Base Camp 2018, a recount of my trip to the base of the roof of the world.

Everest
For Grandad, my inspiration in all things.
Without you, I wouldn’t be driven to push myself to my limit and without whom I would not have even considered attempting some of the experiences that are now my most cherished memories. Since childhood I have looked up to you as the amazing man that you were and have wanted to emulate your success ever since. I hope in recording the following text I can at least immortalise the memory of the trip that we should have conquered together.
I have carried you to basecamp, and I will return to carry you to the top. I keep my promises.
All my love, Samuel x

The Guides
Dowa, Laden (Asst.) Chappel (HPort.)
The Team
Samuel Mills, Simon Rouse, Jim,
Lucas Pagano, Carl, Stephan Lees,
Simon Elliott, Elena Newton, Barry Harper.

11th November – Arrival
We arrived into KTM at around 16:00, queued for visas for around an hour, which turned out to be little more than a man in a booth taking money from us, in exchange for a barely legible stamp in our passport. Safety seemed to be a secondary concern as we crossed the runway barely ten metres away from a prop plane running at full chat. Following this endeavour, we collected our bags and pushed our way through the throng at the door to emerge into the stuffy air of Kathmandu, first impressions are chaotic! There are cars everywhere and what little space that isn’t taken up with traffic is filled with either people or livestock. Straight away you notice the smog and pollution in the air in the form of a sulphur coloured haze that hangs low over the skyline, it’s easy to understand why everyone walks around with a dust mask on, nevertheless I am overcome with excitement at the prospect of finally arriving in Nepal. We bundle our bags onto the top of the van and greet the guide who presents us with white silk cloths and introduces himself as Dowa, at his left side is our assistant guide Laden, who Dowa affectionately referred to as ‘Bin Laden’. Six of us squeeze into the van that was clearly built to only carry five and we head out into the madness of the city on our way to the hotel.
The roads have no discernible law and it seems that people lose all sense of self-preservation once they get onto the back of a motorcycle. At a generous top speed of 5mph we make our way through the labyrinth of streets, there are people everywhere going about their business to a background chorus of horns and whistles. The atmosphere is quite literally electric as we pass pylons that are bowing with the weight of the cable hanging from them, a myriad of wires hung like bunting across the street only a few feet from the people below, I’d like to say they weren’t live but I’m not so sure. After turning down several one-way streets (the wrong way), we turn a corner into the oasis that was hotel mulberry, we were all so surprised at how tranquil the
hotel was compared to the madness just outside the gate, it was like stepping into a bubble, even the background cacophony seemed lesser inside the grounds. After quickly changing we all meet for a pre-trek briefing and introduction to the rest of the team, itineraries are discussed along with safety procedures and what to expect. Our companions are a man call Lucas from Argentina and a woman from London called Elena, both seem like they will fit in just fine.
Following the pre-trek, we return to the rooms to frantically pack and repack our bags with everything we need for the following weeks whilst remaining under the strict 15kg weight limit, after leaving out what I considered to be ‘expendable kit’ such as underwear and clean t-shirts/trousers I finally finalised my duffle coming in at 14.5kg. Food was next on the agenda and we were all keen to sample the local cuisine; so, it was off out into town for a banquet and a beer. After aimlessly wandering down several dimly lit side streets we stumbled across a small inviting restaurant, we were ushered into the back room by whom can only assume was the owner and sat down to enjoy a full 2 course meal of local Nepalese dishes alongside Chinese sides all washed down with a beer from the local brewery. When all was said and done the bill was brought over and the entire evening had culminated in a cost of less than £12 each! Extremely reasonable seeing as we had consumed enough food to last us several days. Finally, we left the restaurant and headed straight back to the hotel (and when I say straight back, we meandered around a bit but all-in-all didn’t get too lost), upon returning to the hotel it was a quick shower and into bed for 21:00 ready for the early start and long day that followed. Sleep came easily which was surprising given the rush of excitement and anticipation that had been coursing through me since we left the UK, our adventure was about to begin…

12th November – Into the mountains
We rose at 5am, despite the early start I had had no trouble rousing myself, the van to the airport was planned for 05:30 which left just enough time for my last civilised shower for the forthcoming 12 days. I hastily packed the last few items into my daysack and did a final kit check, satisfied I had everything I needed, I left the room and headed down stairs to met everyone in the lobby. Bags were loaded followed by us with our generous takeaway breakfasts that were consumed within a few minutes of leaving the hotel.
It was a much smoother drive to the airport, but that said there was still a small crowd gathered in the streets starting to trade and children playing football on the corner, it’s clear this is a city that never sleeps. Even in the still of the morning there is a background of horns in the distance albeit much less intense. We reached the airport around 6am, pass through security that is much less invasive than what we are all used to; effectively it consisted of piling 8 bags at a time through an X-ray and a man asking if you were carrying anything you shouldn’t have. Once through security we sat in the departure lounge as our bags were weighed and stacked up like a barricade along with the hundred others, tickets were purchased and all that remained was to wait for a weather window to open at Lukla. The flight to Lukla worked on a first come first served basis and there were a few groups in front of us so they had priority, this being said we still managed to board a flight for 07:30. Excited, we caught a bus across the runway the plane (and the term is used loosely) that looked like it was straight out of the 1970s and hadn’t seen a service in just as long! As we sat at the end of the runway, the smell of fuel and exhaust fumes from the engine was strong. After a rather pointless safety briefing that was more comical than informative, the pilot ramped up the engines and we jolted off down the runway, with the almightiest din coming from the screaming propellers we
gained more and more speed before eventually going wheels up and leaving the tarmac of KTM airport.
