Mt Lhotse Expedition

The thrill of the climb begins at touchdown in Kathmandu. The energy of this bustling capital city screams of the determination required for big climbs. Its colourful, crowded streets are packed with shops stacking trekking and climbing gear, here is where you will brush shoulders with all those known in the mountaineering circles.

Other than settling into the hotel, exploring the city and getting a taste of Nepal, we use Day 1 to settle into the new altitude in case you are coming from sea level. It is also a good time to meet your fellow climbers and the entire team that backs this climb. We discuss some dos and don’ts, the route we will take and what to expect on the trail of this splendid trek known as the best long-distance trek in all of Himalayas!

Overnight in a 4-star category hotel.

Going through your gear list multiple times, making last runs to the shops to buy any missing equipment and getting through the essential paperwork is an important first step to climbing these high mountains. Today, we get everything in order and prepare ourselves for the big start tomorrow.

Overnight in hotel.

Today is the first day of the trek but not before we take a short flight up to the trail head. After breakfast we proceed to take a four-hour drive to Ramechap by jeep to catch our flight out to Lukla. The flight over mountains in the Khumbu Region is all of 35 minutes but presents you with some of the most exquisite views of Nepal and can easily be one of the highlights of this trek. If you get a seat on the left side of these tiny planes, the view out the window is one you’ll never forget. Lukla is a small village with no road, only reachable by flight or foot. We walk straight out of the airport, across the cobbled stone footpath of the village and off into the forest trail, officially starting our first day of trekking. Just before exiting the village, we are required to present the first of our two permits at the check post – so remember to keep these handy. Today is easy - it is a simple trek for 3 hours which starts with descending 300M and then slowly climbs up 100M to meet the rest point for the night - Phakding. Along the way, we pass countless mani walls painted on the rocks lining the trail and boulders carved with Tibetan Buddhist prayer inscriptions. We also find numerous prayer wheels all along the trail. We spend our first night in a tea house at Phakding. Overnight in a lodge.

Its serious business from today onwards – today marking day 1 of our brush with difficult terrain on this trek. We start by walking along the banks of the Dudh Kosi, crossing it twice on the high suspension bridges Nepal treks are famous for. The trail is a series of small, repeated ascents and descents, following along the river and again crossing the engraved Buddhist stones characteristic of the area. We stop for lunch at the village of Monjo, which is also the gateway to Sagarmatha National Park. Here is where we present the second of our two permits. After entering the park, we descend along an enormous wall painted sky-high with prayers written in Tibetan to the Bhote Kosi River arriving at Jorsalle village. This is where all the fun begins. After one final stroll along the beach-like riverbank, the trail gets steeper passing through dense forests. After a while we cross the last suspension bridge for today – the bridge dangling spectacularly high above a sharply-descending gorge. From here, we ascend 600M through a thickly forested patch all the way to Namche Bazaar, the administrative and trade capital of the Khumbu region. If the weather is clear we might get our first view of Everest and Lhotse at the rest point along the way. Overnight stay in tea house in Namche Bazaar. Overnight in a lodge.

Today we rest at Namche Bazaar. There is a lot of see and do here in this small village. Remember, being out and about helps the body acclimatise to the new environment faster. We go for a small acclimatisation hike and then you have the whole day to explore the surroundings of this village in the Himalayas. Overnight in a lodge.

Tengboche is a small valley at an altitude of 3,860M. This beautiful route between the two villages starts with us passing through Namche on a stone-paved path by the stream. Thamserku, a beautiful peak of 6,608M, dominates the view, with Ama Dablam – one of the most peculiarly shaped mountains – farther up the valley. Everest is visible above the joining ridge of the south face of Lhotse and Nuptse that close the valley far ahead. Close to an hour into the trek, we come across a huge chorten dedicated to Tenzin Norgay – the man who needs no introduction. The trail is small sections of ascents with patches of descents that are enough to recover your breath for the next section of ascent. We should reach our stop-hold for today by lunch-time. Overnight in lodge.

