View from above Namche Bazaar, Nepal
It’s virtually impossible to visit Nepal without taking in the breathtaking scenery and calming energy of the mighty Himalayas. The mountain range is as woven into the culture, religion, and lifestyle as the cities and people themselves. Stretching along the entire northern border of the country, with over one-hundred mountains exceeding 7,200 metres (23,600 ft) in elevation, the main route to Mt. Everest, and most other trekking routes in that area, are only accessible by plane through Lukla – one of the smallest, and dubbed the most dangerous, airports in the world.
Flying along the mountain range at eye level with these massive white peaks tearing through the blanket of clouds, I could only imagine what was to come. What an entirely exclusive dimension I was about to enter.
This is a world where the vast majority of what it holds is still unknown to man. The tips of these mountains hide the highest-elevated bright-teal glacial lakes in the world. Goods are only transported on the backs of men and pack animals. The Himalayas have profoundly shaped the cultures of South Asia. Many Himalayan peaks are sacred in Hinduism and Buddhism.
The Himalayan peoples’ diversity shows in many different ways. It shows through their architecture, their languages and dialects, their beliefs and rituals, as well as in their clothing.
Setting off from Lukla, we were greeted with a landscape unlike any other I had ever seen. As far as I could see, we were surrounded by these massive, almost creature-like rocks, where each crevice and crack seemed to be etched perfectly onto their surfaces.
The villages had a sort of “German Alps” feel. White painted wood siding, and bright blue and green shutters and doors. Sherpas pile 45kgs or more on their backs, and more on their pack animals, and make their way in front of us. Prayer rocks intermittently lined our pathway. This was a stark contrast to the world we just left back in Vietnam. We proceeded on for several days, to what would eventually be a total of 11 days. On average we hiked six hours a day, staying in lodges along the way, with the goal to reach our next point before the indescribable cold hit during the evening. We were bundling up under innumerable layers at night to stay warm, and waking up to the most beautiful blue skies one could imagine. With each step, the air thinned itself. Over the course of a few hours, small hills turned into what felt like steep staircases. The landscape seemed to change with each major elevation change. From coniferous forest, wetland, and grassland, to inhospitable frozen mountaintops that tower above.
Reaching Namche Bazaar at 3440 meters was a small oasis in the middle of our journey. The colorful chalets and lodges wrapped around sheer mountain cliffs. We knew it could only become more challenging from there on. We were adventurers, no doubt, but not professionals. Namche is a good mid or end-point for most trekkers because of its low altitude view of Everest, and the fact that it is the last main village until Gokyo Lakes, or Everest Base Camp – the prize for trekkers on this route. We were headed further up – with our final destination being Gokyo Lakes, at a staggering 5,000 m (16,400 ft) above sea level.
Despite the effects of the April 2015 earthquake and its subsequent avalanche near Everest Base Camp, Nepal is still an incredible place to visit, and one that retains much of its mystique despite these events devastating the area. Nepal’s government didn’t issue re-build permits for the destruction after the quake, mostly for fear of aftershocks.
Even in the eight months after the earthquake in which we were visiting, the villages that we passed were flattened or damaged and countless families were still living in medical tents in the dead of winter. Several UNESCO sites were still untouched by re-construction efforts.