vaga #7/5 towards to Everest

Part V

photo at the memorial

Heading towards Everest Base Camp onwards I will abbreviate it and what it is called is EBC(Everest Base Camp)

As I said before, the days were confusing me since all we did was walk, one valley after another, a climb, a descent, from wooded landscape to steppes with short grass, to rocky, glaciers, a small river another large and mighty, the houses became further apart, as well as the crops. The sequence of photos that I will pass in this chapter are not of chronological order because the landscapes are intertwined capriciously transforming from forests to high mountain landscapes. The intention of this ordered sample of photos is to give the feeling of ascending in the mountain, where the landscapes are transformed according to height.

Starting with "Las Puertas" doors, which are the framework of access to sacred places that must be passed, up to four different ones a day. These "Doors", are incomprehensible to one when one is in the middle of nowhere, there are others near a monastery or, at the entrance of a hamlet, those are understandable. They must be crossed with respect. They are sophisticated in their forms, their iconographies, their colours and are humble, but all are deteriorated.

Between these “portals” many Buddhist landmarks intersect. Some consist of a series of slabs or slabs of stones arranged in different ways and are carved with "sutras" or symbols. The lines of sacred slabs as seen in the photos below, Gopal was teaching us that during the ascent you must walk on the left side and down on the right, which is respected. In certain areas they were very often and others semi-conical, or carved into the rocks. There are stupas at crucial points to be appreciated from far away. Sacred flags are added everywhere and on the bridges already described above in "Vaga #6 PUFF Nepal". It is incredible, admirable, and surprising to see or some feel the magic that occurs on this walk for days among those icons of prayers. I was touched and felt, a force that for centuries and centuries has been present and so current these days. This frequency, and abundance of "gates", icons, does not occur in other treks in the Himalayas with this mystical intensity. The reason is because it is in the Tibet region, which is Buddhist par excellence. The last days of ascension no longer found these sacred symbols because no one dwells in those heights anymor

These photos were taken after leaving Namche Bazaar. Wide valleys, others narrow, amazing views every time one surrounds a hill, grateful when it has cleared and one could appreciate the mountain in its total magnitude. In 14 days you will understand that the number of photos accumulated is no small thing. Many are similar with sunrises, valleys, mountains, peaks, and I do not remember the names of all, that was Rafa's task I was the photographer haha. I only passed the most significant ones and it was not easy for me to sacrifice so many.

The lunch places: some were improvised, with a plastic cover as a roof or simply nothing, chairs and tables surrounded by small stone walls, others more comfortable inside and protected from the wind and cold, however, it did not matter to sit was all I wanted and to change the wet shirt. I asked Rafa if he was tired? He told me - a bit - , puff me too, we were on a par, I didn’t fade. Lunch consisted of the Dal bhat the national dish and is eaten practically daily in Nepal, it consists of lentils, rice, vegetables and sometimes pork or chicken, no meat is found in low season, they only  bring it up for tourists in high season, they do not consume it. Alcohol is prohibited after 3,500 m in height for giving stronger effects to the lack of oxygen, so pure tea and water hummmmm

in a break I caught Gopal blinking, that is, he is also feeling fatigued and my sandals rested where they can

Getting higher, on the fifth day it felt colder, the wind hit harder and sharper and it was necessary to cover everything except the eyes that were protected by glasses. The landscapes were getting more dramatic, abrupt and I felt surrounded by towering hills as long as the clouds allowed it, it was all enjoyed with more intensity.

Edmund Hillary of New Zealand, was the first to ascend Everest with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay in May 1953 there is a myth, rumor or whatever, that the Sherpa stepped on one foot before him on the summit itself. Hillary dedicated his life to that valley as they call it the "God." It has built bridges, primary health clinics, and the first primary schools. It's all due to Hillary and it's the valley that developed before other valleys in the Himalayas. He died at the age of 88, his wife died earlier in a helicopter crash leaving Kathmandu with their younger daughter of 14 years. His son Peter has currently followed the father's legacy.

The accommodations were of the most diverse and I emphasize the one in Lomboche, apparently it was the only tea house to be reached and it was the only occasion where it was shared with other Sherpas, carriers of construction materials and meals. There were about 6 young boys and they all sat by the stove. They are very shy with one, they do not make contact, but encouraged each other with Gopal, sharing I imagine information of all kinds, weather, the loads they carry, where they come from, where they go, news ...

