Nov 8 2024 – Lobouche to Gorak Shep
Super weird dreams aside, I woke up feeling mostly okay today, so I decided to head up.
The topographic map I have basically showed today being 800 vertical feet of elevation gain over 3.5 miles, which would’ve made today the easiest day of the trip. Sadly, the map left out a lot of the UPDOWNUPDOWNUPDOWNUPDOWNUPDOWN that was crossing the Changri Shar Glacier.
Also, this is the part of the trek that resembles walking on the moon, with a scale so vast pictures can’t possibly capture it.
From the crest of the moraine before you drop down onto the Changri Shar Glacier you get a pretty good view of the Khumbu Glacier.
The trail heading down off the moraine onto the Changri Shar Glacier was super steep, precarious, and covered in ice. There was some fear about slipping. I had brought microspikes just in case, but when the moment came I was too lazy to dig them out of my pack and actually use them. Weight savings idea if I ever come back here – don’t bring those.
Gorak Shep is in a dry lake bed. Because of how high Nuptse is, you can’t actually see Everest from any where around here without climbing up another mountain. Most people climb up Kala Pattar, which is a very minor sub peak of Pumori.
Tomorrow I head up to Everest Base Camp, and energy permitting I plan to climb up to Advance Base Camp on Pumori, since there not only do you get a good view of Everest, you can also see up the Khumbu Icefall and into the Western Cwm, which you can’t see from Kala Pattar.
