Settled Back in the USA

I've now made my way over oceans and continents and ice caps and am back in Hanover. After much internal debate, I opened up an account at Smugmug.com to post pictures. They have unlimited storage space so I can use it as another backup and the interface makes viewing pictures much better than here on my blog or on Picasa.

So hop on over http://ansonmoxness.smugmug.com and take a look. You'll see many familiar photos from here, plus some more. And TONS more from the trek.

My future plans involve fixing up my truck a bit and driving out west to visit friends and family before going back home for Thanksgiving. This winter I will be working in Alta, UT. If anyone is coming that way and wants help finding a place to crash, or someone to ski with, let me know.

So for the time being I'll probably be neglecting the blog, but who knows it may come back with a vengeance this winter.

Solu-Khumbu part 5: Coming back home

With three nights at 5200m in Gorak Shep, the next on my hit-list was the Chhukhung valley. Since I was in no rush, I woke up late (relatively) to head down valley towards Dingbouche. Pella and Zahi were headed towards Cho La, so I hiked with them past Lobouche to show them the short cut towards Dzongla. Chris had been bedridden with a nasty case of snowblindness (he recovered fine and actually staying in my hotel in Kathmandu). The snow from two days ago made the whole valley sparkle under the sun and many yak trains moved past us, loaded with supplies for Lobouche and Gorak Shep.


In a minor pass I got my first good view of Ama Dablam of the day.


All day there were tons of yaks, tons and tons of yaks. They look great in pictures but are somewhat ornery creatures. And with big horns the prospect of one headbutting you is not the most pleasing of ideas.


I got to the pass above Dingbouche and met two recent university graduates from the UK. They had found a little used, very nice, lodge in Dingbouche so I joined them for the night. I could have made it up to Chhukhung, but I was in no hurry. The next morning I hiked up Nangkartshang peak (5100mish). The peak is mostly used by groups during an acclimatization day, but since I was fully acclimatized I just motored to the top. I decided to take the 'Nepali way' to the top using a trail leading from town that went straight up the face to the ridge that would lead ultimately to the summit. It was a fun little scramble with some fantastic views of Ama Dablam right on the other side of the valley.


The summit was, as they all are, covered in prayer flags and offered a view that few rarely see of Ama Dablam, simply because most groups who go up the peak turn around before the reach the top. At 9am is was very nice and quiet on the top. With a few large tour groups coming up the ridge I knew my peace and might be short lived. One last view of one of the most beautiful mountains in the world and it was off down to Dingbouche then up to Chhukhung.

A few hours trek up the valley and I reached the town of Chhukhung. There aren't many lodges here just because most people only use the valley as an acclimatization day from Dingbouche. I met a group of guides and porters that were surprised it was my first trek in Nepal. They could swear it was my second or third. I'm guessing it might have been the long beard or the tired look in my eyes, but who knows, I guess it's a compliment.

My main goal for Chhukhung was Chhukhung Ri, which as good views of Ama Dablam, down valley towards Namche, and the Lhotse-Nuptse wall. The next morning I worked my way up the valley to the peak. By the time I was 3/4ths the way up the mountain I began to realize how tired I was becoming. 3 and a half weeks of trekking was beginning to take it's toll and I was getting less and less excited about trekking up mountains. I made it to the top and it was fantastic, but the Nuptse-Lhotse wall was shrowded in clouds and it never seemed to come out.

Still a good view of Ama Dablam.


Once I got down to Chhukhung, I packed my bags and made my way towards the throngs of other trekkers that undoubtedly were making their way up the valley. I stopped in Pangbouche for the night. Staying at the Ama Dablam View lodge, with hopes to see the mountain for one last day. The next day I woke up to heavy clouds, oh well - I'd seen many good mountains in the past weeks.

As expected, tons of trekkers streamed up the valley with hopes of seeing Everest and visiting base camp. Many of the mani stones were brightly painted, undoubtedly indirectly funded by the throngs of trekkers.


I stopped for second breakfast at Tengbouche, the site of a famous monastery. It was undergoing the finishing touches of some reconstruction, but it was still beautiful.