In the morning 5 am Gopal touches us the door and tells us to get up to see the sunrise since it is semi clear, and it will surely cloud soon. Without thinking, or claiming as the fatigue in the bones was felt alone when taking the leg out of the bed. We got up and as we could see the peaks surrounding the tea house, we had arrived late and it was with low clouds. It was another landscape, now an imposing one, you could feel the peaks above us, on all sides, they surrounded us in 360 degrees. The clouds moved a little from here to there and there a peak appeared and then it hid for a few seconds and on the other hand another one and each one so different from the other, some snowfall, others not, it was an unforgettable sunrise and adds. An even more appreciation to Gopal for worrying that we see the hills, he was attentive very early to see if it cleared and let us know. At that dawn I realized that Gopal was taking photos with his phone, the truth was that it was not "the scenery" because it was semi cloudy, and not all the snowy peaks, what caught my attention was how he loves that mountain range, how many times he has been standing in that place and is still taking photos, as if he enjoyed what he sees over and over again and he continues to take photos of it. This tells me that the love he has for his mountains is beyond being a guide. I have seen this on a couple of occasions in other countries when the guide on his account takes a photo with his cell phone. Pride ? Still admiring without tiring? I find his sensibilities and appreciation for theirs very significant, even though they see him hundreds of times.

From there the forests were left behind, houses, only a couple of hamlets, the last 2 days only tea house for the trekkers. The sequence of photos shows from green to rugged mountain.

The high mountain landscape became permanent. I remember one day arriving at a very nice plateau and it was a relief to walk on the flat for a long time without climbing, it was how to walk, jump or dance. It was so easy. Then we would climb to higher altitudes. On that plateau that we crossed for about an hour the weather accompanied us, it was like a kindness of life ... the photos speak for themselves, the previous days were so cloudy, few views and a lot of ascent and the joy is extreme when the clouds disappear for a while.

seeing this valley and its imposing mountain. Only for us, joy, jubilation, and all the synonyms about that, I was excited, even wanted to scream and I did it timidly, because Rafa was deeply bothered by those boisterous expressions. If when walking through that valley, it was cloudy it is not the same at all, in fact it happened when we went down.

White stupas, this one has "eyes". Buddha's "Eyes" do they take care of or watch over you?. They are in a slope of the hill and you can see it from  far away and on several sides, these stupas are higher up and you can no longer see the carved slabs or icons. Stupas of different sizes, with or without flags. Walking, moving forward, travelling, among them with that imposing geography, in silence acquires a powerful mysticism, something magnetic at least for me.

sunrises were more likely to be seen without clouds

Sun, rain, wind many times during the day, and when the fog fell on our shoulders the feeling was high mountain, it is what it is, cold, snow, bad weather, most of the time, the suns were gifts. However, I liked to feel that harshness of the weather, walking becomes slow, you fight against the blizzards and bow your head again to weather the wind or rain, live the mountain and long for the arrival at a shelter not because of fatigue, at this point it was no longer a topic, but because of the cold, the wind. It sounds like suffering, it was. I am a mountain person and it does not frighten me, nor do I reject it, nor do I avoid inclement weather. Now taking photos in these conditions were not many or easy, one had to stop, open the backpack, take out the cell phone, take off the gloves and crouch because of the wind.

I finished the up walk with photos of the "Memorial" to the deceased in the attempt to make the summit, or to descend from it and that is when there are more fatalities. Gopal, tells us that fatal accidents have decreased enormously, one because there is better technical and thermal equipment, better and more accurate weather information, which is key, although avalanches are still unpredictable. This graveyard is located about 6 hours from the EBC, on a very well chosen hillside. It is like a frying pan, a semi-flat surrounded by small slopes and large mountains in the background, it was difficult to photograph its entirety. Many bodies are never recovered; others have to wait for the thaw and see if they appear.

A graveyard, a unique cemetery, each fallen one has its own tombstone, in this case a monolith of stones with or without names or dates, some with many new and colorful flags, are cared for, as if friends or family visited them from time to time, others just a monolith without anything else. I saw the flags as if they were flowers laid in the cemetery with their loved ones, some saturated, others already faded and torn. The vast majority were abandoned monoliths, but present and do not feel abandoned, they are in the company of the other climber companions of routes and in a place only for them. To this day there are 280 dead, 280 monoliths, the last on May 27, 2019, and there are a good number of Sherpas among the fallen.

The feeling is one of deep recollection, respect and silence. I was shocked.

Just before resuming the march the clouds finally decided to move to give us for about 15 minutes the emotion of enjoying them. The photos above, cloudy, those below after half an hour, almost dramatic images of contrasts. They are the closest souls to heaven....

About three hours of walking after the "Memorial" you reach the most anticipated, longed for, desired and awarded of all the accommodations

About three hours of walking after the "Memorial" you reach the most anticipated, longed for, desired and awarded of all the accommodations