Our first treat was the aerial view of the sprawling metropolis that was Kathmandu, a huge slum that was seemingly endless in all directions, only stopping to give way to the huge mountain ranges that surrounded it. After around 10 minutes in the air we reached the edge of the city and got our first views of the legendary Himalayas. it was a breath-taking moment to see the pristine white peaks contrasting the dull grey of the mountainside protruding from the bed of clouds below. The flight lasted a total of 30 minutes before we rounded a corner between two sentinel peaks that shrouded the tiny airport of Lukla like their own little secret. The proceeding landing was like nothing I have ever experienced, the runway had a unique feature in the form of an steeply inclining runway that aided in the retardation of the aircraft, seeing as the runway was only around 400m long and edged by a solid stone wall, this was a welcome feature. Just before we collided with the wall at the end of the tarmac, we took a sharp righthand turn into the apron that had capacity for only 4 planes at a time (a fact that’s made more impressive when you realise the airport has over 30 flights inbound and outbound with an average turnaround of only 15 minutes). Finally, we had arrived at the starting line of our trek; Lukla 2805m above sea level.
We started trekking straight away, with only a short hike planned for the day to accommodate and delays we might have incurred during travel it was a nice way to acclimatise to the altitude and take in the scenery. Lukla was a hive of activity as we walked through, with children playing and running between the cattle that were being herded and loaded with various commodities for the supply of higher villages and towns within the Khumbu region. Feral dogs basked in the warm sun or skulked around the walls looking for scraps to eat. It was such a picturesque scene and surpassed the image I had created in my mind. The vibrant green hills spotted with huts and flags opposed perfectly by the towering grey mountains that surrounded the panorama, wispy clouds hung around the highest of peaks shrouding the tops from view. As we left Lukla through the gate that signified the start of the trail we descended sharply for around half an hour before reaching the first of the villages offering refreshments and various items of ‘genuine’ climbing gear for suspiciously low prices. Daily life was completely different in this setting compared to the chaos of the city far below, women went about the task of washing clothes at a small well, children no older than 3 or 4 were left to play and wander around as they pleased, although at the approach of any groups they tended to freeze and just watch as you walked past, although life is basic, people have everything they need to be comfortable and it appears on the surface at least that everyone is happy and content.
After three or so hours of walking and passing through multiple villages we reached our lunch stop for the day, the menu was largely vegetable based so I opted for mixed fried veg and rice, basic but very tasty. So far, the route has been a far cry for how Simon had described it from his visit 9 years ago. Before leaving I visited the toilet, however this was little more than a hole in the floor and the smell was quite ripe so I gave this a miss and opted to go on the trail instead. Following lunch, we had a few hours of gentle uphill and crossed the first of many prayer flag clad suspension bridges as we meandered our way up and along the river.
At around 14:30 we reached our final destination for the day an set about organising our kit bags that had arrived moments before us on the backs of our Sherpas, we were shown to our rooms that although basic we much better than any of us were expecting; consisting of a plywood bed complete with a thin mattress and some yak wool blankets, the window was too thin to keep out the cold but served its purpose in keeping the wind at bay. Once we had removed our boots and changed into so more comfortable clothes, we set about familiarising ourselves with the small
settlement that was Phakding, a final altitude of 2650m. After another vegetable-based meal followed by the mandatory health checks to ensure we are all still in good shape we retired to our rooms, it was only 5pm but already the light is quickly fading and the temperature along with it, we’re in for a cold night. I lie in my sleeping bag and reflect on our first day in the Himalayas, the months of waiting and preparing have all built up to this. I’m on my way…

13th November – All aboard the Yak train
Sun rose early so I was awake from around 6am, a good night’s sleep had left me feeling refreshed and ready for the days trekking. We met in the main room at 7am for breakfast which consisted of sweet Tibetan bread and eggs all washed down with a lemon and honey tea, which as the myth goes helps to combat the effects of altitude. Once we had eaten and refilled our water it was out into the yard for daily exercise, led by Dowa we stood in a circle and did some full body stretches/yoga (much to the amusement of the passing locals/Sherpas) this helped limber us up for the day but also served as a great source of entertainment as some of the older members of the group are not as supple as they once were!
We set off shortly after and made our way through Phakding, it was a quaint little village with colourfully painted houses and picturesque stone walls enclosing various mules and cattle. As we left the village we joined what was similar in volume of traffic to the M1, and every 5 minutes we were called to one side in order to let a mule/nak train pass (initially we thought these were yaks, but apparently the altitude is too low for them to survive, so what we were actually seeing were a cow/yak crossbreed called a nak). As we gained altitude, we started to threaten the cloud line and as a result the temperature was starting to fall. We passed through numerous little villages all of which seemed to be cut from a similar cloth, a group of children in one village sat in a circle playing a game with a few stones and laughing jovially at one another. Despite the simple way of life people are happy, everyone smiles as you walk past and the locals are all too happy to say hello. It says a lot about the stress vs. happiness that western culture manifests. After a few hours we reached the banks of a wide river that was winding its way down the valley, this river was known to the locals as ‘Dūdha Koshi’ translated meaning the milk river, due to the pale colour of the glacial water Coming from the Khumbu glacier and the turbulence as it flowed over the rocks, as we walked closer to the shoreline you could feel a noticeable drop in the temperature from the frigid waters. We crossed over several swaying wire suspension bridges that bounced and rocked in the wind and from the weight of the people crossing them. Anyone struggling from a fear of heights would do well to not look down as some of the bridges were in excess of 150ft up and spanned over 250ft, I consider myself fairly confident at height but it took a few bridges before I could cross without being unnerved by the raging waters far below.
