Everest Trek Diary - Day 8

April 12 - trek day 8!

And then there were 4!
Today our trekking group was reduced to 4.    First Peter decided to stay in Pheriche.   He had hardly slept for the past 2 nights (probably as a result of the altitude) so his decision not to continue was a good one.   The rest of the group set off for Lobuche but, shortly after, Kelvin turned back to Pheriche having also decided not to go any further.  
It's difficult for those of us sitting at home to appreciate the toll that the trek takes on the body and every other aspect of one's being.   Not one single part of the trek is easy.   From the time one leaves Kathmandu to the time you return it's a very tough adventure  -  extremely high, extremely cold (and gets colder), uncomfortable, exhausting.   It's also an amazing experience that many people find deeply spiritual and life changing.  At the very least it takes the trekker right to the core of every single aspect of themselves.
On the trek one is 100% immersed in all of those aspects - for those 11 to 15 days there is no respite from the trek.   At every step along the way each trekker must make their own choices, many choose not to complete the trek and that must be respected.   To push ahead ignoring the signals being sent out by the body is extremely dangerous at altitude so, while we're disappointed that Peter and Kelvin did not get to see Everest from Kala Pattar, we are very happy for them that they got as far as they did and that they are safely back in Kathmandu.
Yes, Kathmandu!   A Sherpa accompanied Kelvin back to Pheriche and then he returned to the group saying that Peter and Kelvin had managed to arrange a helicopter flight from Pheriche to Kathmandu.   I'm sure Kelvin's had his fill of suspension bridges and small aircraft!
Today's trek and Lobuche
The remaining group of four (Daley, Kirsty, Jan, Deshun), plus Sherpas, carried on to Lobuche and arrived there in just under four and a half hours.
Our trekkers have now reached Lobuche - the final, and highest, overnight stop on the trek ascent.   Populated in climbing season only, Lobuche is very small and consists mainly of tourist accommodation.
The picture on the right shows the settlement with Pumori peak in the left background.
Sir Edmund Hillary and Eric Shipton climbed Pumori from where they could get a good look at Everest to plan a route to the summit.
Shipton helped plan the route that Hillary and Tenzing Norgay took in 1953 for the
first ever summit of Everest.   The black and white image shown here is of Hillary on Pumori during that expedition.
Plans for tomorrow
Tomorrow morning the group will leave Lobuche at about 0500 and head for Gorak Shep, the highest village before base camp, where they'll stop for breakfast.   They're hoping to reach the top of Kala Pattar by 1030 or 1100 and Deshun is going to attempt to phone me from there.
If she isn't able to she'll call once they're back in Pheriche later in the day.
Naturally they're all extremely tired but determined to get there.   At this point Kirsty is the strongest, Daley is not having the most fun he's ever had but he's coping well, Jan's legs were a bit wobbly today but he made it okay and Desh is trundling along without any serious problems.  
Daley is now the only person on the trek who has not been to Kala Pattar  -  Kirsty, Jan and Desh each having trekked several times.   Desh's first trek was in 1996 when she was a member of the 1st South African Everest Expedition, led by Ian Woodall, during which Cathy O'Dowd became the first South African to summit Everest.    Jan was also on that expedition and it was on that trek that Desh met Kirsty who was trekking solo to base camp.   That's our Kirsty!
The pic on the right is of Kala Pattar.  Don't panic - it's the short brown one being dwarfed here by Pumori.  It's actually surrounded by high mountains, including Everest, so even though it's altitude is pretty high at 5545m (18 200ft), Kala Pattar doesn't get even so much as a mention on climbers' lists of mountains to conquer. It does, however, offer that classic view of Everest and so it is, in every way, the high point of the trek.

Here's wishing our group all good things for tomorrow - hopefully Sagarmatha will bless them with a clear view of the highest point on earth!

And, of course, there will be another trek update tomorrow.