Phakding to Iconic Namche Bazaar-Tuesday, April 18th

​We expected this to be a difficult day and it was certainly that. It was also a day of spectacular natural beauty. The day consisted of 7 miles of distance and an elevation gain of 3,000 ft. But the elevation gain we actually hiked was far more because of the constant up and down nature of the path up the river and Khumbu Valley. We crossed the river on suspension bridges 5 times including the final crossing on the spectacular Hillary Bridge. Many donkey and yak trains passed us on the trail. We also entered the actual Sagarmatha (Mt, Everest’s original name) National Park. The combination of altitude over 10,000 ft and a relentless and very steep 2 hour climb made our last push to Namche very challenging. At around 3:30, we finally reached beautiful Namche Bazaar, the Gateway to Everest. We ended the day at 11,500 ft. very tired but happily feeling no effects of the altitude. Our next day will be one of rest and a short hike to help with our acclimatization.







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