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For more information and to buy this book click here

ISBN: 9781852844189

CICERONEGuides for walkers, trekkers, mountaineers, climbers and cyclists

www.cicerone.co.uk
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79

THE TREKS NEPAL

Everest has a magic which cannot be explained away.Joe Tasker Everest The Cruel Way

The Trail to EverestPrior to the outbreak of World War II all expeditions to Everest had to approachthe mountain through Tibet as Nepal was firmly closed to foreigners. By the early1950s the situation was reversed; Tibet was effectively closed by the Chinese

invasion, but the doors to the once-forbidden kingdom of Nepal had slowlybegun to open.

A party of Indian scientists gained permission to enter the Khumbu in 1948,and in 1950 the first Westerners were given leave to explore the southernapproaches to Mount Everest. The Indian party climbed to the trading pass of theNangpa La on the Tibetan border west of Cho Oyu, but it was the small, privatelyorganised group (hardly an expedition) led by the Americans, Oscar and CharlesHouston, who first reached the Khumbu glacier below Everest itself. With

Houston was the legendary mountaineer-explorer Bill Tilman, who had already

Chaumrikharka, a short distance from

Choplung, lies below Lukla


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EVEREST A TREKKERS GUIDE

been on two pre-war Everest expeditions, and who was now eager for anopportunity to study the mountain from the unknown south and west.

Their route of approach began, not in Kathmandu, but way off to the south-east in Dharan. At first they followed the Arun river north towards Makalu before

striking roughly westward across successive ridges that eventually brought themto the Dudh Kosi below Lukla. By the time they reached Chaumrikharka they hadjoined the main trail used by the majority of trekkers today, and followed it up-valley to Namche Bazaar and beyond, as far as the Khumbu glacier and the slopesof Kala Pattar.

Houston and Tilmans route is still used today, although it is much lessfrequented than either the direct flight to Lukla, or the long approach from theroadhead at Jiri.

Following Houston and Tilmans visit, and the 1951 reconnaissance led byEric Shipton, a Swiss expedition made the first attempt to climb Everest fromNepal in 1952. Their route of approach began in the Kathmandu valley and took23 days, including two rest days in Namche. Next, in the spring of 1953, camethe successful British expedition under John Hunts leadership, and they tookbasically the same route pioneered by the Swiss from Bhaktapur. In the wake ofhis teams success Hunts book, The Ascent of Everest, proved enormouslypopular, as did the film made by Tom Stobart, which enjoyed a wide distribution.

Together they made a huge impression on a generation of would-be mountaineersand fired the imagination of countless armchair adventurers who were excited notonly by the success of Hillary and Tenzing in gaining the summit, but by the sheerbeauty of the landscape leading to the mountain itself.

Gokyo Ri, one of the great trekking viewpoints


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THETREKS

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Trekking, as it is known today, was subsequently invented by mountaineerand former Ghurka officer Jimmy Roberts, who rightly guessed that touristswould jump at the chance to follow in the footsteps of Hunt, Hillary, Tenzingand Co through those glorious valleys. Such people would not only enjoy but

also pay for the privilege of sleeping in tents among such staggering scenery,and walk by day in the company of the fabled Sherpas with porters to carry theirequipment and food. Not surprisingly, the first commercial trek ever organisedin Nepal led across the foothills and along the valley of the Dudh Kosi towardsMount Everest.

Soon the country was sprouting roads like unruly tendrils of bindweed. By thetime the Chinese-built highway that now goes to Tibet had reached Lamosangu in1970, the approach walk to Everest had been reduced in length by several days.

Then a spur, built under Swiss direction, reached Jiri from Lamosangu in 1984,thus making it possible to trek to Kala Pattar in less than a fortnight from the road-head. While the walk-in is maybe 10 days shorter than the Swiss took in 1952,once the road has been left behind the route is much the same, except the Swisshad to make a diversion over the Lumding La because the bridge over the DudhKosi below Manidingma had been washed away.

Todays route is full of variety and daily charm, but not without an awful lotof height gain and loss. Anyone expecting an easy but persistent incline from Jiri

to Namche is in for a shock.With the construction of an airstrip to Lukla, the long trek from the foothillshas been overtaken in popularity by a much shorter approach. From Lukla,Namche is less than two days walk away, and is therefore within the range ofmost peoples holiday allocation. It is now possible to walk to the base of Everestand out again in less than two weeks, although no one who flies in to Luklashould consider making a rushed visit to Kala Pattar or Base Camp because theywill need time to acclimatise.

A final word there is a homing instinct among many trekkers who, seeingone particular lodge being patronised by Westerners, will automaticallychoose that one too, while the place next door, which may be identical inevery other respect or even better in some remains empty. Unless theresa very good reason for doing otherwise, please spread the load, thus givingall the lodges an equal share of business. Teahouse trekking helps stimulate

the local economy, and the few rupees you spend in a particular lodge orshop can have a positive effect.

CHOICE OF LODGES


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Kusum Kangguru is seen to good effect when

descending to the Dudh Kosi below Manidingma


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TREK 1

JIRI TO NAMCHE BAZAAR

VIA LUKLA

There is much to be said for a simple mountain journey,whose object . . . is just to get from one place to another.

Eric Shipton Mountains of Tartary

From the foothills to the foot of the high Himalaya, thisfirst trek crosses a series of ridges separated by deep rivervalleys. Its a corrugated route, for the main ridges longarthritic fingers of land project southward, while thetrail heads east across them. Between the ridges glacialrivers pour down to the valley of the Sun Kosi that flowsat right angles through eastern Nepal. As Jiri lies west ofthe Dudh Kosi (the river that drains the Khumbu), it fol-lows that in order to reach this valley theres noalternative but to head across the grain of the land. Onlywhen the Dudh Kosi has been gained below Manidingmacan the trek assume its longed-for direction upvalleytowards the north, towards Namche and Everest itself.

The first few days, then, are energetic days; climbingout of warm river valleys, up terraced hillsides, throughforest and over high crests with far views to enjoy, then

As John Hunt wrotein The Ascent ofEverest, this is bigcountry, with longviews across broadexpanses of moun-tainside, vast, fertileand dotted withfriendly cottages.

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Trek summary

Distance 94km (58 miles)Time 79 days

Max altitude Lamjura La (3530m: 11,581ft)

Start Jiri (1905m: 6250ft)

Finish Namche Bazaar (3446m: 11,306ft)

Trekking style Teahouse (lodge accommodation) or camping

Getting there Public bus or taxi from Kathmandu to Jiri

Options Flight from Kathmandu to Phaplu or Lukla


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For more information and to buy this book click here

ISBN: 9781852844189

CICERONEGuides for walkers, trekkers, mountaineers, climbers and cyclists

www.cicerone.co.uk

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