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Greetings from Kathmandu


dryad

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Hey everyone! I just got back from a nice slow mosey all over the Khumbu. Summary: 23 days, more or less solo, no problems other than a bad cold at the beginning, no AMS, no porter, no guide, no horse or yak rental (tempting though it was at times). Saw Everest from a number of different angles, plus many other more interesting mountains.

 

Damn, the place is spectacular! laugh.gifcool.gifbigdrink.gif

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The one piece of advice I have is go independently. Go solo, or take a friend or a guide or a porter if you want, but whatever you decide to do, DO NOT GO WITH A BIG TOUR GROUP. Not only will you save a lot of money, but more importantly, everybody has a different walking pace, everybody adjusts to altitude differently, and illness of one kind or another is the rule rather than the exception. I met a number of people who got sick and had to abandon their whole trip because they could not keep up with their group. Statistically, 80% of the trekkers who die from AMS are with tour groups (only 40% of total trekkers are with tour groups). Going independently, I was able to wait out my cold, walk at my own pace, and ascend as slowly as I wanted.

 

Happy trails! wave.gif

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That IS very good advice to go on your own; this tends to cause more independent exploration and discovery. It's been many years since I went, but we carried our own stuff and went at our own pace. Having a loose schedule makes it easy to take side trips and stay over at noteworthy places. Non-scripted days also helped, as dryad says, with avoiding AMR, as I topped out at nearly 18k despite having a history of altitude problems.

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The Rum Doodle is the place for KTH Pub Club! bigdrink.gif

 

I thought of another piece of advice: Don't let anybody tell you that Everest Base Camp is not worth the effort to visit. They're full of crap. Sure, it's just a bunch of tents, sure you can't see Everest, but who cares?! You get to wander through this weird insane otherworldly glacial landscape and poke around the ice falls, little ice lakes, and giant icicles. It's really cool.

 

BTW, posting pix is a going to be hard for a while. I can't seem to find a place that has both a card reader and an internet connection on the same computer.

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Bill - The Kathmandu Guest house has a very nice patio courtyard. I'd prefer that location to the Yak & Yeti. wink.gif

 

C'mon, Yak&Yeti is the most posh digs ever! I wish I could afford to stay there every night of the week tongue.gif

 

 

Dryad, way cool! I'm also lookin forward to those pics! BTW, OUTDOORSmagic had an article here and here that talk about independant trekking in Nepal.

 

Cheers!

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