May 1, 2013 - EBC Trek Day 8 - Lobuche to Base Camp to Gorek Shep

May 1, 2013 - EBC Trek Day 8 - Lobuche to Base Camp to Gorek Shep

Today is the day.  I ate some apple porridge and we were off at 7:15am.  We trekked about 2 hours where we reached Gorek Shep.  It was gradual most of the way with a few steep spots.

In Gorek Shep we rested and I checked into my room.  We had an early lunch and set out for base camp around 10:45.  It was a slow 4 hour round trip.  I was exhausted and tired and feeling the effects of the altitude.  The hike itself was up and down over very rocky terrain.  The last part of the trek was over a glacier.  The glacier is covered in rock and dirt debri and you could hear the water running from the melted ice and the occasion little rock slide into the frozen ponds.

Everest is the peak in the background on the left side of the pic with the clouds around it!

Lunch at 5180m!

Heading out towards Everest Base Camp! Wahoo!

Everest! The dark one in the middle with the clouds!

First sighting of base camp!

Its just lots and lots of tents.

Base camp itself isn't much.  It just an area where the summit climbers set up before starting to actually CLIMB the mountain.  Its all tents, lots and lots of tents and you can even see the Everest peak from the camp.  Though you could see the peak between two other mountain peaks on the way to base camp.

Mt. Everest just peeking out from behind the other mountain!

I might be allergic to mountains or have a head cold.  My eyes burn and water and I cant stop sneezing.  We got back to Gorek Shep and I slept from 2 until almost 5.  Phurba had to wake me up to order dinner.  Fried Rice!

I made it! I did it! I hiked all the way to Everest Base Camp! WAhoooooo!

Before dinner they gave me a hot towel.  What luxury.  Kind of ironic considering I haven't showered in 8 days now. And some how there are only 4 other people staying in the Yeti Resort with me.

The water is now 350Rupees! 15x the price in Kathmandu.

And my new camera's battery finally died today.  Ill have to switch to the old camera and have spots on the photos.  Better than no photos though!

What I learned:  Everest Base Camp is nothing but tents and its set up on the Khumba Glacier.
There are 3 or 4 camps passed Base Camp where climbers stay along the way
There is something like 500 bodies still left on the mountain that couldnt be retrieved.