Everest 3 High Pass Trek

On a clear day, taking off for Kathmandu is already an unforgettable experience. From the air, it appears that the Nepalese capital is only a little distance north of the Himalayan ranges. You will enter the passenger pickup area outside the building after customs. A Lekhbesi Holidays sign will be visible. You can expect our representative to welcome you to Nepal. A thorough trek briefing will be given to you after the transfer to your accommodation. You can spend the remainder of the day exploring Kathmandu and finishing up your journey preparations. After this vacation, you'll hear the Nepalese greeting "Namaste," which you'll never forget.

We will go through the trip briefing and inspect your kit this morning. Your passports will be required so that we may submit an application for the hiking permits. We set up a narrated sightseeing trip of the Kathmandu Valley following the briefing. Three of the seven World Heritage Sites that we visit. You begin by going to Patan Durbar Square. After that, you travel to Boudhanath to see the Buddhist stupa. Pashupatinath, a Hindu shrine, is the final visit of the day. Around 4 o'clock is when the tour is likely to end, after which you have the rest of the day free to explore Kathmandu more.

The next day, you need to be well prepared for the trek. Flight leave at the crack of dawn from Kathmandu domestic airport and check-in is even earlier. Lukla is situated at the altitude of (2880m) you need to get to the domestic airport of Kathmandu in order to fly to the Lukla. It takes around 35 to 40 minute flight from Kathmandu to Lukla. After such a literally breathtaking flight, it is pretty normal to feel slightly fuzzy in the head on arrival in Lukla. Most people take tea, a second breakfast or lunch before setting out. 

There is no great rush to reach Phakding. The trek can be done in 4 hours or so. The trail passes through choplung (2660m) and Nachi Pang, with its magnificent view of the snowy peak of Kusum Kanguru. The sprawling village of Ghat has a small monastery. Phakding village has lodges on either bank of the Dudh Koshi. Phakding monastery, high above on the west side, is best visited on the return to Lukla. Overnight in Lodge.

In the fourth Day, early in the morning after having breakfast you will have a walk through a magnificent forest of Rhododendron with unimaginable views of the river side. From Phakding the trail climbs and contours through pleasant pine forest. The next village, Bengkar (2630m), is well known for its apple pies. The route climbs to Monjo (2835m) and the entry check post for the Sagarmatha National Park. From Jorsale (2740m) it’s all up, with a glimpse of Everest as the trail climbs to Namche (3440m). This beautiful trek will take around 5/6 hours from Phakding and end at Namche Bazaar. This is normally one of the harder days on the trek, not because of the particularly different terrain, but because it’s the first critical day in which altitude plays a part.

Everyone should take a rest day in Namche to adjust to the altitude. Namche Bazaar is a very famous place for sight-seeing of Mt. Everest and all Himalayan ranges as well as wonderful sunrise and sunset, not only that it is also famous for a local museum. So early in the morning after having breakfast you will walk around one and a half hour to have a wonderful Everest view and sunrise. After a few hours back to the hotel you will take some rest. Then in the evening, you will enjoy the beauty of Namche village and lively markets, where you will get unimaginable hospitality from the local people. Then you will visit the local museum and in the museum, you will get chances to see native’s flora and fauna as well as about the history of Mt. Everest.

There are several routes from Namche to Tengboche. The next trek destination is to Tengboche and it takes almost 5-6 hours to reach the destination. Tengboche is one of the well-known traditional places and it is famous for its Tibet Buddhist monasteries with Sherpa religion and lots monks as well. You will start your treks early in the morning around 8 am, during your journey you will have remarkable views of Mt. Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Cholatse, Kantaiga, AmaDablam and Thamserku. You will also enjoy with great Tibet Buddhist monasteries along with Sherpa religion. Buddhist monasteries will open every day at 4o’clock in the evening that every tourist will welcome over there and tourists will enjoy best worship and meditations. And finally, you will have wonderful sunset views from there.

Dingboche is famous for the most beautiful trails with outstanding views of the enormous Mountain and deep valley. It is situated at the altitude of 4,481m. From the very beginning of the trek, you will explore the natural scenarios of the place. Whole day trek will be filled with forests of verities of lush trees such as birch, conifers,and rhododendron. On the way most of the time you will get chance to meet lots of yaks. This charming trail will continue to dip down to Devuche by crossing the Imja River until you reached to Dingboche. There you will see HRA Trekkers and medical assistance in the hotel and let you know about the high altitude information.

It is very important to spend an additional night at Dingboche to aid the acclimatization process. Many trekkers are happy to spend the day exploring Dingboche but there are several interesting day hikes in this area. One enjoyable short walk is the hour long climb past prayer flags and chortens to Nangkartshang Hermitage, a collection of retreats built around the meditation cave of Sange Dorje, on the ridge north of Dingboche. The trail continues up the hillside for another 90 minutes to a viewpoint at 5070m that offers fantastic views north to Cholatse (6443m) and Taboche (6542m) south to the lakes at the foot of Ama Dablam and east to Chhukung and Makalu (8463m), the fifth- highest mountain in the world.

Our trail passes through stone-walled fields and Imja Khola valley before entering glacier moraines amidst towering Himalayas. The trail continues to Bibre which is a yak herdsman place. From here, directly across the valley is the fantastic Ama Dablam and the Amphu Labsa mountains. The trail ahead is intersected by icy streams. We continue our walk for around half an hour and reach Chhukung. After lunch, we begin our trek towards Chhukung Ri. The climb to Chhukung Ri involves some easy scrambling near the summit. From the top, we can look directly across the valley for a fantastic view of Ama Dablam and Amphu Labcha peaks. We descend back to Chhukung to spend the night.