After around 3-4 hours of beautiful hiking through the foothills we reached our lunch stop village at around 2900m, treated myself to chicken fried rice and more tea before pushing on to the most demanding part of the day; a straight 700m climb through a rhododendron forest up to Namche Bazar at around 3550m. The path started off gentle enough but we soon found ourselves rising steeply to break through the low hanging clouds, once we had ascended into the cloud layer it to rain slightly so we had a quick stop to put on our wet gear. In classic style once we had kitted up the rain subsided to nothing more than a humid mist and our wet gear achieved nothing more than making us sweaty. The only way I can think to describe the route up through the forest was like a winding Jacobs ladder but 3000m above sea level and 4 hours long. We crossed our highest bridge yet at around 200ft and then soon found ourselves climbing up into Namche Bazar, unfortunately we
were still within the midst of the cloud layer so visibility was practically zero and as a result we didn’t see much of the Bazar itself or the surrounding peaks. We came to our final stopping point of the day which was a hotel called ‘Hotel Hill-Ten’ which I’m sure must break at least one copyright law, but I can’t see any lawyers dragging themselves up here so they’re probably safe!
Our main holdalls had been taken up to the rooms which were similar on the inside to those of the previous night; thin whitewashed chipboard walls, wafer thin pane window, and a bed made of crates. That being said the rooms were clean and tidy and had everything you needed after a long days walking, a far cry from the tents that I was used to on these sorts of trips. Dinner was at 18:30 and a rather varied menu was offered, I treated myself to mo-mo dumplings and a honey lemon tea to warm up. Now that the sun has set the temperature has really dropped and most of us are sat in the common room in our coats and hats. Following dinner, it was time for our daily health checks, last night my readings were 94% O2 and 72bpm, hopefully it won’t have dropped too low tonight. Not much to do with the clouds being so low so we were pretty much straight to bed, as I settled down into my sleeping bag, I could see my breath coming out in mists, we were in for another cold night. Only going to colder the higher up we go!

14th November – Look to the skies
Up at 7am again today, awoken by shouts from the other room to look out of the window, the window was completely condensed up so after wrestling with the lock for a few minutes we managed to get the window open and were rewarded with the most breath-taking view. A towering peak rose up out of the town with the col so high above we had to lean out of the window to behold its full majesty. The bustling town had already started the days activity and far below in the market you could see a throng of people haggling over various things, the townscape was like organised chaos; huts and houses built on top of stalls and shops with more built on top of those, streets criss-crossed randomly in every direction, it was amazing to see the town built directly onto the contours of the valley. When talking to the guides regarding the skyline I was shocked to learn the peak we had all been in awe of was only 6200m tall, a full 2650m shorter than Everest!
Luckily, we didn’t have to pack our main bags as we are spending two days in Namche in order to give our bodies time to acclimatise. Me and a few others were excited at the prospect of the ‘Everest Trekkers Breakfast’ that we had spied on the menu the night before and were eagerly waiting for it to arrive. To our disappointment when it arrived it consisted of two hard fried eggs, a slice of cold cheese on barely defrosted bread, and a bowl of muesli and Yaks milk (which I couldn’t eat anyway so was a complete waste of money). Usual exercises in the yard and then it was pack on and off we go, as we set off the clouds descended slightly and shrouded the ridgeline, the peak of the mountain retreated back into cover once more. We were told that it is possible to get our first views of Everest far off in the distance today but not to get our hopes up as the conditions weren’t ideal. It was a steep climb straight out of Namche for around an hour and a half before we reached the viewpoint at a height of 3775m, we should have been able to clearly se the roof of the world from here but unfortunately as expected the clouds were low and kept Everest’s summit tantalisingly close but ultimately obscured.
We continued upwards and came to the ‘Everest View Hotel’ which was our highest point for the day. As we drew near there was a southern break in the clouds and we were afforded an unobscured view of the needle-like Ama Dablam that stood at 6812m, against the pure blue sky it was a striking view; the steepness of the slopes makes you wonder how anyone could climb it, let
alone balance on the summit! Throughout the remainder of the climb we were permissed a view of many of the mountains surrounding us one by one. The first 8000m+ to surrender its secrets was the impressive 8500m lump that was Lhotse, a few degrees east of Everest. Slowly but surely the clouds retracted west along the saddle and our days hiking was rewarded with our first view of the jewel in the crown of the Himalayas… Mt. Everest. Even though the summit was over 50km away the outline was imposing and the part that was instantly recognisable to me was the distinctive shoulder known as Hillary’s Step. After around 20 minutes of staring in wonderment at the towering ridgeline and taking a nothing short of a million photos collectively, we pushed on towards the hotel.
We reached the hotels helipad just in time to watch one taking off, the machines that looked like toys when dwarfed by the surrounding landscape were a lot bigger and noisier up close and the downdraft generated by the rotors almost pushed us over! Although in hindsight we were probably stood a less the safe distance away. The hotel is the highest placed hotel in the world at 3960m and offers luxury comfort and unobscured views of Everest and the surrounding peaks from every room, we sat in the hotel beer garden and enjoyed a well-earned rest and a usual Honey and Lemon tea, although the sun was shining the temperature was deceptively cold. As we sat, we hoped in vain for another glimpse of Everest but the clouds had once again descended so we decided to call it a day and head back to Namche. We left the hotel around midday, dressed in my afghan and alpaca wool hat from Peru we started back down to the town, clouds had descended too much to get a view of any of the peaks we had seen on the way up however we got to witness a wonderful display of around a dozen golden eagles lazily rising and circling on the warm updrafts.
