So eventually got to bed. Started on diamox that certainly increased my frequency to the bathroom! 😂 So after a restless nights sleep with no heating, all of the group made it to breakfast on time to get the base energy for the big day ahead. A good old fashioned porridge was in order for me. We all set off around 8:30am from Hotel Sherpa; Phakding, for Namche Bazar – ready for action!
Trekking before lunch was up/down hills with a few suspension bridges thrown in. Bizarrely men were riding horses 🐴 on the same terrain. One slip and both rider and horse would be in similar trouble. Amazingly nothing happened. But the donkeys were having a right good time trying to escape their owners at any fork in the trail. 🤣 The donkeys have become the group’s favourites.
Our first milestone was reaching Sagarmatha National Park. This is the gateway to Everest. Once entred we trekked down the valley passing white water rivers and waterfalls. Rain started to fall that made the stones very slippery.
One of the party started to have tummy troubles that made it so difficult for her. But she marched on regardless and coped admirably with the highest suspension bridge that we will encounter on the tour.
The bridge lead to a continuous climb that zig zagged all the way to Namche Bazar. This was tough. Namche is a like an oasis in the desert. Tea houses , bars and the Irish ☘️ pub.
Dinner was held around 6pm and food wasn’t too bad. We filled in self assessment forms for Altitude Sickness and checked O2 levels. Some of the group were very tired and went to bed early. A few of us stayed to play Dobble (a card game like snap) which was real fun. Even managed to get Ricky our guide to allow me to have a guiness tomorrow. Cant wait! 🤣