The following posts have been tagged with "Everest". Browse through these Everest articles to gain insight into what you may or may not want to do on your trip if it includes Everest.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
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Looking back up towards Everest from the memorial area above Dughla
The Himalayas, which in Sanskrit means “abode of snow,” is a mountain system in Asia that rises sharply from the Gangetic Plain, in many parts over 8000 meters high. It forms a broad, continuous arc for nearly 2,600 kilometers along the northern fringes of the Indian subcontinent and the south of the Tibetan Plateau (Qing Zang Gaoyuan). It extends from the bend of the Indus River in the northwest to the Brahmaputra River in the east, averaging 320 to 400 kilometers in width.
Monday, November 14, 2011
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A view of Everest and the surrounding Himalayas
There are a lot of videos out there both climber made and commercial of Everest, Everest Base Camp, and the entire Himalaya Region. I spent a lot of time searching online and these were the highlights I came up with. Sadly there has been a lot of tragedy on the mountain over the years, so some of the videos are quite sad, but there is also some amazing scenery, interesting facts, and heart warming stories portrayed in these videos. If you know of other good Everest videos please post links in the comments and I'll add them to the collection.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Panoramic views from the top of Kala Patthar
Kala Patthar is a smaller mountain near the village of Gorak Shep and Everest Base Camp. It's known as the less glamorous, higher elevation add-on to many Everest Base Camp Treks. The views of Everest from the Kala Patthar summit are amazing, and it's especially popular at sunrise as the sun comes up from behind Everest. For trekkers staying in Gorak Shep this means 4am wake up calls and hiking in the dark in order to reach the 18,514 foot (5,643 meters) summit in time to see the sun rise. This is also the reason why Kala Patthar is home to the highest webcam in the world which points towards Mt. Everest.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Climbing a ladder over a crevasse on the Khumbu Icefall
The Khumbu Icefall is hands down one of the most dangerous stretches of the Everest Climb. It's basically a giant frozen waterfall, which moves several feet every day. This makes it extremely unstable, and despite using all safety precautions, a deadly place. Large chunks of ice are regularly tumbling down the mountain, 100 foot crevasses are everywhere, and sometimes loosely covered in snow creating a death trap for the unaware climber. Sherpas set up safety ropes, and ladders up the large ice pillars called Seracs, or over wide crevasses, but despite their best efforts, their makeshift paths are still not safe. I've heard that a climber was once crushed by a block of ice rolling down the mountain which was 12 stories tall.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Our porters said they didn't do the Everest Basecamp trek often, and we also happy to reach the top
Everest Base Camp in Nepal, also known as South Base Camp, is a lot different than the Everest Base Camp on the Tibet side. To start with, you can drive most of the way to EBC Tibet. To get to EBC Nepal, you have to take a (sketchy) 40 minute flight from Kathmandu, then hike 6 days (plus 2 acclimation days) through the Himalayan mountains. South Base Camp is located at 5,364 meters, just short of 18,000 ft. Depending on your source, EBC Tibet (North Everest Base Camp) is either a little higher or a little lower, but regardless they're not more than a few hundred feet different. South Base Camp in Tibet is a lot quicker and easier to reach, because roads run much closer to camp than they do in Nepal.
Friday, November 4, 2011
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Prayer flags draped across Everest Basecamp with Phantom Alley in view
Climbing to Everest Base Camp does not have to be very expensive. In order to determine how much you should expect to pay, you'll first need to decide what type of trek you want to take, and how much time you have available. Another important factor in determining how much your trip will cost is the number of people in your group. With more people, you can share porters and a guide, cutting costs for each person.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
A group of Dzo walking through a little town towards Namche
If you've never been on a lengthy trek, planning for the Everest Base Camp trek can be a daunting task. You've got limited space to work with, and all sorts of conditions to plan for. Everybody has their own style of packing and traveling, however there are some things which you must have for the Everest Trek. This list covers those items which are mandatory, and those which are generally considered to be an optional luxury. If you have feedback on this list please leave it in the comments.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
The start of the Everest Base Camp Trail in Lukla
The Himalayas are one of the most picturesque and dynamic environments in the world. The photos in this image gallery were taken on a 12 day trek, starting from the Kathmandu airport, along the flight to the Tenzing-Hillary airport in Lukla, up to Everest Base Camp and Kalapathar, and back. Most were taken using a Canon Rebel T2i with the Canon 15-85mm lens, and there are a few which were taken using my friends cell phone. The photos are not in exact sequence, but pretty close, at least on a daily basis. Our Everest trek place in mid to late September, during the tail end of monsoon season, so we got our fair share of temperamental weather.
Monday, October 31, 2011
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Damage from the earthquake on 09/18/2011, luckily this was about the worst of it that we saw
There are a lot of hazards you think of when you imagine the Everest region and the elements that come with it, but we never saw this coming. While waiting for dinner on the second floor of our Namche Bazaar tea house, on the evening of September 18 (2 days into our trek to Everest Base Camp), a magnitude 6.8 earthquake hit the mountainous region diving India and Nepal. All of us coming from California, our first thought was "Oh, it's just a little earthquake"; and then it clicked. We were in a small village in the Himalayas, we had seen first hand how these buildings were constructed, they stack bricks and seal them with mud.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
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The last photo of our group as we arrive back in Lukla having completed the trek
The ATM was down in Namche so it took us a little while to get going in the morning, and we needed to pay the remainder of our tab with Boo. It's been surprisingly difficult to get cash since I've gotten to Nepal, but we got it all sorted. We finally got moving around 9:15 AM, and it was bright and sunny. We even got one more peek of Everest. Yesterday I tried to eat a normal meal, and my battered stomach didn't like that at all. I started to feel sick about an hour and a half into the hike, and I had to slow our pace way down.