We arrived back into Namche around 14:00 and after a quick spin of the Mani prayer wheel we returned to the tea house for lunch. Following lunch, we had plenty of time to wander off and explore the town of Namche. We brought a few gifts for people back home; every stall was selling identical handmade trinkets that they assured us they had made in the back of the shop just the night before. We walked down the main street that had a stream running down the left-hand side sectioned by large water powered prayer wheels, it was a tranquil setting watching the wheels lazily rotate and chime their little bells as they made a full revolution. At the bottom of the street was a memorial to an incredible lady who was the first Nepali woman to summit Everest but tragically fell on the descent and died at an age of just 32. Following our adventures around the town we decided to visit the bar where Grandad and Simon had stopped for a drink 9 years earlier, emotion ran high and I had to fight to keep my composure. I wish I could be sharing this experience with him as I should be.
Back to Hotel Hill Ten for dinner and a quick game of cards. We had our routine health check at 19:30, last night I scored a raised resting pulse of 92bpm but also an increased blood oxygen level of 97% which was good for that altitude. Tonight, however my pulse pulled back slightly to 84bpm but my oxygen level had also drastically decreased down to 89%, I’m still feeling strong and thus far have not noticed the effects of the altitude so fingers crossed. Tomorrow we have a 10km walk passing through the Tengboche monastery which is the highest/oldest temple in the Khumbu region.

15th November – A holy place
Once again, we roused at the usual time of 7am, however most of us had laid awake since well before that time. Clear skies again giving us great views of the town and the surrounding peaks, what a backdrop to eat breakfast in front of! Breakfast was better than the previous morning, I opted for a simple vegetable omelette which was served tepid on a freezing cold plate but it still
beat the disappointment of the Trekkers breakfast. We gathered in a circle outside to complete the usual morning stretches much to the amusement of the locals, but couldn’t help noticing we were a member short and a guide short. We completed the stretches and refilled our water for the day when Dowa emerged from the hotel and informed us that Elena was not feeling well, she was complaining about nausea and dizziness and was struggling to get ready; hopefully it’s not an early sign of altitude sickness. We walk out of the hotel and back up to the Mani wheel at the top of the Bazar, however this time we took a right turn instead of heading straight up, the route today was quite undulating consisting of a slight climb before a steep 300m drop into lunch, then a savage 600m climb out of the village up towards the monastery of Tengboche before descending again into the small town of Debouche.
The day started off with deceptively sunny skies but despite the -3°C temperature we all felt fairly warm. After a short while we came upon a lavishly painted shrine that gave us our best views yet of Everest; across the valley still far in the distance was a clear view of Everest, Lhotse, and Ama Dablam. After taking an excessive amount of photos and waiting for an excited Yak train to pass we continued on our way, a few kilometres down the track we came across a hunchbacked old man sat at a plinth, he had spent the last 42 years of his life devoted to constructing a path from Namche all the way to basecamp, I could hardly believe it when the guides told us he was well into his nineties and still continued to build the route! We crossed yet another suspension bridge that provided us a brilliant view of the double bridge we had crossed 2 days previous, dropping away into the mist what seemed like miles below. A steep unforgiving descent that was peppered with loose scree and gravel was the next challenge we faced, the dust kicked up from people in front and the decline of the slope made the going tough and prolonged. Eventually the path led us into the bottom of the valley and into a village where we stopped for lunch.
During lunch the clouds descended from the high reaches of the slopes and robbed us of the chance to see any more peaks, just to add extra insult to injury the clouds brought a drop in temperature down to around -7°C. Following lunch, there was no respite as we instantly started the steep climb into Tengboche, the climb we had the other day was nothing in comparison to this; a relentless 1 in 5 slope for 600m that took around two and a half hours to complete. Eventually at around half past three we reached Tengboche and the monastery where Grandad and Simon had witnessed the Dali Lama give a sermon 9 years previously. Unfortunately, he was out of town this time but we were still permitted entry into the grounds. The ornate front gate guarded by two colourfully painted lions gave way to several flights of stairs leading to a courtyard surrounded by the monks living quarters. At the far end of this courtyard was a cloth covered door that led to the main prayer room, we were allowed to enter provided we removed our shoes and remained silent. Taking off shoes to reveal feet at -7°C was not an ideal experience but this seemed trivial once we entered into the grandeur of the prayer room. The room was immaculately decorated with hand painted Thangkas and mantras, up the middle ran two rows of raised cushions where the monks sat to chant prayers. The focal point of the entire room however was the 20ft tall golden buddha with raised plinths for the highest-ranking monks to sit on and lead the prayers. We made an offering before bowing and leaving the holy temple, even as an atheist its hard to say there wasn’t a sense of power within the room.
What followed was a casual 20-minute walk down into Debouche where we were going to be spending the night, our room was freezing as the windows didn’t fully close so we might as well have slept outside! We ate dinner around 18:15 and then it was time for the nightly medical exam; tonight, my pulse has shot up to 104bpm at resting however my oxygen has recovered and was sitting at 93%. I’m starting to feel the effects of the altitude as just writing the notes for this journal
took over an hour and left me feeling quite dizzy. Me and Lucas enjoyed a game of truth or dare Jenga which proved to be a good laugh. Soon though it got too cold to play without gloves so we decided to call it a night and retired to our ice chests. Tomorrow is an exciting day; we have a 9km walk gaining 400m up into the village of Pheriche at 4,200m so this will be the first time we break 4,000m.

16th November – Stories from the top
Unfortunately, not the best nights sleep last night. Struggled to get comfortable as the bed was rock hard and too short for me, the wind was gusting outside of the window the noise making it harder still to try and relax into sleep. One of the toughest things I have been struggling with is the anxieties that creep into the edges of my consciousness when left alone with my thoughts, not only about getting myself to basecamp but also keeping my promise to everyone at home and delivering the most precious cargo any of us carried to its final resting place. The thought of not succeeding plagues me, but eventually I manage to push it from my mind and drift off. I soon awoke and to my dismay it was still pitch black indicating that I hadn’t been asleep for as long as I had hoped, I had developed a nosebleed through the night and my left arm had gone numb as somehow it had worked itself free of my sleeping bag and was exposed to the frigid night air. After what seemed like a lifetime of tossing and turning a line of sunlight broke through the window indicating it was finally time to get up. I arose and drank some ice water that took my breath away and shook out any remaining cobwebs! I packed my bag hastily and got dressed ready for the climb ahead, today is the first day I have worn my under trousers as I suspect it will be cold from her on out. Thankfully, Elena was feeling much better so after a brief breakfast and our daily stretches we set off towards Pheriche.