Today we start our trek early and head out of Tengboche over to the other side of the ridge and straight into a birch and rhododendron forest. From here, Lower Pangboche is close to 4 km – with a height gain of close to 260M, we should get there in less than 2 hours. The village of Pangboche is spread out right below the impressive Ama Dablam and hence offers some of the most spectacular views of the mountain making it a perfect spot to take a break. Depending on what time we get here, we either stop for tea or head straight for lunch. Everest now disappears from the view until we reach the upper parts of the Khumbu Valley. We see a lot of revered peaks all through our trek today, don’t forget to question your local guide about these each time you see a new peak peering out from behind at the turn of the view.

To our left is the Lobuche River. Dingboche comes into view after a series of moraines. This large settlement has some spectacular sights to offer with the south face of Lhotse (8,516M) dominating the view. Do not miss the sunset from this beautiful location. Overnight in lodge.

We have climbed over 2000M in the last few days. This marks for a good milestone to take a day off so as to rest the body and give it time to acclimatize to this newly gained elevation. This makes it easier for it to handle the elevation it has to face in the coming days. Acclimatization is done best and done right when you expose yourself to the mountain air at this elevation – so remember to take yourself out and walk around. There is much to see and admire in this region. A small hike from here brings you face to face with three of the world’s highest mountain peaks - Mount Lhotse, Mount Makalu and Mount Cho Oyu.

Overnight in lodge.

Today seems easier after resting it out at Dingboche yesterday. The flat trail till Dughla offers some of the best views on this route along with a spectacular view of the wall of Khumbu Glacier. On our right, we see the magnificent Mount Pumori (7,138m) and a brightly colored glacial lake. There are no tea houses between these two locations, and no sources of water either – remember to carry sufficient supplies of refreshment as well as water for today. 

After 3 hours, we reach Thukla which is a halfway mark. From here, we continue towards Lobuche which is situated beside the Khumbu glacier. Initial part of the trek is tough as we undertake the strenuous climb up to Dughla Pass/ Thukla Pass to go onwards to Lobuche. The climb is short but extremely steep – if it’s any consolation, it offers some of the most memorable views of the entire trek. The pass is filled with memorials of mountaineers who got the ball rolling for all of us to be here today. We spend some time at the pass before we carry on to Lobuche – the trail after the pass is mostly flat.

Overnight in lodge.

Today we get to our base camp which will be home for the next couple of days. The trail to the base camp has a lot of ups and downs till Gorakshep – most of these are humps on the moraines of the infamous Khumbu Glacier. Once we reach Gorakshep, we have something to eat and leave straight after to get to Everest Base Camp - situated at the beginning of the massive Khumbu Glacier. The trail walks along the glacier with extraordinary views of Mt. Pumori to our right and Mt. Nuptse to our left. We get a clear as day view of the Khumbu icefall from the base camp – a view that’s inspiring enough to up your trekking game. This portion of the trek also brings us face to face with some of the biggest mountains in Nepal and in the world – the feeling of being surrounded by giants is almost surreal. We need to hike on the Khumbu glacier for a short bit in order to get to Everest Base Camp – giving us a tiny feel for what it will be like to climb up this beast of a mountain. 

Get used to this place, we will spend quite a few days in the base camp, training, acclimatizing, and preparing for the summit. We will go on short excursions, practice through the Khumbu Icefall climb, and get used to using all our technical gear till it becomes muscle memory. We also do our rotation rounds from the Base Camp.

From today onwards, we will be staying in tents.

We spend about a week at Base Camp – this will help with acclimatization at higher camps too. Base Camp is also where we will conduct our prayer ceremony before we move base higher up the mountain. Mt. Chomolungma is called “Mother Goddess of the World” in local Tibetan Language. The prayer is essential to seek the mountain’s blessings and permission to climb.

