EBC Day 15: Escaping the Himalayas...

As soon as the pilot had finished his cup of coffee, we were told to grab our daypacks and start running. Our porters were already loading our duffel bags onboard. Unlike the pilot of one of the other helicopters, who we witnessed giving a safety briefing to his passengers before boarding, ours didn’t bother.

As the smallest, we chose Terri to get in the front and the rest of us piled into the back after quick hugs with Ishor. Sebastian got in before me, so he had the window seat. I wasn’t thrilled that I didn’t have a seatbelt (it was stuck under the seat), but luckily I lived to tell the tale. 

Perhaps our pilot was a bit of a cowboy or just a crazy risk taker, but he took off in the rain without saying a word to us. Eventually he tried putting on his seatbelt and needed Terri’s help. Luckily it didn’t rain for the entire 51-minute journey.

I wasn’t by a window, but the views were still incredible. We followed the river for much of the trip and saw lots of waterfalls (Terri took this photo). 

It was 40 minutes before I noticed the first road and cars; otherwise all of the villages and terraced farms that we saw along the way had to be reached by foot or by animal.

Overall the journey was smooth, but there were occasional worrisome shakes.

Even with all the drama, it was a damn fine way to end an epic journey.