We started in the shade, so the going was quite cold with the early morning chill still hanging in the air, not yet burnt off by the sunlight unable to reach the forest floor. Before long we emerged out of the rhododendron forest and climbed above the alpine line into a more arid and barer environment more akin to how I envisioned the landscape prior to the trip, the little vegetation around took the form of hardy grasses and the occasional juniper shrub, the weather was brilliant as it often is when reaching these altitudes, the trade off is that the temperature very rarely gets higher than 0°C. After a few hours of meandering along the trail we reached a twisted bent wreck of a bridge lying at the bottom of the valley, a sobering reminder of the devastation caused by the 2015 earthquake and how the area is still struggling to get back on its feet. Dowa also shared a story with us about a French mountaineer had slipped from the path into the river last season and was still yet to turn up. It was eerie to see the collapsed section of path that had given way under his feet still yet to be repaired, there as a stark reminder that even though we were part of an organised tour on a heavily travelled path the reality is that a mistake can easily be the difference between life and death. We crossed a suspension bridge that had been erected above the wreckage, and arrived in a small village where we took respite for a while, we befriended a local dog who as we got up to leave decided to accompany us for the next 2 hours of the trek. The dog decided to shadow us all the way to our lunch stop, where he promptly decided to try his luck with some of the trekkers who already had food on the table. At around 12:30 whilst on the way to our lunch stop we hit the 4000m mark for the first time so far this trek, a pristine view of the Nuptse ridge was laid out before us which made the climb all the more worth it and put us in good spirts as we dipped into the nearby village.
At lunch we met two Austrian girls who had attempted to reach basecamp and were on the way down, unfortunately one of the girls had succumbed to altitude sickness and they had to cut
their trip short. Our conversation was also overheard by an Australian man who told us that a member of his group had also suffered with altitude sickness to a level requiring him to be airlifted back to Kathmandu due to fears of a cerebral oedema. We were also informed that the temperature around base camp and the top of Kala Patthar was currently around -20°C, so we have that to look forward to! Steph reached a new personal altitude record as we maxed out at 4285m, after a few celebratory photos we began the final leg of our day; a small descent into Pheriche where we would be spending the night. The lodge is probably one of the best we have stayed in so far but was still little better than a plyboard room with a single glazed window. We sat in the warmish common area for as long as we could until the lack of light and a rapidly falling temperature forced us all to retire for the night at around 21:30 and attempt to get some sleep.

17th November – Hospital at Height
Last night proved to be the worst nights sleep so far, despite the superficial niceties of the teahouse, the drop in temperature was unrelenting, Looking at my watch showed that the temperature in the room was -13°C, I have developed a chronic headache which made sleep all but an impossibility, matters weren’t helped by the fact that my water bladder had frozen solid due to me forgetting to put it inside my sleeping bag with me; this left me somewhat dehydrated by the time the morning rolled around. I feel like I managed to glean around 2 hours sleep before the sun was again peeking above the horizon. Decided to get up around 07:30 and sluggishly made my way over to the window to take in the view only to find the condensation had frozen solid on the glass obscuring all but the boldest outlines. Went to the toilet… water frozen solid. Tried to brush my teeth… water frozen solid. I was starting to recognise a theme and decided to postpone any activity requiring water until the morning sun had thawed out the ice somewhat.
The plan for the day was a short hike to a higher altitude and back down again in order to accustom our bodies to the higher demands of having less oxygen, we all assumed wrongly that this would be a more gentle day this would prove to not be the case. Although the lateral distance was a mere 2km each way, we had a vertical climb of 400m giving us a 1 in 5 slope, gaining 100m in height for every 500m walked. Our group reached the peak of the walk at around 11:00 and upon catching our breath spent around half an hour taking in the panoramic views that this vantage point enabled us to attain. From where we stood 6 of the worlds 14 8000m peaks could be seen, towering above us like sentinels, a fact made even more amazing considering the point at which we stood was just shy of the summit of Mont Blanc. It took several minutes for the sheer magnitude of the location to sink in, a helicopter flew through the valley below us, and it struck me what a rare sight it must be to view a helicopter from the top down whilst in full flight.
Looking at the forthcoming route winding up the valley before us, it became quickly apparent that the easy trekking (if it can so be called) was behind us, the temperature now rarely exceeding the high negatives even in the middle of the day, and the air was getting noticeably colder to the point where you could feel the sting inside your nostrils and on the back of your throat during deep breaths. I am trying to mentally come to terms with the fact I may only be getting around 2 hours of disjointed sleep per night from here on out. There is a field hospital in Pheriche built with support from the Japanese in 1975, this is the highest permanent hospital in the world, beaten only during climbing season by the temporary clinic set up at basecamp. Helicopters have been constant throughout the day ferrying people back to the hospital from basecamp and Gorak Shep, majority
are cases of altitude sickness. The site is a hive of activity and appears to just be organised chaos, hopefully none of us will find out how good the treatment is.
