Soggy Moose Travels : TO EVEREST BASE CAMP

EBC:

I awoke to clear skies and lots of stars dancing about. We started at 0430, out the door by 0500 for breakfast, done and in the vehicles headed to Everest by 0530. The first stop was a Government Check point where one by one we presented ourselves with passport open to photo page and visa page.

After clearing the first check point, we next drove to the top of Pang La at over 17,000 feet. From here, we waited for the Sun to rise. The day was clear but it was very cold and windy. Yet, well worth the early wakeup dark drive, cold and wind as we watched the sunrise and fall upon Everest. Only the attached photos can speak to this event.

We descended off the pass and made our way to Everest Base Camp (EBC), but prior to arriving we had another check point, with the same procedure. One can not drive all the way to EBC, you stop in a parking lot where there are many many many vendors selling stuff. Then there is a shuttle bus to take you into an area where you can over look base camp. There is a 50 foot vertical climb to a spot where prayer flags are flying in the wind.

Myself and a few others in our group decided would walk the 7K to the base camp over look. The trail was a rather gentile climb and we all made it. Here the elevation is 17,000 ft plus. I would be remiss in forgetting to say our kitchen crew met us at Rongbuk Monastery with tea and cookies before we headed out to EBC.

We stopped and took several photos, and I was the star of a Chinese group for photos. That is until one of our fellow travelers arrived and his beard is longer than mine.

Here Lynn and I hung our Kata (prayer flag) on the prayer pole as a gesture of thanks to the mountain for letting us be there on such a beautiful day.

We returned to the parking area and had our lunch next to the Rongbuk Monastery.

Rongbuk Monastery, the highest monastery in the world, was established sometime in the early part of the 20th century, under the Nyingmapa Sect. This monastery houses with monks and nuns. Rongbuk Valley was know as the “sanctuary of the birds”. There was a strict ban on killing any animal in the area. The British arriving at Rongbuk in 1921, found the animals of the valley extraordinarily tame: wild blue sheep would come down to the monastery. There were hundreds of Lamas and pilgrims engaged in meditation in a cluster of brightly colored buildings. The British did not meet the Head Lama as he was off doing a year’s meditation in a cave. It was common for hermits to go on meditation retreats in caves in the valley, subsisting on water and barley passed to them once a day.

At the Monastery, we lit 108 Yak Butter candles for the blessings we have received on this journey.

I will let the pictures speak for our day. I just grabbed these as they are and will have many more available later.