We begin today’s trek very early in the morning to reach the highest part of the entire trip which is Kongma La pass. We can either take a trail over a hill which is to the northwest of Chhukung over the Nuptse Glacier moraines or we can walk back to Bibre and trek on the trail above the Niyang Khola. The top of the pass is marked by cairns and Buddhist prayer flags. The final descent from the pass is the most difficult part of today’s journey. After climbing the moraine on the far side, the trail turns north through Khumbu Glacier which takes us to Lobuche.

Our trail moves along the lateral moraine of the Khumbu Glacier. Ahead on the trail we see the crest of the north ridge of Everest along with Pumori, Mahalangur, Lingtern, Khumbutse, Nuptse and other mountains. A small ascent takes us to Thangma Riju. From here , we admire panoramic views of the Himalayan vista. We ascend on a steep trail up to the top of Changri Glacier. As we reach Gorak Shep, we are surrounded by the Himalayas. After resting for a short while, we continue to Everest Base Camp. We pass through rocky dunes, moraines and streams before reaching the base camp of the world’s tallest mountain, Everest. From here we admire Nuptse, Khumbuste and Pumori mountains. We trek back to Gorak Shep and spend the night. 

We start our trek to Kala Patthar early in the morning in order to catch remarkable views of the first light of the sun shining on Mt. Everest. However, we need to be prepared for trekking in the dark and cold temperature (the temperature varies according to the season). Furthermore, there is always a chance for chilly winds which are quite common. As we continue our trek, familiar peaks such as Lingtren, Khumbutse, Changtse, Everest and Nuptse tower above us. After several hours of ascent, we will be on the top of Kala Patthar. The close-up view of Mt. Everest and other Himalayan peaks from Kalapathar is amazing. We enjoy the stunning Himalayan vista and descend to Lobuche where we stay the night.

From Lobuche we trek downhill on a trail alongside the Khumbu Glacier. Our trail splits into two and we choose the trail on our right. On the way we can better admire the view of the looming Awi Peak. We pass through a stupa and tombstones in the distance. After walking for a while we begin to ascend. During the ascent, we see Chola Tsho Lake nearby. We continue further and pass another lake which is lot smaller than the Chola Tsho Lake. We cross the Chola Khola on a bridge before reaching Dzongla. Overnight in Dzongla.

As we gain height, the Cho La Lake begins to appear and the Ama Dablam presides over a range of mountains on the south and Cholatse soars on the west. Climbing the incline is not easy; it is steep, but made worse by boulders over some of which we will have to scramble. The final climb to the Cho La can be a little tricky as the trail curves round a crevasse. The top of the pass is marked by prayer flags and cairns. Scenery of majestic peaks on all directions is breathtaking. Although long, the path leading down to Thangnak is not difficult. Our trail brings us to the edge of the Ngozumpa glacier, which is the longest glacier in Nepal. Reaching the other side of the glacier, we see the second Gokyo Lake on the series of six lakes. A short distance away is the third Gokyo Lake. On the edge of this lake stands the Gokyo Village where we spend the night. 

We climb Gokyo Ri today and enjoy views of the incredible mountain vista. We can also tour the fourth Gokyo Lake today which is only 3km north of the Gokyo Village. Next, continue trekking to the 5th lake. The view from ‘Scoundrel’s Viewpoint’, located at the edge of the 5th lake, is astonishing. Cho-Oyu, Gyachung Kang, Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, and Makulu mountains and the huge Ngozumba Glacier are ours to admire. We trek back to Gokyo and spend the night.

We start the day early in the morning to complete the long day’s trek ahead. Our trail moves alongside Dudh Pokhari (lake) for a while. We walk for around two hours before descending towards the Renjo La pass. On the way we are rewarded with extravagant views of the Himalayan and Rolwaling ranges and others. Views from the Renjo La pass are much like that from Gokyo Ri with the third Gokyo Lake and Gokyo Village beneath the gray smear of the Ngozumpa Glacier. 

We also get outstanding views of Mt. Everest from the top of the pass. Continuing on from the pass, our trail winds down a stone staircase and then moves over a loose scree to reach the south bank of Angladumba Tsho Lake. The prescence of ice on the trail while descending down can make our descent a bit hazardous. Along the way we see Relama Tsho and Renjo Lake. We walk down a narrow valley clogged with giant boulders to Lumde where there is a support lodge, but it is often closed. We walk almost for an hour from Lumde to get to Marlung on the east bank of the Bhote Koshi River. Overnight at Marlung.

The descent from Marulung to Thame follows a traditional route used for centuries by the Tibetan traders. We cross the Bhote Koshi River and descend to Taranga. The trail continues to descend and we cross two bridges before reaching Thame. Overlooking Thame is its famous Gompa situated on a hill to the west. From here, we descend gradually on a trail that passes through a few small villages before reaching Namche Bazaar which is probably the biggest town in the Everest region. Overnight in Namche Bazaar.

We begin our trek with a descent. As we continue our trek, we cross several bridges over the fast flowing Dudh Koshi River and its tributaries. Now, the trail has become more level and natural. On our trek we enjoy walking on open plains, through rhododendron and pine forests and enjoy distant views of the snow covered peaks. We walk through Sherpa villages noticing their impressive faith in Buddhism and the culture of prayer stones and prayer flags. After reaching Lukla, we stretch those sore legs and recall the experiences of the last couple of weeks. Our long trek to the mountain and its high passes ends today. Overnight in Lukla.

After having breakfast we head toward airport for our flights. The terminal building is extremely cold; drinks and snacks are limited. The flight is exciting – once you have taken after off hurtling down into the void. After the plane has missed the hillside below Number Peak and dodged over the lamjura pass , it’s on to Kathmandu.

Transfer from hotel to Kathmandu airport for your flight back home. End of trip.