After returning from the acclimatisation walk, we ate lunch and were given the afternoon to organise our kit and ensure everything was still in good working order (ourselves included). One of the doctors from the hospital was hosting a lecture at 15:00 on AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness), a few of us attended and it proved to provide a valuable insight into the main challenges we would be facing should we be stricken by AMS. HACE which stands for High Altitude Cerebral Edema, a swelling of the brain caused by a build up of fluids can cause coma and if left untreated can result in death, the most common killer of climbers and trekkers however less severe is the HAPE (High Altitude Pulmonary Edema) this translates to water on the lungs and is much more dangerous as it can occur with no symptoms of altitude sickness until in some cases irreversible damage has already been done. Two of us were invited to take part in a study which I eagerly volunteered for partly out of interest and partly for peace of mind, the study was to try and discover if there were any predeterminate factors that could lead to a person developing altitude sickness. The experiment involved an O2 and pulse check followed by a lung ultrasound, following this we did 6 minutes of exercise and out figures were rechecked, thankfully my results showed little sign of water on my lungs and O2 capacity was at a good level.
Following this eventful afternoon we had our usual dinner and the brief of the day, Elena had been showing some worrying signs throughout the day and is being closely monitored by the guides, with over 1500m still to climb there is a long way to go, fingers crossed she can persevere. It’s her 40th birthday tomorrow so will be nice if she is in good spirits to be able to celebrate.
Tomorrow Is a long day we are informed, a gruelling 8km trek and elevation gain of 700m to Lebouche at an altitude of nearly 5000m. Following our nightly brief we all headed outside to marvel at the night sky backdrop, more stars than could be counted in a lifetime and a clear view of the milky way, its brightness was like nothing I had seen since the summit day on Kilimanjaro 2 years previous. Against the starry blanket of the night sky the mountains looked even more foreboding, breath-taking, and colossal. Even though this place feels like it is slowly killing me the rewards it offers are like nothing that can be described by words, any attempt is sure to fall short of the actual majesty of it all. Photos are much the same, visually stunning, but unable to capture the essence of magic one feels from being stood centre stage.

18th November – Memorial
Astonishingly I slept much better last night or at least what can be classed as better under the circumstances so I’m feeling slightly more energised about the days trek. Unfortunately I am still waking up with nosebleeds and now a sore throat has joined the party thanks to the cold air. A few of the group seem to have developed what is known as the Khumbu cough, a result of the lack of air and humidity mixed with the dust kicked up from the trail, thankfully I don’t seem to be affected thus far. We ate breakfast and completed our daily stretches prior to the off at 09:00. Our route started off by snaking us up the Khumbu valley for around 3 hours, despite the clear skies and misleading brightness the temperature was around -5°C and the glacier run off that was coursing down the valley was frozen solid. We had fantastic 360° views of the mountains all day which acted as a motivator when the walking got tough, now we have ascended out of the foothills into higher territory the mountains feel even more imposing! Around 12:30 we stopped for lunch at an outpost showing its altitude as 4620m, as we sat to eat I thought to myself, what better setting is there?
Surrounded by the highest and most picturesque peaks in the world. Although I’m not religious it was hard to look at our surrounding and believe that it was not designed by some greater power, it’s easy to understand why the locals are so religious in a setting such as this.
After lunch we had another steep climb for around 3 hours up to Lebouche, reaching an altitude of 5030m at the highest point, another milestone ticked off. On the way we passed through the memorial plateau dedicated to the climbers who have lost their lives on Everest and the surrounding regions. It was upsetting to see the photos and the accompanying stories that went along with the hundreds of other names etched into the stones. Emotions were running high and the thought of Grandad forced its way front and centre of my mind, he should be here with us. Me, Simon, and Steph took a minute in quiet reflection and I couldn’t help but let the tears flow. I couldn’t help but feel angry that I was here experiencing this wonderment without him. After some time had passed and I had regained some semblance of composure I considered laying some ashes but didn’t have any prayer flags to hand so I may lay some on the way back down and write a few words for him if we pass through this area again. The crying and emotions took it out of me and for the remainder of the day I never really felt as though I caught my breath and waves of debilitating emotion kept washing over me every time I let my mind wander.
We reached Lebouche exhausted and cold but in high spirits nonetheless, Elena has really struggled today and has had to split from the main group so that she can take a slower pace with Dowa, she reached Lebouche around an hour and a half after us and looked mentally and physically drained, I’m sure she will feel better once she gets a bit of food into her. Laden offered to take the fittest of us on a short 1 hour acclimatisation hike up to the ridge that surrounded the village at around 5085m, 6 of us made the journey and upon reaching the top we were rewarded with views of Kala Patthar and basecamp far off in the distance, it was so invigorating to see our final destination finally emerging from the mountainous bowl that had been so secretive throughout the whole trip. The walk took a surprising amount out of me and upon returning to the teahouse I had to try and have a sleep and rid myself of the headache that I had developed.
Upon waking I attempted to organise my bag for tomorrow but even bending down to get something from the floor left my head throbbing and out of breath, so an activity that should have taken 10 minutes ended up taking me close to an hour; these are the things that you cant comprehend when close to sea level, something as simple as bending down is physically exerting. Every movement at altitude must be calculated, as recovery from exertion can be grossly extended. Following dinner, we had out nightly debrief and instructions for the coming day. Up at 5am for a 6am start in order to trek 5km to Gorak Shep at 5140m, this will be the outpost before basecamp. A short stop here and then continuing on a further 4km to basecamp and the main goal of our trip; a final altitude of 5380m, it will be an emotional day as I will finally be able to lay Grandad to rest exactly where he should be. I think to myself “I’ve come this far, and failure is no longer an option”. Following this we will descend back into Gorak Shep to round off the day.