We use these 7 days for ladder practice, training on fixed lines, going over possible adverse scenarios and practicing our response, understanding the use of oxygen cylinders, communication gear etc. It is essential that we get fully efficient in our use of this now as it is difficult to learn and retain any new information higher up on the mountain.

Each day is used productively towards the goal of climbing Mount Everest.

After days of training, practicing and rotation, we finally shift base to Camp I. We cross the Khumbu Icefall as we did during our training and rotation. Overnight in tents.

We go up to Camp II t 6,400M through the Western cwm – we cross a gently rising valley that is marked by huge crevasses in the centre which prevents direct access to the upper part of the CWM. After spending some time at Camp II, we return back to Camp I for the night through the same route. Overnight in tents.

After climbing up to Camp 2 experiencing the technicalities of the expedition through the crevasses, ladders, and fixed ropes, we return to the base camp and rest there for a few days. We continue to do rotations and short hikes in the area to keep busy and active.

After getting our energies up from the rest at Base Camp, we skim Camp I and go straight to Camp II. We spend 3 days at Camp II. One of these days we hike up to the West Shoulder. This gradual movement up and down the mountain will help the body adapt to all altitudes, temperature and climactic conditions all of which will come handy during the summit push.

In our third rotation, we introduce our bodies to 7,300M and come all the way back to Camp I at 6,065M for the night. This step-by-step progression helps with acclimatization as well as getting yourself familiarised with the route and the terrain. The climbers who are climbing without O2 continue to stay on at Camp III. The rest of us come down to Camp I. Climbers at Camp III proceed to Camp IV the next day.

Climbers at Camp I, descend down further to Base Camp for some rest.

We allocate a few days of complete rest before actually heading to the summit. For this, we may either descend back to Namche to rest at a cozy lodge or fly back to Kathmandu (For those who can afford it). While at rest, our expedition leaders and the team will evaluate the weather conditions and finalise dates for the actual summit push based on the based summit window available. When everything looks favorable, we prepare to trek back to the Base Camp. Those who choose to rest in Kathmandu can take Heli or can stay in Base Camp. When we are resting, our climbing sherpas will set up higher camps at Camp IV for the final summit push.

Now with an optimally acclimatised body, enough on-ground training, and appropriate amount of rest, we are ready for the final push. We now head back to Base Camp and wait for a good summit window to make the final push. 

Getting to Camp II this time is easier since we are better acclimatised and are familiar with the route. After crossing the Khumbu Icefall, Camp I and the Western cwm, we reach Camp II. Tents are already set up. Enjoy a hot meal and get enough rest for the coming days.

We will use Oxygen Cylinders from here on. We request everyone to remain careful and stick with the team as well as communicate often. High Food will be provided for meals. The tents here are comfortable – make sure to get enough rest.

After Camp III, we ascend to Camp IV at 7900m. This is where climbers of Lhotse and Everest divide. The area above this is called the Death Zone which demands extreme caution. We will keep ourselves warm and safe. We will rest for 5- 7 hrs in Camp IV & head for the summit push if everything goes as planned. A day’s rest at Camp IV is only applicable if there is bad weather before the summit Day. We will monitor the weather conditions before summiting Everest. If the weather conditions are not good and the members need more Oxygen bottles then the company will manage the emergency oxygen bottles for use subject to a charge of $800 per bottle.

Depending on the weather window, we make our final summit push, stay at the top of the world for a bit and start our descend down slowly. Depending on the weather condition and the physical condition of the climbers, we decide which camps to stay at and at what pace to descend all the way down to Base Camp. Remember, climbers are allowed to stay up at the summit for a maximum of 20 minutes as per climbing guidelines. Once at Base Camp, we clean up our campsite and fly back to Kathmandu.

We directly take a Heli Flight back to Kathmandu. 

With gratitude and best wishes, we have to bid you farewell for your flight back home. We hope to see you soon in the next season with a brand-new adventure. 

We have 2 reserve days that can be used any time during the expedition in case of bad weather, unavoidable circumstances or unforeseeable emergencies.