Nepal Trip Day 3 - Lukla to Phakding (Tuesday December 25, 2018)

Nepal Trip Day 3 - Lukla to Phakding

Today we will travel to the Everest region. For a family from Orange County California, this leg of the trip seemed like a big undertaking. Mingma will pick us up today from the hotel sharp at 5:15 am, We tried to sleep the night before but it was difficult. We set our alarm at 3:00 am to wake up to finalize the packing of our duffle bags. We tossed and turned and got up before the alarm went off.

We brought a box of Nescafe 3 in 1 and we made ourselves two cups of coffee at about 3:30 am. We had ordered breakfast box last night and we would pick up the box breakfast at the hotel lobby this morning. We were anxious and excited at the same time. The trek was why we came here for.

3 in 1 coffee at 3:30 am

It's always electronic time even at 4:00 am

Our box breakfast - an apple, a box juice, a croissant, a cup cake, and a sandwich 

We took our breakfast at the lobby while we were waiting for Mingma. We stored our four carry on suitcases at the hotel and will pick them up when we return from the mountains. 

Taking breakfast at the lobby

Chowing down my sandwich

Mingma came right on time at 5:15 am. We had already put our duffle bags at the lobby. Mingma and the driver loaded our duffles and we were off to the airport. 

The streets of Kathmandu were much quieter at 5:30 am. We saw some cars and some people but it was quiet. The domestic air terminal is located adjacent to the international terminal. It only took us about fifteen minutes to drive to the airport and we got there at about 5:30 am. 

Morning drive to the airport

We pulled into a parking area just outside the terminal. Mingma got a luggage cart. We loaded the duffles onto the cart and I pushed to cart towards the terminal. All of our bags had to be x-rayed before we check in so there was a little bit of line at the x-ray machine. After the x-ray machine, we were at the check in area. We were flying Tara Air. Mingma took our passports and were doing the check in for us. We saw many other trekkers in this area. Right next to us was a western family of four with two children. This family's guide is Mingma's friend. Mingma told us that this family is also going to Namche but will not be staying at YMH. 

Checking in at Tara Air

Selfie in front fo Tara Air check in counter

Mingma asked for our day packs to be weighted by the airline. We took our water bottles off and gave Mingma our day packs. We got our boarding passes. Mingma told us to wait at the pre-boarding area and he would meet us there shortly. In this area, we checked out other trekkers who were also waiting. We noticed that the European trekkers seemed to have the most stylish trekking outfits. We finished up rest of our breakfast and tossed the boxes at the trash cans. 

Waiting for our flight to Lukla at the pre-boarding area

 

Mingma and I at the pre-boarding area

Shortly before 6:30 am, the gates were open for boarding. We were taking the first flight into Lukla that day with Tara Air. We were definitely getting anxious at this point. We proceeded through the gate and boarded the bus to our airplane. There were a few others with us in the bus. There was a German group of trekkers with two couples and an older female. We thought for sure they were a family. It turned out that our assumption was wrong as we got to know this group of Germans a bit during the trek. There was also a single young lady traveling by herself. 

Riding the bus to our airplane

We were all anxiously looking out the window to spot our airplane. The bus passed through the large jets and drove to an area where the small planes are. It stopped and we saw our airplane. The feeling of seeing this airplane was quite exciting and nervous at the same time. We have never flew an airplane so small.

First sighting of our airplane

One last selfie before we board

I gave Jo and the kids a lot credit for getting on this airplane. This is certainly and probably the most anxious part of this entire trip for us. The bus finally stopped. We carefully got up from our seats to exit the bus. We were finally able to get a good look at the airplane that will carry us to the mountain. We proceeded to board the plane. I took a picture of the safety instruction. The exact made of the plane is the Dornier 228-212. The Dornier 228 is a STOL capable plane. STOL stands for short take off and landing. We will be flying to the Tenzing-Hillary Airport at Lukla. The airport runway is 1,729 feet or 527 meters with a 12% grade. This runway is one of the shortest in the world. The Tenzing-Hillary Airport has been named one of the most dangerous airport in the world by the History Channel. I do not know how the History Channel decided that this is the most dangerous airport in the world. I searched the accident statistics for this airport, and found nine accidents related to fixed wing aircrafts (I did not count the one additional incident from a helicopter) since 1973. Based on my crude calculation of estimating about 1,500 flights per year, or 67,500 total flights since 1973, the accident rate would be 9/67,500 ~ 0.00067 or less than 1 in 7,000 flights. Based on my internet research the probability of being involved in a fatal accident in California is 1/6,603. If my calculation has any merit, I would have a higher chance of being involved in a fatal accident in California than being involved in an accident at Tenzing-Hillary Airport. So I do not understand how the history channel coined the Tenzing-Norgay Airport the most dangerous airport in the world - at least not from a statics point of view.