Writing this each night is becoming harder and harder, I am finding myself only able to write one or two lines at a time before needing to stop for a break, I am also finding that my ability to spell and string together sentences is suffering and I’m finding myself having to stop and think of how to spell even the most basic words. The only thing pushing me to continue is that every time I open the pages, I feel closer to everyone at home and I know this will be such a valuable commodity to have in the years to come. Final thought for the day: “Tomorrow I will stand at the basecamp of the worlds tallest mountain, surrounded by friends. I hope that Grandad will smiling down on me and that he and everyone else at home will be proud of what I have achieved”.

19th November – Lets finish this.
Today is the day. One final push is all that’s required and the culmination of effort from the last week will finally bear fruit.
Sleep eluded me for most of the night last night, anxiety and anticipation kept me awake. Readings before bed were the most extreme they have been so far, a resting pulse of 118 and oxygen levels of below 75%. It’s 2am and as I lay awake listening to my heart race in my chest I cant help but feel the excitement of the coming day building within me. I’m praying for the alarm to sound at 5am indicating the beginning of the toughest and longest day of the trek. The path was a fairly straightforward hike up to Gorak Shep and we made good time, entering the outpost at around 09:30, we had an early lunch as this would be the last opportunity for food until we returned later that evening, we spent around an hour in Gorak Shep before kitting up one last time.
The route out of Gorak Shep was difficult and slightly more technical, consisting of large boulders and scree that were displaced during the 2015 earthquake. It was real ankle snapper territory and none of us had come this far to be sent back this tantalisingly close to our goal therefore going was slow on the last leg of the journey. The going was extremely tough, and my body feels like it wants to shut down, I have a splitting headache and every step jolts and jars, sending shooting pains from my head right down my neck and back. I think I’ve pulled a muscle in the right side of my neck, so carrying my pack has become extremely painful. But none of this even came close to deterring me from pressing on towards our goal, so close you could sense the air of excitement emanating from each of us.
Along the way we saw Kala Patthar that will be tomorrow conquest, it seems daunting but that is something that can be pondered later today. One goal at a time. After what seemed like endless boulder fields, we mounted a ridge and suddenly rising only a few hundred meters in front of us was the holy grail of our trip. So close, all that remained was roughly half an hour of effort, the greatest achievement of my life was withing touching distance. The time was around 13:00, 7 hours since we set off from Lebouche, but finally I stood on the legendary ground where so many great climbers and visionaries had stood before me. Emotions instantly took over and I had to kneel on the rock to compose myself, upon getting myself vertical again I could finally take in the scenery, like nothing I had ever seen; everywhere you looked was another of the fabled 8000m peaks, to think I was stood at 5380m, 4 times the height of Ben Nevis back at home and was still completely dwarfed by not just one but dozens of towering peaks was mind boggling. Even at this altitude there are still another 3500m to climb before you reach the peak of Everest!
We all stood together on basecamp with the exception of Elena who was struggling and coming behind us at a slower pace. The 8 of us all shared an emotional hug and congratulated each other on our achievement. The immediate area was just a pile of rocks strewn with countless prayer flags as the main camp is packed away at the end of the main summit climbing season in late June time. After a short wait we got our change to take pictures next to the cairn, firstly with our guide and the company flag, followed by the memorial picture for Grandad which brought on a wave of emotion, I struggled to look directly at the camera; suddenly very aware of the 100 or so people with whom we shared basecamp looking at me and the rest of the group most of us in tears. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, me and Steph had a private moment and remembered Grandad and Steph’s Grandson Harrison. Somewhere they were smiling down on us.
Next came the most important thing, it was time to set Grandad free, I had carried him close to my heart for the last 9 days and it all led to this moment. I took my specially made prayer flags and pinned them between two rocks, I took his pouch of ashes and emptied the contents onto the top of the rock, allowing the wind to carry him across the valley and up into the higher reaches of the Khumbu Glacier, I made a promise that one day I would carry him all the way. Despite my tears, I felt some kind of weight lift. I had done it, I had endured the pain, exhaustion, and emotion. I had made good on my promise to everyone who was counting on me. After around 30 minutes at basecamp we started to head back towards Gorak Shep, I took one last look at basecamp as I descended the ridge, whispered a goodbye under my breath knowing that I would one day see it again. The route back was treacherous, especially considering how emotionally drained I felt. I think everyone felt some semblance of emotion as the mood was a little sombre and not much conversation had taken place.
We returned to Gorak Shep at around 15:00 exhausted. Elena had passed us at about the halfway point on our way back, she was on horseback and looked to be in slightly better spirits. We were told by Dowa that this was the only way she would make it to basecamp, and she was close to not being allowed to continue. Back at camp we ordered some dinner and then I retired for a 2-hour sleep as I anticipated I would struggle to sleep overnight, and we were up at 3am to make our way up to the summit of Kala Patthar. As it stands 6 of us are going to attempt the climb that will see us ascend around 500m to the highest altitude of our trip at 5645m, we have been advised that the estimated time is around 3 hours up and the aim is to summit to watch the sun rise behind Everest. Upon return to Gorak we will eat a quick breakfast before continuing the 8-hour day back down the mountain to Dingboche. My vitals have improved somewhat with a resting pulse of 108 and O2 levels of 77% so as it stands, I’m looking in good shape for tomorrow, fingers crossed my condition remains good throughout the night.

20th November – The Summit
All things considered I slept surprisingly well, or as well as could be expected in between the bouts of indistinguishable excitement and nervousness about attempting Kala Patthar. Awoke at around 03:00 and put on every item of clothing I had; even in the teahouse I could tell that this was by far the coldest it had been yet. I was mostly excited about the climb ahead, but in hindsight I’m extremely glad that we started in the dark so that the severity of the incline was somewhat shrouded otherwise that excitement would have quickly dissolved into dread.