There were some high suspension bridges over rushing rivers. Reminants of older editions were everywhere, but the newer ones had no risks whatsoever.


After a long, long day I made it back to Namche. The town was a welcome sight because it meant good food and bakeries so I could get an apple pie!


The next day I had an even longer seeming day to Lukla for my flight out to Kathmandu. The Lukla airport is quite the sight. It is very short and built as an uphill landing to accommodate larger planes. For incoming flights it looks like you are a small dart going in to the bullseye. Outgoing flights have the runway drop off below you just as the pilot pulls up on the yoke. But instead of a week long hike and 8 hour drive it's a 40 minute plane ride to the Kathmandu airport.


The next morning I was on a twin engine prop plane to Kathmandu and by 9am I was sitting eating an apple danish in a bakery in Thamel.

Not too bad of a trip I'd say.

Solu-Khumbu part 4: Everest, finally

I last left off trekking from Dzongla to Gorak Shep. It was pretty miserable: small bits of hail, wind, Chinese tourists making fun of my umbrella. When I pointed out that I was dry and not sweating horrifically like they looked like they were in their fake North Face suits (yeah), they warmed to the idea of an umbrella. A few not-fun hours later we reached Gorak Shep, a small town that like Gokyo only exists because trekkers like me are too lazy or cheap to carry camping gear. But hey, I'm at 5200m and there's an internet cafe, horse rental, and about half a dozen very nice looking lodges.

After someone's recommendation we stayed in the first place we saw - the Himalayan Lodge. Holy crap was the food good! We are days walking to the nearest airport and much more to the roadhead, but I got some of the best damn hashbrowns I've ever eaten. Oh and the view out of my hotel room was not too bad.


That is Pumori peak in the background.

The main viewpoint for Everest and the surrounding mountains is Kala Pattar. Essentially a bump on a subsidiary ridge of Pumori, Kala Pattar sees thousands upon thousands of tourists every year. Since many of us at the lodge wanted to get up before sunrise, we decided to leave around 4 or 4:30 in the morning. As Sebastian and Hakara lost their alarm clock (well a cheap cell phone used as an alarm clock), I got the job of "weather checker" with a request to knock on their door when they should get ready to leave.

Well 3am came and it was snowy, 4am - not much better. 5am was starting to look familiar and by 6am the snow had piled up around 6 inches outside the door. Back to bed and no need wake the sleeping beauties. We spent all day sitting in the lodge, drinking tea, and waiting until the next time we could order food. After a few hours of snow a train of dozens of people left to go down to Lobouche and most of the other lodge inhabitants took off for better weather. We, however, were determined to get good weather. The four of us (Sebastian, Marie, Hakara, and I) all had time for a rest day anyway. Several other people filtered in to the lodge from lower down: Pella, a Hungarian doctor, Chris, a nomad from Australia, and Zahi, an Israeli electrical engineering student. I finally met some more Americans (Phortse Tenga was the last time I'd seen anyone from the US), one from Atlanta and one from Denver, but I can't remember their names at the moment.

We played a lot of Uno (thanks Sebastian) and dried all of our clothes by the fire all day, hoping for better weather tomorrow.

We woke up the next day to a few stars, but obviously a high cloud layer. By 4:15 we were off towards Kala Patter, slogging through a foot and a half of snow. Since it was dark and none of the four of my group really knew the way, we waited for the rest of our lodge group, several of whom had guides. The Georgian's guide look the lead heading up the hill, but with many calls from his client to slow down and go less steep we weren't making good progress. In 15 minutes I was right on the heels of the leader with Harkara in tow. The Sherpa guide was more than happy to let me lead so he could go slow with his client. So began my slog to the top. Almost 3 hours of stumbling over rocks through knee deep snow I reached the top of Kala Pattar just as the first rays of sun hit the snow on the top. The sun came up right behind the rocks of Everest's summit.



Yeah the mountains were pretty good.


Below us in the valley Ama Dablam ruled the skyline.


And Everest and Nuptse seemed so close you could touch them.


