be “THE ONE” that led into Namche and each time you’d see another and keep on keeping on. The one were you saw colorful buildings instead of another bend, was a sweet, sweet moment.
DAY ELEVEN: Last day, hardest day. Mental toughness came into play here. My prayer for the day was that we’d look at this day not as means to the end, but just another day in the journey. At 14 miles and the second highest in elevation change, the 9 hours had the potential to feel super long. Fittingly, the last stretch into Lukla was all uphill and the moment the arch came into view representing the start/end of the trail, made my heart swell—we had done it.
Everest base camp taught me a lot, and not much at the same time. To read what I learned from EBC, read my next blog!
EBC, you reminded me that I can do hard things.
