Day 5 Trek (March 23rd)

It is 0500 am and I am awake. Decide to meditate, but problem is I left my iPhone on the ledge of the window and the battery power was sucked empty by the cold last night. Jim wakes shortly after and heads to get a coffee and connect with Tarlika via wifi. Outside it is cloudy up the valley by 0620 although the blue sky is coming and the peaks can be seen. A valuable tip from Jim is to put the cellphone in the sleeping bag at night to keep it warm. Breakfast at 0700 with Dorjee and I am eating a delicious Sherpa pancake! Steam is rising off the plate given the temperature is cold in the dining room. We can see our breath. Wisely, Jim decides to shed some of the weight in his day pack into the porter's heavier pack. Much of the weight are Clif bars! Left at 0730 in the sun to trek down the slippery snow and ice.

Sherpa pancake. Check out the china tableware.

These two bandits are Dorjee on your left and Hem (porter) on your right.

Start of Day 6 Trek from Tangboche with our destination being Dingboche at 4285 metres. 

We will follow this valley towards Dingboche. 

At the start we descend through snow, ice and some mud to the river below. Lots of Japanese trekkers encountered. After we get to the bridge we are then up a very steep climb on the other side of the river. We make good time trekking this morning. 

 This is a real bridge with prayer flags of course. Lots of snow and treacherous rocks/ice in many places.

 Along the river the ice structures seemingly grow from the river.

The moment I figured out the meaning of life! Or, was it remembering what I forgot to pack in my day pack? My gloves?   :-)

 Dorjee and Randy on the trail above Pangboche which was soft and rock free!

 Another example along our trek of how the Nepali organize their farming in the Everest region. I saw on one farm a yak pulling a tiller guided by the farmer near Pangboche. Deep brown coloured earth. 

By 10:30 we stop at Annapurna Fast Food Kitchen at Somare, Solukhumbu (4070 m). Very warm and sunny although a breeze is cooling us slightly. I order chicken fried rice and hot chocolate. Portion size of rice is huge! Get into a good conversation about food with a trekker from the Netherlands. 

We find that as we get higher in elevation are appetites are lessening. The Swedish fellow had a theory that the quicker you eat you fool your stomach so you can eat more. A second portion is doable. No thanks...

Shortly after leaving the village on the side of a mountain we are above 4000 metres and the tree line. The landscape is different. Very dry, small scrubs (juniper), rocks and a sandy dirty trail. Very bleak surroundings and only one house seen the entire time. After getting to the river again, we begin our climb along a hill to gain altitude to reach Dingboche. Lots of huge white boulders. Lots of snow here at this elevation. Still reasonably warm though. We can see Dingboche off in the distance once we have crested the hill. 

There were some places on this trek where a slip meant falling over a cliff face to your death. You keep focused on the rocks and trail ahead. 

 The conclusion of Day 5 of our trek by our arrival at Dingboche at 12:55 pm. As we arrive, we are greeted by some small soft hail. Big smiles as we are one day closer to EBC! Mount Ama Dablam in the background.

Jim's stats for today:  6.03 miles and 15,405 steps.

 Can never get enough of the beauty of the Himalayan mountains! 

 Jim is getting pretty good with the bamboo walking stick he was given by a fellow New Yorker today in Pangboche. We met this group of young trekkers at the Wind Horse Inn. On the patio, it was so warm and sunny and relaxing.

 More fantastic scenery along the trail. The high elevation winds will pick up the snow on the peaks and create this beauty. 

Peaceful Lodge & Resort accommodation in Dingboche. Check out the scenery behind the lodge!

By 14:30 the wind is howling and it is getting steadily cooler in our small room. There is nobody staying in this wing so we have the hallways and bathroom to ourselves. Dingboche is a common acclimatization stop for EBC trekkers. 

An Asian toilet. The blue container has the water and there is a small bucket inside the blue container for the water. Of course, you won't find any toilet paper here. Bring your own toilet paper and always carry it with you!

We meet Dorjee in the dining room and teach him to play cribbage. He learns very quickly! Dinner is good and I order my daily supply of momos. 1,000 Rupees for wifi until Tuesday night and 500 Rupees for charging your cellphone. As you get closer to EBC the more expensive everything becomes. Regrettably, FaceTime doesn't work here. Jim and I return to our room around 8 pm and wow it is incredibly cold! We now know we are the only customers here tonight. There is no indoor shower working and no water taps so we need to buy bottled water. It is pitch black here. I can tell that we are at a high altitude as simply moving some stuff almost took my breath away!