Rear view of our Tara Air plane to Lukla

Approaching the airplane

Boarding the plane

MM getting on the plane

GG getting on the plane

We are in!

Passenger Safety Instruction for the Tara Air Dornier 228-212

Flight attendant passing out candy and cotton balls for ear plugs

Flight to Lukla

Exhilarating - adjective, causing great emotional or mental stimulation 

Why does one enjoys riding a roller coaster? The fast speed, twists and turns of the roller coaster is a controlled terrifying experience without the consequence of an uncontrolled terrifying experience. The flight to Lukla in the Do228 simulates such feeling. One can feel every inch of turbulence in the air and every cycle of the twin Garret AiResearch (Honeywell) TPE-331-5 engine vibration. Statistically speaking, I do not believe flying the Do228 in and out of the Tenzing-Hillary airport is the most dangerous, however, from a feeling perspective, the flight sure feels scary. As the engine begin to come up to speed, the entire fuselage is moving with the rotational speed of the engine. We brought our own ear plugs so we did not take the cotton balls. Once the engines have fully come up to speed, the plane sped down the runway. In matter of seconds, we were airborne. The take off was actually quite smooth. We looked down at hazy Kathmandu city. Soon, we were flying over lower mountain valleys. The morning fog covered these lower mountain valleys. We were flying east so the sun was directly in front of the airplane. The morning sun was just coming up the horizon and casted golden rays through the window. I took many pictures and was sending them directly via WeChat to my parents. My mother wrote back and asked if there was wifi on the plane. I wrote back and told her that we were flying so low (my estimate was about 10,000 feet or no more than 3,000 meters) that cell phone signal was working during almost the entire flight. 

Watching the TPE-331-5 engine coming up to speed

  

Airborne over hazy Kathmandu

Good morning Kathmandu...

Reaching fog covered lower valleys

Golden sun rays shine through the window

About fifteen minutes into the flight, we were reaching the Himalayan mountain ranges. We began to see villages perched on top of mountains. A few minutes after seeing the Himalayan mountain ranges, we began to approach a pass flanked by high mountains on either side. I felt that plane was so close to these mountains that I could almost touch the top of the mountains. The sun that was shining the golden ray at us earlier was now tucked behind these incredibly tall mountains. The sky that was gold has turned to a blue that resembles the blue of a deep ocean. As we flew through the pass, the plane hit a turbulence and we felt the plane dropped almost several feet in a second. This feeling was truly terrifying. We felt we were totally helpless and prayed that we would get to Lukla safely. GG later told me that she saw the German lady sitting next to her began to shed tears at this moment. Not long after we flew over the pass, the plane landed in Lukla safely. The plane made a sharp right turn towards the terminal just a few seconds after landing. We were in Lukla, 9,383 feet or 2,860 metes above sea level. 

Approaching the Himalayan mountain ranges 

The color of the sky changes from gold to ocean blue

Approaching Lukla

At Lukla, we made it!

Lukla

Lukla is a village peached on top of the mountain of the Khumbu region of Nepal. It serves at the starting point for many of the treks around the Khumbu region. It is the starting point for the Everest Base Camp Trek (EBC) which we will be embarking on today. Even though we will not be reaching the Everest Base Camp, we would reach Namche, the Sherpa capital in the Khumbu region. If weather permits, we would get great views of the the big peaks including Everest, Lhotse, and Ama Dablam just to name a few. We would reach a new level for our family trekking or hiking altitude. Our prior high point was about 10,000 feet near Mammoth Lakes. This time we will reach nearly 13,000 feet. We would get to challenge ourselves as a family physically on our ability to trek in high altitude for many days. We would also get to challenge ourselves to live in much more basic accommodations than we are typically used.

As soon as we got off the plane, we felt the cold air in the mountain. Despite being about thirty minutes from our take off, the sun was no where to be seen. As cold as the mountain air felt to us, the airport was bustling. The crew quickly unloaded all the luggages off the Do228 and prepped it for the next flight return to Kathmandu. The weather is unpredictable and changes rapidly in the mountain. The crew must take every opportunity to load and unload goods and people and fly the plane in and out of the mountains.

Crew unloading all the items from the plane with Karyolung (left) and Nupla (center) in the background

Our duffles being unloaded from the plane

Side view of the Do228

Moon hangs over Karyolung Peak (6,511 meters)

The Twin Otter and the Do228 at Lukla

Lukla with Karyolung Peak on the left (6,511m) and Nupla Peak in the center (5,885m)

Trekkers filling the airport

Time and altitude

We went into the airport "terminal" to put our outer layer jackets on. Someone came and asked us if we needed assistance for our trek and we said we were already organized. 