And look it's me, with Everest


With the sun beating down on us for several hours, we made walked back down to Gorak Shep. Sebastian wanted to make it down to Kathmandu so he took off towards Dingbouche, but the rest of us (after lunch) decided to go up to Everest Base Camp (EBC). Many people think that EBC will have the best views of the mountain and is a must see, however that's not really true. There are great views, but none of Everest. And especially just after the monsoon EBC is pretty sparse. But we headed up anyway. A few hours of walking along the Khumbu Glacier past some great mountain faces was a good way to spend the afternoon. Here Pella walks by the Nuptse face.


There wasn't much there and the group was tired from walking all day so once we got to a good look out and took an hour break we made our way to Gorak Shep and back towards the civilization of Kathmandu.

Solu-Khumbu part 3: Cho La to Gorak Shep

As we went to bed in Thagnak, someone looked outside and we were all quite pleased with the possibility of clear skies the next day.



A 4am wake up came all to early and we set off up the valley toward Cho La (While common, saying 'Cho La Pass' is a bit redundant, somewhat analogous to saying PIN number). Once we got to the view point the pass looked fairly obvious. Off to the left there was a gorgeous looking glaciated pass with, what I thought, was a fairly straightforward route. On the way up we got a good view of the Kangchung peaks


From what you've probably gathered as a somewhat intelligent reader, that wasn't the route. But we set off toward the pass and got to the base. It was supposed to take 3-4 hours to get to the top of the pass, but we were already at 3 hours at the base and it was going to take more than an hour to climb this thing. I put forth the idea of climbing the right hand debris cone and kicking steps in the snow in the top, but other members of the group wanted to go along the steep looking left wall where there was a possibility of no snow walking. We ended up splitting up, but being within talking range. After climbing for a while Hakara found that his was was completely impassible and I found my was not too bad. After seeing most of the group hanging out at the bottom of the pass I decided to come down and report my "this is passable" findings. The last thing I expected to hear was "this isn't Cho La"... well shit.

Apparently we were in Cho La Col, a 5700m pass used by climbers. Chalk one up for adventure there. The French couple decided, even in the increasing clouds and no visibility at higher altitudes to climb the pass - they had a deadline. We thought it was a terrible idea but it worked out. The rest of the group headed back to Thagnag for another try.

4am the next day came pretty quickly and again we had pretty good weather. But it had rained all last night, which means snow for us in the pass.


We made our way up to the pass, now realizing where we were going. With a few inches of snow on big slippery rocks it was slow going. And once we got into the pass the scree was having a nasty habit of moving, but because of the snow you never really could tell when it would. The snow made the whole valley a very picturesque local, but made our efforts quite a bit slower.


Once we got to the pass we took a nice rest and continued on to the glacier I should have been walking on the day before. Some cravasse hoping ensued, but nothing too serious.


We arrived in Dzongla and settled down for the night. I woke up early and tried my hand at some long exposures at night since the Cholatse face was fantastic and dominated the skyline. Also I went to bed so early that 3am was enough sleep for me.


The next day we walked the few hours to Gorak Shep (5200m) to ready ourselves fo Kala Pattar.

Solu-Khumbu part 2: Namche to Gokyo

A much needed day off consisting of internet, donuts, chocolate, and more donuts prepped me for my trek up the Gokyo valley. The Khumbu region is set up in four main valleys that all converge near Namche. The farthest west and least explored valley is the Bhote valley. With relatively few trekking amenities and no famous mountains, it is less used by visitors. The trail leads up to the Nangpa La on the Tibetan border (la means pass in Sherpa language), which if you travel too far on the wrong side of the pass you'll end up spending a pretty penny on bribes to the Chinese border guards. I wouldn't be going up that valley unless I had time at the end of my trek. The next valley to the east is the Gokyo valley that ends at Cho Oyu (the 8th highest mountain in the world). It is connected to the Bhote valley by Renjo La. The next valley to the east is the Khumbu valley. This is the big kahuna. You've got Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Pumori, and about 4 quadrillion tourists during the main season filing their way to Everest Base Camp (really just some tents on an ugly glacier) and Kala Pattar (one of the most impressive view points in the Khumbu). Finally branching off from the Khumbu Valley is the Chukhung valley. Many people go up this valley as an acclimatization day or to climb Imja Tse (Island Peak) a trekking peak that many guided tours go up so people can climb a 6100m peak.

