Renjo La Pass/AMS/Dehydration/Group Separation

The weather in the morning appeared to be clearing and the freshly fallen snow glistened in the morning sun. The weather system seemed to have snowed itself out and the clouds only rested way lower down in the valleys. Breakfast was quick and everyone was nervous to make a decision. After discussing with guides we decided that we would climb the pass to the summit and then asses whether or not the other side could be descended. If other groups from Gokyo were climbing we would have a clear view of the trail and be able to avoid the ice and the occasional glacier. If it was not being climbed from the west then conditions would be to treacherous for a descent.
We packed our gear and took some pictures of the fresh blanket of snow and then began the climb knowing the mental and physical battle that wait for us. This was our second pass of the vacation and climbing over a Himalayan Pass is no minor undertaking. We began the climb out of Lungden up the very steep and snowy slopes. The weather was absolutely breathtaking and the views gave us extra motivation to set a strong pace. Everyone was feeling strong except Paul. He seemed to be climbing slower than normal and was struggling under conditions that he usually excels in. Logan, Seth, and Cameron arrived on top at the beginning while Bogue carried Paul's backpack and climbed with him slowly up the ridge. Paul's cognitive awareness seemed to become more foggy and every step seemed a great deal of work. Paul and Bogue reached the top to an exuberant and vibrant group taking photos and videos of the view(Logan, Seth, and Cameron). Paul sat down and Seth approached clearly seeing the he was not himself. Seth and Paul began conversing and it was realized that Paul was beginning to have slurred speech and was saying things entirely out of character. Seth informed the others that Paul had to go down immediately. With the intensity of the situation realized the group sprang into action. Cameron began assisting Paul down as fast as possible as the other discussed what course of action could be implemented. We had already sent a runner/porter ahead to arrange rooms so at least one person had to cross the pass while the others were need to assist Paul down.
It was decided that Bogue would go quickly over the pass while Logan, Seth, Cameron, Paul, and our 2 porters would descend down to Namche 8 hours down the valley and 4,500 ft lower than our current location to a clinic there. Seth ran as fast as possible down the ridge carrying Paul's backpack falling many times in the slick terrain. He saw Cameron helping Paul down the valley and caught up with them where Cameron and Seth talked. Considering it was Cameron's first time in the Khumbu region it was decided that he had the choice to climb over Renjo La Pass and meet Bogue and Indra in Gokyo in the evening. The group said a quick farewell and gave a hug and then hurried in their separate directions. Cam continued up the steep ridge again while Seth and Paul hurried down as fast as possible. Logan and the two porters continued down the valley on their way to Namche to catch up with Paul and Seth.
Both groups struggled very much throughout the day. Paul's condition improved after descending over 2,000 ft and having several liters of water. The group moved as quickly as possible and arrived into Namche at dark totally exhausted and emotionally broken from the days frightening situation. Bogue and Cameron also struggled over the pass and had a very difficult descent down the steep pass into Gokyo. They arrived late in the afternoon as well and were completely exhausted and only mustered up enough energy to eat and then sleep immediately. Paul's condition down the valley improved and he was quite lucid once arriving in Namche. Emails were sent to convey that Paul was okay and that tomorrow we would all awake and find a way to unite the group and asses Paul's status and aspirations in the morning.

Red Sky In The Morning......Shephards Warning!

The morning in Thame again consisted of a great deal of coffee as we watched the high cirrus and stratus clouds creep into the valley. It provided a beautiful view as we packed our gear for the hike up the valley but also warned us of a possibility of severe weather approaching. We climbed steeply out of Thame and then crested the ridge and saw well up the valley toward Tibet and Renjo La Pass. The pass into Tibet has been known to be crossed by Tibetan Refugees fleeing China in the middle of winter and is to be quite treacherous. With each step the landscape appeared more Martian with many of the signs of life diminishing while the snow-capped peaks provided us ample motivation for continuing. The group hiked strong and we passed many groups who were struggling for every breath in the low oxygen environment. We followed a glacial fed stream all of the way up to the confluence of the trail to Tibet and that to Gokyo. We turned to the west and crossed the stream and climbed very steeply to the tiny village of Lungden(14,380ft) where we would spend a rest day before our attempt at Renjo La.
The sky was darkening throughout the day and as we arrived the temperature froze us to the bone. We had hot tea and then loaded our gear into our rooms which provided us little shelter against the cold winds approaching. The only solace we had was to warm up in our sleeping bags and wait for a good hot meal in the evening. As we increased in elevation the prices increased while food quality deteriorated. The tea house was cold and the door to the outside would not stay shut. We froze for a couple more hours and then waved the white flag and retreated to our sleeping bags where we hoped to find relative comfort.
The next morning we awoke to a freezing room and hoped to be warmed by the intense heat of a high altitude sun. Instead, the clouds had become very gray toward the southeast and a few small snow flakes began to fall. We ate breakfast and discussed the worsening weather. By the end of the meal and our coffee the snow was falling quite hard and our plans for a day hike turned to card playing in the tea house. The entire day consisted of sitting in the tea house as people arrived from the Gokyo via Renjo La Pass. The weather on the pass was getting worse with decreasing visibility and a great deal of snow accumulating. Several inches had fallen throughout the day and we waited in the dark tea house talking of our chances in the morning. Guides voiced their opinions and it was agreed the no decision could be made until we saw the status of the weather in the morning for the other side of the pass to Gokyo was incredibly steep and the path would be icy and covered with snow. Our ambitions for Renjo La Pass seemed to be being put to the test. As always, ambition in the mountains only goes as far as the weather will allow.