We watched out duffles being carried by several porters and we followed Mingma to begin our trek. It was a surreal experience for us to be actually in Lukla and seeing the porters and trekkers. This scenery was something that I only imaged from the movies but now we are part of it. 

Following Mingma and porters to begin our trek

Following the porters

We follow the road around the airport and through the village. The mountains felt quiet, imposing, and surreal to us. I snapped a few photos facing the airport runway behind some wires. The view of the runway surrounded by mountains looked incredible. It is truly exhilarating to be on this trek. 

Airport runway behind metal wires

A monochromatic take of the runway view

A clear view without the wires

We walked around the airport towards the village. We have now entered the "Sagarmatha National Park Buffer Zone" according to a sign just outside the airport. We did not see a lot of trekkers. Maybe because it was still early in the morning or probably real late in the trekking season. As we entered the village, we saw stores selling various climbing goods, bakery items, food, and souvenirs. We were perpetually greeted by a snow capped peak as we trekked through the village. Per my research later, this peak is the Karyolung, measured at 6,511 meters or 21,361.5 feet.

Entering the Sagarmatha National Park Buffer Zone

Trekking through Lukla with perpetual view of Karyolung Peak

Snow capped Karyolung Peak

"Everest Beans Coffee", based on my prior research this coffee shop used to be the fake Starbucks coffee

Shop selling climbing gears

Soon, we saw the Mani Stones that are ever present in the Khumbu region and a group of pack animals, most likely dzo, a cross breed of yak and cow, probably heading somewhere to pick up loads. 

Mani stone in Lukla

Encountered first group of pack animals - probably dzo due to its shorter hair

We walked at a very leisurely pace through he village for about fifteen minutes or so. After passing through all the shops and tea houses, we came upon a large tea house located at the outskirt of the village on top of a hill. Mingma led us into this tea house which required us to walk up the hill through high stone steps. It turned out that this is Yeti Mountain Home Lukla. We will be staying here at the final night of our trek, but today Mingma is leading us to YMH Lukla for the trekking group to get organized. Mingma led us to an upstairs tea/dining room decorated entirely with Tibetan style painting. A female staff came and proceeded to set up tea cups and served us tea. We rested in the tea room for sometime. When we looked out the window of the tea room, we saw our duffles have been roped up for the porters. We used the restroom at the lobby and drank tea while admiring the view and the tea room. At around 8:30 am, we informed Mingma that we were ready to go and the whole trekking group began to move again. 

Taking a tea break at YMH Lukla

Taking tea

MM enjoying the tea

Eating some of our own snacks - Trader Joe's in Everest!

Our duffles roped up at the steps

View of Nupla outside the tea room window

Getting ready to go

Immediately to the right of YMH Lukla, is the Pasang Lhamu Memorial Gate. This Gate commemorates Pasang Lhumu Sherpa, a female Sherpa climber who lost her life in 1993 while descending from Everest. This gate also marks as the trail head of the EBC trek. Later we would learn from Mingma that Pasang Lhamu Sherpa was the spouse of Sonam Sherpa, the owner of the company Thamserku. Thamserku is one of the largest adventure company in Nepal and the parent company of YMH. The company was named after the mountain Thamserku, which would be perpetually in our view through much of the trek in the ensuing days. 

Standing at the Pasang Lhamu Memorial Gate

After we passed through the gate, we began a series of stone step down hill descents into the river valley. We would follow the trek along the Dudh Kosi river to Phadking. We crossed more tea houses and village homes with either Karyolung and Nupla in view.

Descending through a series of stone steps

Descending into the valley

Looking back to Lukla from our trek

One of the most enjoyable part of the trek was seeing local school children and kids dashing through the stones steps or simply being themselves in the villages. Later we would learn from Mingma that during the winter season, depending on where you live in the mountain, some families would leave the higher elevation to lower elevation or Kathmandu due to the cold.  

Local school children in uniform dashing through the stone steps

Making further descent into the river valley with the tip of Karyolung in view

Suddenly Nupla came into view

As we trekked through a shaded forest area, we saw our porters passing us with our duffles. We notice a kid started to follow us in our walk. I almost wanted to let him pass. It turned out that this kid was our assistant guide - Gyaljen Sherpa. He was a university student and was nineteen years of age. He looked like thirteen to us. 

Watching porters pass us by

After trekking for about an hour, we took a break outside a teahouse. We sat on the stone ledge and drank our water filled in Kathmandu and ate some of our snacks. We were greeted by clear sky and the view of Nupla. 