Now that you've got a general idea of the area, here is a nice map for a reference.


The Gokyo valley is well known by rescue pilots because it is very easy to out climb your acclimatization schedule and end up needing to call the $10,000 chopper to whisk you back to Kathmandu. Most days in the valley only two or three days of walking are necessary. As I was traveling alone I decided to keep it slow and ascend 350m per day - I had the time, why risk anything.

Out of Namche, my first stop was Phortse Tenga. For the first time all trek I had great views. My first glance at Ama Dablam was just breathtaking. I'm pretty sure I just stood there and looked at the magnificent white peaks for a good 15 minutes before realizing there was somewhere I should be.


The path into the valley went over a 4000m pass at a town called Mong and then all the way back down to Photse Tenga along the river at 3650m. Around the lodge there were a couple of very cute girls playing in the yard.


The next day led up to Dole (the ending e is pronounced similar to the Canadian 'eh'). Even though I started late, the 400m climb only took me a few hours and I arrived right in time for lunch. As I got in to Dole I met up with Sebastian, a Belgian pediatric nurse. He was trekking on the same itinerary as a few other francophone travelers and invited me to have lunch with them. With him were Marie, a Quebecois police officer, Hakara, the French Cambodian founder of an INGO, and Frederic and Mariele, a couple from France I had met the night before in Phortse Tenga. They were all coming from Mong, but only Marie continued on as everyone else was content to stay the night in Dole. We spent a good portion of our night planning the next few days of our journey.



As we sat in the dining room waiting for dinner a huge earthquake hit. Since buildings in the Nepal aren't exactly built for earthquakes, I got a bit concerned. The two Nepali women working in the Lodge had already hightailed it out of the house, so it was probably good if we did the same. After a few tense seconds of plywood creaking and a few sounds of rocks crumbling (but not too loud), the shaking subsided and we caught our breathes. The lodge owner finally returned to the house and asked if it was okay that dinner would be a bit late so she could call her home down in Khumjung. Yes, our veg fried potatoes are more important than the safety of your family. Eventually she got a hold of them and I was able to pass word through a Sherpa friend to my family that I was okay. All was well for us. Though we did find out that the town had significant damage.


The next day we went to Machermo where we stayed in a ... sub-par lodge. Electricity was down and the wood was wet so no evening fire. We were cold and in the dark until we woke up in the morning. The next day was a bit longer than the normal 2 hours. Up to Gokyo the trail passes two glacial lakes with Gokyo situated on the third. All along the trail are rock cairns (piles of rocks) that tell trekkers and yak herders alike that they're on the right path.


Thirty years ago Gokyo was just a three sided shepherd's and some walls, now it's a bustling town with even internet access and a few high quality lodges. With a picturesque setting it's no wonder Gokyo is becoming a more popular destination (the vast majority still head towards the lure of Everest Base Camp).


The next morning we woke up to clear skies and beautiful views of Phari Lapche across the lake. A 5am wake up allowed me to get some good longer exposure shots of our lodge, the Cho Oyu lodge, and the mountain before everyone started up and moving around.


As the sun came out, it hit the peak of Cho Oyu first and was reflected magnificently in the lake next to Gokyo, Dudh Pokhari.


After breakfast the group of six of us set out up the valley. Gokyo is set in the valley made by the receding Ngozumaba Glacier. Walking along the top of the lateral moraines was rather difficult and slow but produced some fantastic views. I carried water and food in my pack for Hakara as he scampered along the top of the moraines with Gyachung Kang in the background.


