Everest Base Camp Trek
Heads in the Clouds
Sitting in cloud hoping it would lift
We walked up out of Phortse and then up forever. At the top it was very cloudy (dherai mukpa) which was disappointing as the views would have been spectacular but because we were trekking at the very end of the monsoon season there were still clouds around and we could not see a thing.
At Pangboche and went inside the monastery or gompa here while our lunch was being cooked. It is the oldest monastery in the Khumbu.
We came in and walked out of Pangboche a totally different way from our 2013 trek. Our impression walking in was of quite a different village. The walk out past the helicopter rescue pad and lots of chortens and mani stones was interesting and the cloud broke and we had some sneak mountain views at last.
Being at Pangboche and heading towards Shomare we were back are on the Main Everest Base Camp trail so we saw more activity including a lot of yaks.
The landscape, being above the tree line is very like the moors of Scotland. We spotted our first mountain goat. I think we would have seen him without our porter guide but there were many times on the trek where Basanta pointed out things we would have never seen. We also saw an enormous eagle flying high above the valley and a lot of helicopters flying back.
We hardly saw anyone on the trail for at least two hours.
The clouds parted for a few views of Ama Dablam (Mother’s Treasure Chest) our favourite mountain because it is easily recognisable and also Lhotse pictured just before Pangboche.
Since leaving Namche Bazaar we had only seen three other trekkers. We found out that our flight to Lukla was the last for five days.
The walk took us 6.5 hours.
Walking towards Pangboche
Great to see some ice covered mountains after morning clouds
Above Pangboche going on the UP.
A mani wall and chorten area above the tree line
The Year I Touched My Toes 
Five days delay at Lukla? Wow! What month did you visit again? I am afraid this will happen to me knowing my luck!!! 😖
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Just to clarify, there were no flights to Lukla because of the cloud. Most trekking companies went in by helicopter after that. We left at the end of September and into October. I wouldn’t go any earlier than the first week of October. In an earlier post you said you thought you would go in November. It should be fine by then. Colder at night but clearer.
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Yes I heard about not having flights for days to and from Lukla. That would actually scare me but hopefully I’ll have better luck. With the climate change, who knows what’ll happen. 😄
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