We left bang on 04:00 with our headtorches illuminating a narrow path in front of us, the light soon fading away; eaten up by the darkness. In silence we made our way across the sandy lakebed, our breaths coming in white clouds that froze immediately upon exiting your mouth. Almost immediately after reaching the far side of the lake bed, the terrain started to sharply ascend, I could feel my heart and every muscle and sinew complaining at the effort required to push on, at a point I was convinced I was close to going into cardiac arrest, my pulse was reading at 185, the temperature around us currently showing -16°C and despite the volume of clothes I was wearing I could still feel the cold seeping into my extremities.
We climbed at a pace for around an hour before stopping to take a short break and an altitude check; 5417m, still 240m to climb to reach our goal. In the pitch black it already felt as if we had been climbing for a lifetime, so this reality check did nothing to soothe the pain of exertion. Another half hour passed and we had finally caught up with the only climber in front of us on the
slope whose headtorch had been seemingly taunting us all the way up. 5530m, just over 100m to go and as we passed the lone climber who had stopped for a break, we could make out the dark shape of the summit, barely visible against the ink black sky. This was the motivator I had been waiting for and before long summit fever kicked in and we pushed ahead with a renewed vigour. I reached the top at around 05:50, just in time to watch the sun rise above the crenelated horizon. If I had any breath left in my lungs to take, then this would have done it. A mixture of elation and relief washed over me as I came to the realisation that the hardest work was done, the summit of Kala Patthar was the icing on the cake and as we stood on the top knowing that we were the first up that day we all celebrated. Again, I cried which was a bad idea as the temperature was nearing -30°C and the tears felt like they froze my balaclava to my face. Taking pictures also proved to be a difficult task as soon as my 3 layers of gloves were removed the icy chill immediately rendered my fingers immovable, what made matters worse is my camera would only last for 5-10 seconds at a time before freezing and turning itself off. Eventually between the group we got a decent selection of pictures and decided to start our descent.
We were a lot luckier than we realised by being the first ones up to the summit as we passed a stream of people on our descent, of which only around 6 could fit on the summit at any one time. I felt sorry for the people just starting up the slope as we reached the base as I knew what was in store and they had the added disadvantage of being able to see what lay ahead. We arrived back at Gorak just in time to meet Steph, Elena, and Jim for breakfast and after a quick congratulations we packed our bags once again and prepared to start the long 14km trek down to Dingboche at 4400m. Helicopters were nonstop throughout the morning as it turns out there were around 12 people at Gorak who required evacuation due to altitude sickness. We reached Dingboche at around 15:30, a long 12-hour day was finally at an end, I immediately retired to my bed and went to sleep. I emerged from the room (ice hole) at around 18:00 and Elena had only just arrived, it was apparent she was suffering from altitude sickness, she had no appetite, was being sick, and a chronic headache. I wont be surprised if she needs a helicopter down and at this point I think it’s the most sensible option. Dowa has already stated that she is suffering from what seems to be a mild pulmonary edema.

21st November – The Descent
Surprisingly good nights sleep, I think the endeavours of the previous day had taken enough of a toll that my body was rendered unconscious as soon as it got the chance. Awoke at 6am feeling refreshed and ready for an early start. Distance wise today was by far the longest day with a gruelling 21km in front of us, main aim was getting down from altitude as quickly as possible. The surplus of oxygen from descending from Gorak Shep was already influencing us and we were eager to get back to Namche, unfortunately we are taking much the same route back so new experiences will be limited. Just before breakfast as we sat in the common room discussing the day ahead a lady joined us and began to chat with us, it was clear something was awry as she didn’t seem to be able to concentrate properly, after 5 minutes it became obvious she was suffering from severe altitude sickness, she was struggling to remember basic things like her name and where she was. After 15 minutes of trying to help her, our suspicions were confirmed as she passed out and began convulsing, Dowa informed us this was a common symptom of the more severe HACE and indicated a swelling of the brain. She was put on oxygen and rushed to hospital in Kathmandu, this was a sombre reminder that even though we had begun to descend, the threat of altitude sickness was still very much a factor.
The day following turned out to be rather uneventful and I spent most of the day concentrating on the floor so as not to fall from the path and into the milk river that we had now re-joined. We dropped around 600m for lunch where Barry proceeded to empty an full bottle of ketchup into his lap thanks to the loose lid, much to the amusement of everyone present!
Following lunch, we had a sharp 250m climb and from there all that remained was around 4 hours of gentle descent back into Namche Bazaar. We got our final view of Everest through a gap in the forest canopy. The bright white peak looked so distant; it was hard to believe we were stood in its shadow just 2 days prior. Upon arriving in Namche we went to visit the memorial to Tenzing Norgay Sherpa, the Nepalese man who accompanied Hillary on that history making day back on May 29th 1953, it was a fitting statue for such a legendary man; depicted in his victory pose 1 axe thrust into the air with a back drop of the Himalayas. It really put into perspective what a monumental achievement it was given the basic equipment they had at their disposal.
Before dinner we visited the bar where Simon and Grandad had shared a drink upon completion 9 years ago. We took one of the memorial t-shirts and pinned it to the bannister to serve as a reminder hopefully for many years to come. Following this and on my way back to the lodge I stopped to buy some artwork from a small studio tucked away down a side street that would encompass the trip. Returned to the lodge and made some final phone calls with the limited signal available, dinner and bed ready for the final descent back into Lukla tomorrow. A slightly shorter but still long 19km is all that stood between us and full completion of the circuit. My mind was focussed on one thing, and that was flying back into Kathmandu and having a hot shower and a comfortable bed. Tomorrow night I will be in Lukla with a night of celebrating ahead of me although given the state of everyone I am going to guess that a night out will consist of a few beers and in bed for 21:00.
Only a few days in Kathmandu when we get back and then the long flight back home, I don’t want to wish my trip away but now I have accomplished what I came here to do I just want to get home and share my story with everyone.

The End.