We finally made it up to the 5th lake of the valley where there is a good view of Everest. Sadly the clouds rolled in and all we could see was a nice view of the rocky glacier... time to go down. We woke up the next morning to a very cloudy sky and the plans of a morning ascent of Gokyo Ri, a very impressive viewpoint right behind Gokyo was scrapped. We hoped we would have better luck and weather later in the trip. That afternoon we made the not too difficult trek across the glacier to Thagnak, the base of Cho La which separates the Gokyo Valley from the Khumbu (Everest) Valley. We settled in and prepared for an early morning wake up for our next part of the adventure.ev

Solu-Khumbu part 1: Jiri to Namche

So with KU on break and all my friends leaving town to see their families and party without me, I decided to go trekking. Since I'm stubborn and like to work too hard, I decided to trek into the Solu-Khumbu region from Jiri. Most sane people pay the Rs 9000 ($120) and fly into Lukla, where you are within a few days walk of Namche Bazar and the real mountain. Me? Yeah, too easy.

I left from the Hotel Red Planet in Kathmandu for what I was led to believe was a 5:30am bus to Lukla. After being ripped off by the taxi (I was too tired to really care about 200 rupees), I paid my Rs 500 and got on the "Supper[sic] Express" bus to Jiri. Well the 5:30 bus turned into the 6:30ish bus, but it finally left with seats full of Nepalis and the aisle full of batteries for solar panels.

Eight hours and a plate of dal bhat later I arrived in dusty, pretty miserable looking, Jiri. A few lodges and trekking shops (all selling very obviously fake North Face gear) dotted the road. I started trekking and saw a few other trekkers hanging around Jiri, but none seemed headed my way. A Nepali teenager showed me through a few confusing intersections and I made my way to Shivalaya for the evening.

The next few days were all walking through the so-called middle hills area. I stayed the next night in Shivalaya, Bhandhar, then Dagchu. In Dagchu I slept the night in the kitchen/dining room area of a lodge run by an old climbing sherpa who fed me more than I ever wanted to be fed. The area was very green with lots of small streams running down the endless ridges that I was expected to climb over and down all day every day.


The next day I reached Junbesi. After wandering around the town for a while I saw what looked like the head of a westerner in a lodge dining room. With great happiness, as I hadn't seen a westerner since Jiri and hadn't talked to one for more than 10 seconds since I left Kathmandu, I got a room at that lodge for the night. Turns out two Danish brothers, Chris and Hans, were on a similar itinerary to me and had taken a day off. Feeling a bit tired I also took the next day off, saying goodbye to the Danes, but sure to see them again. An hour trek above Junbesi was a Buddhist monastery, a good side trip for a day off. Up at the monastery there was a huge stupa (man for size):


I went all the way up to the Gompa where hundreds of nuns and several dozen monks resided. I met an old nun who had escaped from Tibet and has been living in the monastery every since.


The weather so far had been... marginal... at best. Every morning was clear. And by clear I mean, it wasn't raining. I can't remember seeing blue sky at any point in the first week. At 1pm it would start raining no matter what - sometimes it would pour, sometimes it would mist and the clouds beforehand never held the answer. Luckily I brought an umbrella and if it started raining, out it would come, and I would keep on trekking until I found a good looking lodge. All the porters along the route also carried umbrellas, so I figured I was doing the right thing.

After Junbesi I made it to Kharikhola - a 9 hour day. I think I probably climbed around 1600m and descended well over 2200 that day and when I arrived even the Nepali guides were impressed. Some "are you sure you aren't Nepali" comments were made. From Kharikhola I pushed a long day to Lukla (where all those suckers flew in), to drop off my plane ticket, some shorts, a book, and some other random things I wasn't going to need. The last two hours involved climbing straight up 550m from the river up to Lukla. The last 15 minutes I had a very friendly, very drunk Nepali following me up to my lodge. I told him no less than 15 times that tomorrow I was going to Namche. 5pm and the chang sure got to him...

The next day I made my way up to Namche, the real base of all treks into the Khumbu (Everest) region. I paid my Rs 1000 entry fee into the national park and found myself in the Khumbu Lodge for two nights (one day of acclimatization). At this point, over 8 days, I had ascended somewhere close to 9000m and descended around 7000m and made it to an altitude of 3450m.