Trekking Nepal: Lukla to Namche Bazaar
Acclimatisation day at Namche Bazaar.
IAM always excited about travelling to Nepal. It is not so much about the city but more of enjoying the environment as well as the hike itself. This time around, my friends and I decided to climb up to Everest Base Camp. The name itself gives us goosebumps, while the height of 5,364 metres above sea level makes us nervous. This is the first time that all of us are hiking above the height of 5,000m.
Our expedition starts with flying into Tenzing-Hillary Airport (also known as Lukla Airport) from Kathmandu on a domestic flight. It is a small airport in the town of Lukla in eastern Nepal and situated at 2,860m above sea level.
This airport has been known as one of the most dangerous airports in the world for over 20 years. It is popular because Lukla is the place where most people start the climb to Mount Everest Base Camp.
While on the plane, most of us busy ourselves taking pictures and videos so as not to think about these scary facts. Thank God the weather is very good and the pilot lands the aircraft smoothly and safely.
Feeling excited before the hike. On the left of the picture is the Lukla Airport
Upon arrival, we are advised to quickly eat breakfast and start trekking immediately. Our destination is Phakding, where we will rest overnight before continuing with our journey. The trek to Phakding is relatively easy, with some uphill and downhillwalking. Throughout the five-hour hike, we pass through a few villages before finally reaching our guesthouse.
We start our Day 2 early because today’s hike will be long and involves lots of steep uphill climbing. We will be stopping at Namche Bazaar and rest for two nights. It also lets our bodies acclimatise to the high altitude.
After eight hours of a gruelling uphill hike, we finally arrive at Namche, at 3,440m. Upon arrival, we quickly freshen up and walk around the area. Namche is quite a big town. There are a lot of guest houses, cafes, restaurants, pubs and souvenir shops.
The next day is a rest day but we hike up to 3,880m for another acclimatisation process before we continuing with our journey to Everest Base Camp.
Don’t look down if you are afraid of heights. At the tourist police checkpoint; Trek up, slowly but surely; Namche Bazaar from above.