Adventure Travel Everest Base Camp North
“No one ever remembers who climbed Mount Everest the second time.”
Quote Source - Popular Travel Quote
Everest Base Camp North
There are two base camps basecamp South in Nepal and Basecamp North in Tibet. We went to Tibet.
We really enjoyed our Basecamp North adventure, and the overnight camp at our basecamp tent with the yak poo burner. It is a great natural sustainable fuel, animal faecal matter is picked up and dried, Yak, Horse, Sheep, Goat it all makes good burning for cooking and heating. It doesn’t smell and gives a good heat, and its free of charge thanks to Mr Yak and Mrs Nak. (A Nak is a female Yak).
It is well worth taking your time to acclimatise on the way up and not to take altitude for granted. An oximeter you put on your finger helps to gauge oxygen levels. I am around 88% at this altitude. Acetazolamide can also help to reduce the effects, but is no substitute for acclimatisation, and keeping in good health. We probably shouldn’t have had the “Everest” beers, but what the hell, we aren't likely to go back anytime soon. Not because it wasn’t an amazing adventure, but because we very rarely return to the same place, so little time and money. Everest should however be on every adventurers radar. (We don’t like the term bucket list, there must be a more positive approach).
We hung our prayer flags, which we had previously blessed at a small temple, got up at stupid O clock excited to see our first glimpse of the mighty mountain and then…….nothing but cloud. it was so disappointing. It was cloud the day before as well. All that way, but that is Mother Nature for you. We decided to take a hike up the valley to see the moraine field and gathers some geological samples, and engage in a “childish” but fun. game of prettiest rock, not very scientific I know. I came second.
it was getting late in the morning as we wandered down, and on the way back we had planned to stop off in the Rongphu monastery, the highest in the world when suddenly she appeared out of the blue, just long enough for us to shoot of some snaps and admire her beauty. We were thrilled to say the least, it was like Birthday, Christmas and every Anniversary all at once!
The monastery is well worth the visit especial the meditation caves, and human skull bowls. Red and Yellow billed Alpine Chough ( a member of the crow family) hop hopped around the monastery whilst the sun beat down, and the mountains of the Himalayas towered around us.
Our Guide Jangbu Sherpa was a typical modest man of the mountains. We sat on some rocks in front of Everest whilst he showed me the Mallory Route pointing it out step by step, and I mentioned it must of been amazing to have had the opportunity to climb it, and with that he rather casually mentioned he’d summited it three times in his career as a a sherpa. It wasn't a boast - just a fact, like the sky os blue. People are a constant surprise.
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The highest monastery in the world called Rongpu, Rongphu, Rongbuk or originally Dzarongpu that locates on an altitude of 4980 meters above sea-level. it is a really interesting little monastery and the caves to pray in are the highlight, as well a perhaps more gruesome human head bowls. The caves themselves are entered via a hole and a ladder, they were stuffed full of candles it was very hot down there, and probably very low levels of oxygen. On the way out some ladies (nuns?) were shelling peas and gave a pod each, they were delicious - thank you.
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Everest like Mount Fuji is covered in cloud much of the time, and our visit was no different. First we saw the middle, then the bottom cleared and middle disappeared, then it all went and finally the top cleared and we could see the summit and the Mallory Route. It really is stunning and such a privilege to have seen her in person. Hats off to anyone who has climbed it, just wandering around at 5,150 metres (16,900 ft) is hard enough. They call the classic climbing route on the Nepal side “The Yak Route” but this derogatory term belies the fact that it is a tough climb even with modern support equipment.
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We slept on wooden beds / sofas covered with red embroidered carpet like fabric and a blanket. A Yak pellet burning stove was kept stocked in the middle - it was cold. At 3am a large group of scary looking men entered the tent, they looked like mountain men, they spoke to the tent owner in hushed tones and then left. We brought an amazing set of prayer beads from the tent owner, probably made of Yak bone.
