Tash's Blog: Trekking Part One: Makalu Valley

Our goal was originally to trek up to Makalu Base Camp and then cross some high passes (Sherpani Col - 6180m - and Amphu Laptsa - 5850m) into the Everest Region, but unfortunately the weather gods had other ideas! The nasty cyclone that hit Asia in October had dumped a huge amount of snow over the Himalayas so what would normally be a trek followed by a relatively simple mountaineering proposition was now ruled out entirely by several metres of soft snow! But although we had to turn back and walk round to the Everest Region the long way, it was still a spectacular walk up the Makalu Valley, from the rice paddies of the Middle Hills up to the breathtaking snow covered wilderness of Makalu Base Camp...

Arrival at Tumlingtar in a very small plane!

A drink in the lodge whilst waiting for the jeep!

Election time so many many political posters (along with protest strikes and travel bans meaning our jeep ride was delayed!)

Arriving at Chichilai after a very VERY bumpy jeep ride!

A lazy afternoon in Chichilai...

Helping with the crops - a small child with big knife!

A walking tree

Washing up time

It was harvest time for a plant called "Krampsie"(not sure of the spelling) the dark red plant seen drying here.

It's used in Chinese medicine and sells for thousands of dollars a bag!

Discussions (and more election posters!) at the local bar

Walking through the rice paddies of the middle hills...

Not an inch of space wasted here!

Washing day!

Crowds gathering for election rally - cheesy music and dancing after!

Hot and firey chillies!

Looking cool in Ali's sunglasses!

The fun starts here apparently...

Our eclectic room complete with Bollywood hall of fame and rainbow ceiling!

More terracing and banana trees...

It's Christmas! Poinsettias the size of houses...

Ingenious uses for the empties...

A good restaurant for lunch!

Lunch arrives! Our staple meal of Dhal Bhat: rice, lentil soup and curried veg. Super tasty and nutritious although a bit dull after 30 or more days straight!

Bananas from the garden for afters.

Shopping baskets of a group of teenagers... can't imagine many British teenagers walking hours up a hill for their parents on Saturday!

This kid was fascinated by our guide book and thought Ali looked like a monkey!

Gold wellies were all the rage - a wardrobe staple for all ages

Ingenious irrigation systems!

Pemba - an awesome cook!

Tibetan bread - deep fried but fluffy on the inside and delicious with jam or honey!

Our first cold night up at Kauma La (3470m). A shock to the system but only a taster of things to come!

Crossing some passes along Snowcock Ridge...

A rare photo that proves Ali was actually there!

The spectacular undulating Snowcock Ridge...

Our first patch of snow - again only a taster of things to come!

A quick rest at the Shipton La (4216m), the final of the day's three passes...

Making chapatis!

The colourful Gompa at Yangre Karka...

And funky padlock!

And then we hit the snow! A hard crust made it easygoing in places...

But in others it was hard ice or waist deep mush!

Some funky formations though!

We managed to find some flat pebbles to pitch on (snow is cold and hard work to dig out!)

But unfortunately it involved a river crossing on icy boulders. Our kit was successfully thrown across but I was less successful, having a bracing early morning dip!

Thankfully I had two pairs of boots (one set of plastics for crampons) so could dry the wet ones!

Slow but steady progress up towards base camp...

Picking up some stray timber along the way!

Thankfully this was well away from us!

The final approach to Base Camp.

The impressive face of Makalu behind

Trying not to get another dunking!

Camp set up at the rather snowy Makalu Base Camp.

And more Tibetan bread for lunch!

Ali braves the sub zero temperatures to capture the stars over Makalu...

Check out our lovely thermals - courtesy of Ali's uncle who works at Damart. We promised him a high altitude photoshoot so stripped off for some catalogue shots!