EBC Day 7: Pheriche to Lobouche...

I had been concerned that we might not sleep well since folks would walk past our door to the shared loo, but luckily that wasn’t a problem.

We set off at 7:45 a.m. and the first bit was fairly easy as we crossed the wet tundra.

Holy yak! Today was hard! I had to dig deep within myself to keep going as the terrain got increasingly difficult. 

EBC Day 6: Classy Pheriche...

We arrived back at the lodge at noon with a long day ahead of us with not much to do other than eat and write in our journals. I took a 30-minute nap, which helped recharge my batteries. Several other groups checked into the lodge, so we had company for the first time.

We had been completely offline for the past 1.5 days. After contacting my family daily, it was hard being out of touch. I missed wishing Veronica good luck for her move back to Norwich to finish her final year of her Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Science. I also had no idea what was happening with Ashlynn’s plans to go to Paris Fashion Week with IMG Models.

After noticing that our guides were hanging laundry out in the sunshine, Carlin, Terri and I did some quick washing of underwear. It took the three of us to get the water from the large jug at the sinks, wash everything, rinse it...

....and then hang it all. The clouds started coming in, but it didn’t rain and everything dried quickly. The large metal discs were used to attract the sun’s energy to heat the water kettles.

As we expected, prices were increasing as we went higher up. Most days we just paid for bottled water and maybe an extra cup of tea. Our lodge boasted having a bakery, so we ordered the cinnamon rolls, but they were dry and overpriced. Calling the nearby shop a “shopping centre” was definitely a stretch.

I was surprised to learn that our trekking guides carry enough cash to pay for all the lodging and meals along the way. They keep detailed records to reconcile with each teahouse and report back to Himalayan Wonders.

EBC Day 6: Hanging Out and Heading Down...

When I saw where the rugged trail continued, I opted out and chose to wait for everyone else to come back down. 

Little did I know that they’d be gone for 1.5 hours. Luckily I could play my word scramble game on my phone when I wasn’t taking lots of photos of the group and the scenery.

I especially loved taking photos of this sweet dog.

Although I didn’t witness this zaniness at the top, I couldn’t resist including Terri’s photo to show how lucky we were to have fun-loving guides. 

I had really hoped that Kent was right when he said he was confident that we would be taking a gentler slope down, but no such luck. He stuck with me to bring up the rear.

I’m proud to say that we were never far behind, so either I was getting faster or, more likely, everyone else was totally exhausted. 

EBC Day 6: Up, Up, Up...

The trail just kept going up and up.

Looking Down on Dingboche

Terri and Carlin were such a joy to trek with as they were always full of smiles and encouraging words.

It was wild to be able to spot an avalanche in the distance.

Eventually we made it to the stupa and prayer flags at about 14,750 feet (4,500 meters).

I was always happy when we had a chance to stop for a rest and a snack. Snickers tended to be a favorite on the mountain with a mix of sugar and protein for extra energy.

EBC Day 6: Pheriche Acclimatization Hike...

We were all relieved to see Rosie already up and dressed before us. Luckily she was fully recovered after a good night’s sleep. Considering how cold our rooms were without heat or insulation, it was surprising that we all agreed that it was our best night’s sleep.

We stepped outside to check out the view and were surprised to see stunning mountain peaks covered in snow surrounding us as none were visible upon our arrival. After another delicious breakfast of rosti and two fried eggs, it was time to set off for our acclimatization hike. The skies were beautiful blue, but the day started cold.

The trail basically did switchbacks straight up the hill behind our lodge. I walked behind Ishor and just focused on keeping rhythm with his boots, like I did yesterday with Carlin, and concentrated on my breathing in an effort to ignore how scary the trail was.

Kent was very happy to spot Island Peak in the distance.

EBC Day 5: Welcome to the Bates’ Motel...

There was a lot of yak dung on the trail and in the window of this building, presumably drying to be used as fuel to generate heat. As far as we could tell, none of our teahouses burned any during our stays.

We eventually arrived in Pheriche at the Panoramic Teahouse, definitely a major step down in quality from our other accommodations, especially compared to last night’s lodge. Bummer that our acclimatization stop couldn’t have been there instead of having to spend two nights in this drafty plywood box.

The hallway to our rooms was reminiscent of something out of the Bates Motel from the movie Psycho (or rather what I imagine that would have looked like since I’ve never actually had the guts to watch the movie). 

We paid extra for ensuite rooms. The bathroom, also constructed out of plywood, consisted of a toilet, giant barrel holding water, can to use as a scoop and garbage bin. Not only was there no running water, but we would not encounter running water again until the evening of Day 12. Thus we needed to use the can to scoop up water in order to force the toilet to flush; the bin was for the used toilet paper. We couldn’t even begin to imagine what a difficult job it must have been to refill those giant barrels. 

I never used tap water to brush my teeth anyways, but it was a bit weird to stand at the sinks outside the dining room to brush our teeth and wash our hands. 

Luckily the dining room wasn’t made out of plywood as we spent a lot of time there. Each afternoon they turned on the TV to play a movie about Everest; although I have absolutely no interest in ever going any higher than EBC, I was still intrigued enough to watch. 

EBC Day 5: Down into Pheriche...

Normally the EBC route would take trekkers to Dingboche, a Sherpa village of approximately 200 residents. However, that village was essentially closed for an extended holiday so we were heading to the smaller village of Pheriche instead.

Along the way we saw the farms of Dingboche and a glacier.

The final leg into the village was yet another long downhill.... 

....as the village sits next to the river.

Pheriche