What we Loved
What we didn’t Love
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Human Faecal Matter is definitely the Wrong Poo, it is everywhere and because of the high altitude it doesn't break down. It is not pleasant. the loos were some of the worst I have ever experienced. But sitting amongst it all was a Tibetan rosefinch (Carpodacus roborowskii), now how do I photoshop that turd out.
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Oxygen is much underrated as a gas, and a lack of it makes for hard going. We managed without, but lack the Tibetan genetic advantage of more red blood cells and less haemoglobin. Some of the visitors had oxygen cylinders which they just dumped on the mountain before getting back on their bus. Each breath at their altitude contains around a third less oxygen, and don’t you know it. oxygen cylinder anyone?
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There is shite everywhere from human waste to plastic bags and oxygen cylinders dumped by uncaring and thoughtless day tourists, and professionals alike. In the 1990s we engaged with a project to try to recover the many bodies which have been left on Everests glaciers from climbers who didn’t make it. Honestly it needs a big clean up, but it is not hard to look beyond this to the majestic mountains and valley.
Surprises
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It is almost like a desert in terms of how dehydrated you become at altitude, try to avoid the booze and stick to water. Altitude sickness is a real life threatening illness as one of our Hero’s of the past Alexander Humbolt will tell you, after all he was the first to recognise it. So drink before you need it.
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We have climbed quite a few mountains in our time, and visited many mountain ranges, but nothing prepared us for how tall Everest actually is. Whilst waiting for the cloud to clear we kept expecting the summit to come into view, but you need to tilt your head a lot higher, no even higher, and a bit more - yep right up there. It is tall, with a capital T.
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We were not expecting to see these giant rodents up here, very cute they are too. Up in the valley in the moraine field we had gone searching for rocks and there are some sunning examples and all sorts of colours, greens, reds - its a geologists dream, and then out of the blue a Giant Marmot comes sauntering past. “Morning” and off they went again. Hope fully we will get to catalog the geological samples we brought back.
What you can find in The Museum of Travel
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A set of hand carved yak bone prayer beads. Brought from the tent at Everest base camp North. We also got an amazing set of beads from Jokhang, Temple of Bodhi seeds blessed by the Abbot. Tibetans consider the Jokhang to be the most sacred site. We preferred the Jokhang set, so of course we gave these away.
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Orange Kata (scarf) from the Jokhang temple and peach stone from the peach we were given at the blessing to kiss the feet of the Jowo Shakyamuni. We felt elated, privileged and fraudulent at the same time. it is obviously very sacred and important to tibetans. We will tell the whole story at some time, but it was a most amazing experience being pulled and pushed by pilgrims to the front the melee, in a sea of thousands of candles, smoke and incense, it was intense. it was like the waves parting, I still don’t understand why or how we came to be there, but suddenly we were present with the orange scarf, a peach for long life and climbing a short wooden ladder.
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We have a really interesting collection of rocks from the moraine field of the Everest valley at Base camp North. We will hopeful get to identify and catalogue them at some point. Any geologist out there who can help?
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19th Century hardwood monkey handle jug. Dark ebonies wood. It is elaborately carved and was originally probably for Yaks Milk, but we like the beer jug theory better.
Various Metamorphic and igneous rocks from the moraine field Everest Base camp north, At c 5,250 metres (17,224 ft). Whilst there we saw a Giant Marmot, really amazing animals.
Once very popular with "backpackers" various patches depicting Nepal and Everest Case Camp South which is slightly higher than Base Camp North. Tibet.
Yak Butter / Beer Monkey Handle Jug - rule is for sizing purposes. These hardwood jugs are intricately carved white the handle representing the body of a monkey. Tibet.
Kata (scarf) and peach from Johkang Temple (probably the most sacred of the Tibetan Temples. run by the "Yellow Hat" Gulug school. Beads with counters, probably Yak bone? from Everest Base Camp North. Tibet