Taking a break with Nupla in view

Our assistant guide, Gyaljen Sherpa (left)

After the break, we reached a large stupa. We followed Mingma and other trekkers and walked along the left side of the stupa. We saw other porters carrying incredibly heavy loads up the mountain, patches of local organic vegetables, and pack animals. We then reached our first of many suspension bridges. Shortly after crossing a metal frame bridge and a bit of uphill climb, we reached out destination for today - YMH Phadking at 2,620 meters or 8,563 feet around noon. We have been up since 3 am and it has been a full day for us.

Local organic vegetables and pack animal at a trail below us

Walking left along the large stupa with fellow trekkers

Walking through the village

Trekking in clear blue sky

Porter carrying heavy loads

Animals grazing on the hill

Traffic on the trek - donkey train

Seeing a village - maybe we are getting close?

Crossing first of many suspension bridges

View of a village in sight with Nupla in the background

Trekking through the village with view of Kusum Kanguru Peak (6,367m)

Crossing the metal frame bridge

A girl playing with stick - one of my favorite pictures

Local plowing the field

Taking one final break

Thrusting uphill in clear blue sky

View of the Dudh Kosi River in sight

We are here!

YMH Phadking 2610 m

At YMH Phakding

MM at our first trekking lodge, our duffles stacked in the back left

The YMH staff pulled out chairs for us to relax in front of the lodge. We were served lemon tea and hot towels. We wiped off the dirt on our hands and face as best as we could. We enjoyed the tea and the warm mid-day sun while we waited for our rooms to be ready. 

Relaxing at the chair outside the lodge

Enjoying the lemon tea

Lemon tea

Toast after a long day

YMH Phakding - Our building is located on the left side

After resting for about fifteen or twenty minutes, we were told our rooms were ready. Our duffles had been moved to the front of our rooms. Mingma gave us the keys which were used to open the large lock typically used on tea house along the trek. Our rooms were cozy and comfortable. We turned on the electric blanket to warm up the beds. We can hear the constant rush of the Dudh Kosi River in the background. We settled in, arranged our duffle bags then headed to lunch at the common area. 

Our room, we can hear the Dudh Kosi River

Getting settled in our room

We headed to the common room for lunch. There was only us four being served lunch at that time. We were served vegetarian noodles, fresh salad, tomato soup, and chocolate cake. We took multiple servings of noodles and washed out food down with Masala Chia and Black tea. We were more hungry than we thought. After lunch, we went to the sun room to relax a bit before we went back to our rooms for a quick shower. 

Taking some pictures of the pop belly stove at the common lunch room

At the lunch room

Tomato soup

Vegetarian noodles

Fresh salad, which we did not eat since it was not cooked

Chowing down the noodles

More please!

Chocolate cake and Masala Chia

Enjoying the afternoon sun at the sun room

MM at the sun room

View from the sun room

After a quick shower, we felt refreshed. We changed to our camp clothes and headed back to the sun room. We could tell that the wind has picked up in the afternoon. Not much later than 4:00, the sun has dipped behind the tall peaks. We headed to the common room. It turned out that there is a "happy hour" everyday. We sat around the warm pop belly stove to keep ourselves warm as the temperature began to drop. We were served tea and popcorn. We sat around and relaxed until dinner time. During this time, we met two other trekking group. One is a German group that came with us on our flight. The other is a Canadian family who lives in Shanghai. The German group comprised of two younger couples and an older lady. We were sure that they are a family. Later we would learn that our assumption was wrong about the relationship in the German group. We chatted with the Canadian family a bit. They were going to Namche as well but they will be staying at Hotel Everest View. They were also planning to visit Chitwan after trekking in Everest. They told us that since they live in Shanghai, they plan to travel to the more "difficult" locations before their stay in Shanghai ends. 

We were served dinner - Dal Bhat, a typical Sherpa meal in the Khumbu region. We helped ourselves with plenty of food served buffet style. Each of the trekking group sat in one table with their head guide. Mingma sat with us for dinner and we learned a bit about his family and how the Sherpa name their new borns. It was a nice and enjoyable dinner. We finished dinner around 7:00 pm. Shortly after we retired into our rooms. It has been a nearly 24 hour day since we were up at 3 am. 

Enjoying baskets of popcorn at the dining area

Sitting around the pop belly stove to keep warm

Enjoying the vegetable soup

Pop belly stove, we would increasingly rely on the stove to keep us warm in the coming days

Getting our rice in a big plate

Vegetables

Saag

Dal

Chicken curry - that's a surprise

Papad and tomato pickle

Getting a big plate

According to my iPhone, the distance covered today was 6 miles, 14,515 steps, and 128 floors. Our elevation change had ranged from Kathmandu (4,593 feet or 1,400 meters) to Lukla (9,383 feet or 2,860 meters) to Phakding (8,563 feet or 2,610 meters). It wasn't until when I was writing this post that I realized that Phakding is actually a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Trek distance according to iPhone 

 

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