Too Ambitious for a newbie?
Replies: 7 - Last Post: Sep 29, 2012 1:24 PM Last Post By: scoodly
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Too Ambitious for a newbie?
Just a bit of advise needed on the High Passes of Everest trek.I'm planning a trek for charity next november (in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support). Wanting to avoid the more touristy route of the classic EBC trek i opted for the EBC via Gokyo lakes trek.
Then i had a look at the Everest High Passes trek and am very tempted by the challenge! I do understand it is quite a tough trek. i'M 32 yrs old & my fitness is satisfactory (cycling over an 1.5 hrs 5 days a week and walking on weekends). My training will be quite strict over the coming year including summiting Snowdon & Ben Nevis on the training schedule. I know it does not compare with Himalayas especially with risk of not acclimatising well.
Would this be a trek best done once i've experienced trekking at high altitude?
As much as i want to challenge myself & raise lots of money i also want to be with a chance to complete the trek & not slow down more experienced team members!
Would the EBC via Gokyo lakes suffice and be just as great?
Don't get me started on the Island Peak summit trek or the Mera Peak! Would be a dream but guessing a bit of high altitude trekking experience and basic mountaineering? will be needed before :-p
Yes i am going with a small group (choosing Exodus) but as i want to concentrate on raising as much money as possible over the coming year this was my preferred choice so i have more time in doing that! And it is more of a challenge rather than 'holiday'.
Your opinions appreciated :-)
Thanks Nat
1
Skip the Exodus tour and do it yourself --- the money you save can be added to the donation.Going at your own pace will increase the likelihood of completing the trek you choose.
EBC via Gokyo crosses one of the 3 passes (Cho La); any of the three can be closed by snow at any time of year, and all three have alternate routes.
You won't know how well you acclimate until you get there, and every time can potentially be different. Just don't go higher with a headache, or get in a rush from too strict a schedule.
2
Like posters #1 and 2 said, skip the middlehand, no need to feed their pockets especially if you're doing charity.Use a local trek operator in Kathmandu instead and pay half the amount that you'd pay to Exodus.
EBC trek is for everyone. You don't need to be super fit, just motivated.
The most important thing is acclimatisation, which starts with slow ascend around 3000m and higher.
Snowdon & Ben Nevis are completely irrelevant. They're no mountains to speak of. Trekking at high altitude is a whole different thing.
You'll need at least 16 days for the trek with ChoLa, RenjoLa passes, and Gokyo, or 18-19 with safety margin.
3
Like 1,2 & 3 have already said, you can do the trek without the agents but you definitely need a guide. You could also pick a cheaper agent a get in Kathmandu.The EBC trek is not very difficult and with your fitness level you should be fine. However it never hurts to train a bit harder :-).
As for the acclimatization, it has nothing to do with fitness level. Even the fittest of people can get high altitude sickness and other high altitude related problems. The best way to avoid high altitude related problems is to acclimatize well.
Keep some spare days with you. They will be very useful if you have problems acclimatizing. If all goes well then you can spend more time at the more beautiful and dramatic locations of your choice ( I would suggest and extra day at Gorakshep and and extra trip to Kalapathar top, the view from Gokyo is also stunning) .
Getting there is the major cost. A few extra days once you are on the trek will cost a very little.
4
HiLots of recommendations for trekking independently and if you do go down this route Jamie McGuinness's Trekking in the Everest Region is probably the best guidebook. There is an itinerary on his trekking company's website -not a recommendation rather additional info to add to rdc's excellent info.
This Everest map might also be useful for planning and an overview of the route.
scoodly
5
Nat - a couple of further thoughts.If you go to the Everest region, and "only" do Lukla - EBC - Lukla, which is what the majority of people do, then you may well end up "kicking yourself" afterwards for not having done a lot more, particularly if you are inclined to do other parts of the region, as seems to be the case from your post. Bearing in mind the cost, time etc of getting to Nepal, it is worth trying to get as much time there as possible - a few extra days really opens up the possibilities.
Also on the trek to EBC, you literally walk right past the entrance to the Chhukung valley and the start of the trail to the Gokyo valley - so if you only did EBC, it would be a case of so near and yet so far away.
The first time I went to Nepal in 1994, I lied to ensure that I got 4 weeks there, rather than 3, as the extra week greatly expanded what we could do. I had made sure well in advance that I had enough unused leave to cover the extra week, so no problems on that score. Not, of course, that I am using the LPTT forum to encourage people to be less than totally honest in certain circumstances...
