Maximum Altitude: 5,643m
Bags packed by 7am, breakfast at 7:30am - I had toast as I didn't think I would be hungry and I was right.
Only about half the team elected to climb Kala Patthar, the rest waited at the Lodge. I think the toughness of the trek has caught a lot of people out and I have to admit it is harder than I thought it would be and not helped by the fact that I have a cough and cold, but none of that is going to stop me of course.
It was a tough climb, rising to just over 5,600m. There is no let up, it is hard from the get-go until the summit, but the final section is over boulders and that is particularly tough going. Basically it is a zig-zag path for the first section, then a rising traverse onto a boulder field and onto the summit. The view all around including Nuptse, Everest and Puomiri immediately behind us made it all worthwhile. I broke out the Jack Daniels to everyones' delight, especially the Sherpas!
It was hard coming down as well and I was pleased to see the Lodge. We had lunch, comprising a bowl of chips - ideal. After lunch we had the small matter of the walk back to Lobuche.
The walk back took about three hours and it was good to see the Lodge come into view again. Once back, I put my Solar charger on, which seemed to fail to charge at all for some reason. I'm still doing okay for power though; the phone is pretty much fully charged, cameras still report full, the watch will be okay for a few more days and the power pack is full.
There is a Bakery in Lobuche so about ten of us descended on it for coffee and cake; I had a Cappuchino and muffin which cost Re1,000 and was very nice thank you. Afterwards it was back to the Lodge for some admin in preparation for tomorrows trek over the Kongma La.
In the common area, we were told us that we had the choice of going over the Kongma La or around it. The team was split about 50/50 so half will go over the Pass, me included and the rest go around. It promises to be a very very tough day, probably the toughest day of the trip.
The rest of the afternoon was spent diary writing and reading until dinner. I've ordered a pizza as I enjoyed the last one I had here and am not in the mood for rice or noodles. The pizza was excellent but I only managed about 3/4 of it. Not long afterwards I was in bed exhausted.
