Monday, 21 October 2013 11:47 Hrs at 4330m (Dingboche)
The trail from Pangboche to Dingboche meanders along the Imja Kola. It is, at least in October, a well travelled route as today we passed by a very many trekkers, porters, local people and yaks both ascending and descending the Khumbu Valley. Opposite, Ama Dablam remained our constant companion, growing as we drew ever nearer. It is a no wonder that the monolithic peaks must be summated from the other side. Much of the mountainside backing onto the Khumbu Valley is covered in great rock slides. Although, trails can still be seen cleaving the snow on its sides.
Ama Dablam:
Dingboche is one of the largest villages we have had the pleasure of residing – if ever so briefly – in. At above 4000m, it too had seen snow fall. However we were spared trudging through it by the beautiful weather, for today it really is very beautiful. Hardly a cloud to mar the pristine blue sky as it clings only to the surrounding peaks. What snow remains, hides in the shadows of the Mani walls or juniper bushes or buildings, waiting for its inevitable turn to melt. It cannot be denied that we, all of us, were excited and relieved to spy the distinctive orange tents marking our campsite. The walk was not long nor was it arduous. But hiding noses burnt by our last foray into the snowy altitudes in excess of 4000m is no easy task. It was not enough to wear a cap or liberally apply SPF50 at 2 hour intervals to remain protected from the UV rays, or so I discovered. Instead, I tried to pull my buff up over my nose and ears, and tuck it beneath my grey cap and polarised sunglasses which was all very well and good until we started climbing again, as we invariably do, and the sun made breathing through the thin material a stifling, suffocating experience and I was forced to tear it down over my chin again, panting to catch my breath.
Having spent some time already of 4000m, and over a week above 3000m, I have developed some functional acclimatisation. We all have, as is evident by our faster ascent these last 2 days. The steep inclines are wearing, and paying heed to all the long distance running I did in training, I constantly remind myself to keep my breathing under control. It is not possible to align it to the pace of my steps, the terrain being largely irregular and thus so being my stride. But I normally aim for a 2 beat rhythm. In, in. Out, out. In, in. Out, out. The neck buff comes off when my breathing becomes erratic.
When it comes to mornings and evenings, however, as the villagers burn juniper, I am not so quick to remove it. The burning juniper, while having a rather pleasant aroma, does little for our dry throats. Central to Buddhism practiced in the Himalayas, juniper is considered purifying. It is said that when the Lama entered Nepal from Tibet, he cut his hair by the stupa he built in Pangboche and from it juniper sprouted. Even in Dingboche, well above the tree line, the hardy little shrub continues to grow. Indeed, I can see juniper grow right up until the black rock begins, several hundred metres above the town, where no other sizeable vegetation can be seen.
Perhaps tomorrow in Labouche, we will see the end of the juniper, our ascent 600m from Dingboche. This exceeds the mountain rule of 300m, however it will be, I understand, only 150m higher than our greatest altitude which we experienced in Gokyo only 3 nights ago. The trek will take approximately 6 hours with only a little melting snow, and then we will be back on our itinerary. Whether we next visit Kala Pattar or Everest Base Camp will depend on the weather. Having missed the opportunity to safely ascend Gokyo Ri, it is more important to ascend Kala Pattar on a clear day. Although, it must be mentioned that another guide we encountered during lunch at Portse 2 days ago advised our leader, Meet that the snow at Kala Pattar was waist high. Let us hope that it has sufficiently melted in the next few days. Likewise, we heard tonight that Everest Base Camp had been re-opened, following the unseasonable snow last week.
Stupa near Dingboche looking toward Taboche and Cholatse:
It is truly amazing how word of mouth is so important here. There is very little in the way of a scientific weather mapping system. Meet relies on the knowledge of the local villagers or our sirdar and guides, and other descending leaders and guides. This applies also to avalanche zones, through which our sirdar, Padam with his 30+ years of experience went ahead to review the conditions. It was only on the return journey that our other sherpa guide, D.B. shared his experience when a camp for which he was the cook made the sudden decision to abandon a camp between Machermo and Gokyo, and the kitchen team remained behind to mind the gear. D.B., after digging himself out of the subsequent avalanche, saved 4 more of the 5 remaining buried. It does not surprise me then that he was so uncomfortable in Gokyo.
The Nepalese are truly a wonderful and giving people. Today being my birthday, Meet presented me with a khata (a cream traditional ceremonial Tibetan Buddhist scarf) similar to those that I have seen tied alongside the prayer flags on the suspension bridges and around religious monuments. He told me to wear it for the day which I happily did, tied neatly around my neck and tucked into the front of my shirt. It is presently folded away in my camera bag for safe return to Australia. And then to my utter surprise, this evening, Krishna the cook walked in with a sponge cake made without the use of an oven by a process that sounded very much like steaming the cake. It was one of the most lovely gestures of my day, after the khata and Meet giving me his own tent so that I could have one of my own. I do not know how I could ever possibly reply the generosity and kindness that he has demonstrated to me in just 12 short hours. I am just so overwhelmed by how caring almost total strangers can be, Nepalese and Australians alike (I’ll even include the naturalised Australians here, as our group does contain 2 very fine specimens).
It was a small shame that I could not get any reception on by phone here, but the weather and the company and the cake was all so very fine that it is such a small thing to miss. And no doubt my international roaming will kick in sooner or later and I can check for messages from my family and closest friends. But now it is getting late and I must retire. It has been a very long day.
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