Phakding to Namche Bazaar

Our guide allowed us to wake up around 7:30 and then have breakfast at 8. This was great and one of the benefits of having a small trekking group. We stayed in tea houses with larger trekking groups and their breakfast time was 6 or 6:30. They would start trekking in the dark. No thank you. It was always pretty chilly when we started trekking but once the sun popped out no matter the outside temperature we warmed up really quickly. The trek to Namche Bazaar would take us to 11,154 ft and would be 7.45 miles. What the numbers don't say is how many times we would go up and down on this hike. I naively assumed hiking to Everest Base Camp would be a gradual uphill hike for 9 days and then downhill for three. I learned that was not the case really quick. We were up and down all over the mountain. Anytime we had to cross the beautiful Khumba river we would usually climb all the way down, cross on a suspension bridge, and then climb back up. There also are not a lot of switchbacks in Nepal. Like hardly any at all. They have stairs on the trail, so many stairs, and you just go straight up!

The mornings were so chilly. This morning was no exception. I started off very bundled up. We were following the beautiful Kumba River. It's a glacier river and so the water is the prettiest blue.

  I already mentioned there was still a lot of up and down on this day. That meant we crossed the river lots, which means lots and lots of suspension bridges.

All the bridges were decorated with prayer flags. Meant to keep you safe and bless your journey. They really add color to the bridge and are so fun when the wind is blowing, which it turns out the wind blows a lot in this area.

The bridges were always fun to cross. They seem so tiny compared to the vastness of the Khumba valley.

Sometimes you have to hold on because the wind makes it a little scary. Other people also make the bridge bounce around quite a bit.

Chasing our guide across a bridge

Our group. Starting to get to know each other better:)

The last brisge we crossed before Namche Bazaar is the highest bridge on the trek. It is about 1000 ft above the water. It really feels like a long way down when you look over the side. The picture below shows the bridge as we approached it. We crossed the high one. The lower one is no longer in use.

 It was a very long ways down. I was glad to be across.

Right after we crossed we got our first peak of Mt. Everest. Seriously so exciting. The lighting was not good enough for a picture but it was really fun to see.

We also entered different National Parks on this day of hiking. The nice thing about having a guide is that he took care of all of that for us. We just waited for him and looked at the signs.

 The stops meant snacks and bathroom breaks. Some bathrooms were great, some were awful, and sometimes the wilderness bathroom (a rock or tree) was the best of all.

This day we were still hiking at a lower elevation so there were little communities all along our route. We saw lots of locals working, kids going to school, and lots of people farming. The trail is so busy it would be so weird to have hundreds (or in the high season thousands) of tourists traveling through your backyard everyday. 

Our guide kept the pace for us the entire hike. The pace was very slow, especially compared to the speed in which I usually hike. But it was good. I told myself I would stay behind the guide no matter what because I know going slow helps prevent altitude sickness. The boys in our group Vincent from LA and Jose Louis from Mexico both took a lot of pictures so we really were slow. I never tired of the amazing mountains. They were stunning. The views on this trip were some of the best I have ever experienced!

 As the sun starts to set the weather drops dramatically. Luckily we were usually to our tea house before that happened. Here I am waiting for our guide at a checkpoint.

 I put on my extra layers while I waited in hopes of staying warm. It usually worked. No matter how cold it was I really didn't need a ton of clothes when I was moving in the sunlight. No sunlight or no moving meant I had to layer up.

 Thia day we hiked for a long time. Mainly because we stopped so much for all the picture takers in our group. After we crossed the last suspension bridge we hiked up a million stairs to get to Namche Bazaar. The sun was down but we were going straight uphill so we were warm.

 It's always exciting when you finally see your evenings destination:)

Namche Bazaar is the coolest little community. It is nestled among huge mountains and the city is built on the hill. It is the last chance to purchase anything you might need for your trip. It is also the last chance to withdraw cash. 

Hotel Hill-Ten. Don't let the structure confuse you there is NO HEAT!!!!

There are no fire places in Namche Bazaar because it is part of the National Park. Just small space heaters. It was very cold inside the tea houses here. But we had our own bathroom still so that was a huge plus!

 And the bathroom was actually quite nice. Freezing but very nice especially compared to what was coming as we hiked higher up.

 The city from right outside our hotel.

 Selfie from outside the hotel!

 The first thing I would do when we got to our teahouses is unpack my sleeping bag, then change my clothes, and them brush my hair. It felt so good to have my hair brushed and down for the evening.

  We arrived in Namche Bazaar on Christmas Eve. I played spotify Christmas carols as we tried to stay warm by our space heater.

 The view of the common room at our tea house.

 It was always good to drink hot drinks to warm-up. I loved their hot mango juice, best stuff ever, And then I brought Tang and so I would add that to hot water for a nice drink.

 I forgot to pack my hot chocolate which was LAME! Hot chocolate in Nepal is not the same. The flavor is very weak. This was definitely a different was to spend Christmas Eve but it wasn't terrible. I was outside enjoying the beautiful world Heavenly Father created for us. I was able to participate all day in one of my favorite activities: hiking. Obviously I missed my family, my dog, and our traditions but it was ok. Buddhism is the predominant religion in the area so there were no Christmas Celebrations going on. That also makes it easier to not be homesick.