EBC Day 14 Pheriche – Tyangboche

OK let’s start today with a quick bit about my GPS device and some of its “issues”. I have a SatMap Active 10 which was a birthday gift back in 2011. It has served me really well over the years, mainly as a means of recording details of my walks, but also on a few occasions as a guide in bad weather to establish my position and keep me on course. Other than a couple of problems a few years back where it just froze and I had to get the manufacturer to fix it, I have had no cause for complaint at all. On this particular trek however our altitude readings have taken on more importance than distance, and again generally the readings appear to have been quite accurate – which they should really because my position is given to within 5m in the cross hairs of 7 or more satellites. At each destination, signposts tell us the altitude which I have checked against my GPS reading, and found them to be pretty close. Everest Base Camp, however, is a real dilemma. All the signs there said 5364m, so how come my GPS trip log for that day showed a maximum height of only 5272m? That’s almost 300feet different!! The following day on Kala Patthar normal service was resumed. I don’t have the answer but will be doing some investigation when I get home.

Anyway, back to today’s trek, overall downhill from Pheriche on the main EBC path with a couple of river crossings and a noticeably warmer breeze. Following the Dudh Kosi river down the valley, we descended below the tree line again into the greener, more humid type of walking we had experienced at the very start of our adventure. We passed through several villages, stopping a couple of time for tea/coffee and some lunch. We made good time but had to remember to pass to the left hand side of the Manni prayer walls scattered along the route. (More about these cultural things in a later post). Our final break was in Debuche before an unexpected final half mile uphill to Tyangboche where there is a famous monastery at the top of the hill. After a quick checkin at our lodge and an amazing espresso (first proper coffee for 2 weeks) we went over to look at the monastery and witnessed the monks in prayer. Quite an experience. I’m pleased to say my appetite appears to have returned (tonight we were allowed meat, so I went for Spaghetti bolognaise, even though the sizzling chicken steak looked very appealing. Resisted the beer again – getting irritated by a large group of Irish, Aussie, American, British becoming louder and louder as their alcohol takes effect. I suspect one or two of them will suffer tomorrow. Suffice to say the earplugs will be in use tonight and I may be making a bit more noise than usual at 7am tomorrow when we are up for our final long day and the penultimate day of the trek. Our guide, Santosh, has developed a bad toothache so we are making sure he has painkillers and hopefully it won’t disrupt tomorrow.