Thame Valley

Since our last post we have all successfully reached Kathmandu and have a lot of catching up to do. After our acclimation time in Namche(3440m/11,286ft) we ventured up the unconventional and less traveled valley reaching into the far eastern region of the Khumbu region. Our plan was to rest in the remote valley while taking another rest day and acclimating in Thame(3,750m). Our hike up the flank on the immense river valley was incredible. We rolled through lush evergreen forests while we were blown away the rushing river below. Weather was fantastic and many of the great Himalayan Peaks came into view. We hiked for several hours up the valley and then descended rapidly into the river below where the river was squeezed into a tiny corridor between massive boulders. The aqua water was beautiful and humbling at the same time. We noticed wild mountain goats climbing on the steep rock faces far above. We enjoyed the view for a good while until the sun went behind the mountains to the east as the temperature dropped rapidly.
We arrived in Thame and warmed ourselves up in our sleeping bags and went down for our nightly meal in the tea house. Not coincidentally, our most frequent activity in the "tea house" was massive consumption of hot tea for hydration and core temperature regulation. The tea house consists of benches formed in a rectangular shape with a primitive stove and chimney located in the center that is fueled with yak shit. This room is usually attached to a kitchen where the owners will cook a variety of different dishes. The local cuisine is Dal Bhat, which is usually a vegetable curry served with a lentil soup and a great deal of rice. Trekkers will often eat other dishes with some combination of rice, potatoes, noodles, egg, cabbage, carrots, and garlic. Over consumption of Dal Bhat can lead a weary trekker to sing a song about "The Dal Bhat Blues" or "Momo no More More". Fortunately the menu had yak steak for an option, which satisfied our carnivorous inclinations. The lodge also had mustard, which was dumped aggressively all over all of our french fries. The little comforts during a trek through the Himalayas goes a very long way.
The sun hit our rooms around 6:30 a.m which allowed us to open our windows and sun tan in the intense heat. We had breakfast in front of the lodge and tapped into our 4 kilogram supply of coffee for a nice French Press. After several cups of coffee we reached for the map and contemplated our route. Six years before we traversed around the mountains to the west where we would followed the second river valley up into Gokyo(4790m). Another option was to travel north towards Tibet where we would eventually head west over Renjo La Pass(5360m) into Gokyo. This route would save us two days on the general trek itinerary and we would reach the higher mountains in short order skipping some of the crowds into Gokyo. Conveniently to the north right on the doorstep of Renjo La rested a small village for a perfect resting point and acclimation day. Our caffeine infused heads decided that new terrain and adventure would win the day and tomorrow we would head up the valley in preparation for Renjo La Pass.
In the meantime this was a "rest day", which meant we would hike up for around four hours and game some elevation and acclimate. We hiked beyond Thame up a remote stream valley and found a fantastic boulder that we rested on in the hot mid-day sun. We ate nak(female yak) cheese, snickers bars, and hot coffee as we enjoyed the massive cliff faces that jutted out directly in front of us. After a high altitude nap(14,100ft), we navigated the seabuckthorn bushes and yak yerds and arrived safely back at Thame entirely exhausted. Another round of yak steaks and french fries and we went to bed with nervous anticipation of Renjo La.

Dashain

Our two weeks in Pokhara was during the major Hindu Festival of Dashain. Dashain is the longest and most auspicious of the festivals throughout the Nepalese calendar, celebrated by a majority of the castes throughout the country. Dashain includes fifteen days of celebration focusing on many different manifestations of Durga, a Nepali Goddess. The festival includes pujas, many offerings and thousands of animal sacrifices for the ritual holy bathing. Hence, the hundreds of thousands of goats that are marched from Tibet and the foothills of the Himalayas into the major populations centers of Nepal.
Luckily for us, we became good friends with the owner of our Hotel very quickly in our stay in Nepal. After many days of talking we were invited to the major ritual of the Dashain Festival named Dashami. We took a Tika and Jamara from the elders of their family and our family for blessing and good luck in the future. The ritual was a very intense experience with the iconic Hindu Tika placed on our forehead. After we received the Tika through the proper order of elders from their family and ours, we sat down for a large feast which included goat, rice, dal, and a yogurt curd. The event symbolized a unison of our two families and it was explained that both families were now harmonized as one family with blessings from the elders.
At the end of our stay the males and females exchanged gifts to their according gender. The females exchanged bangles, tikas, and scarves. The males exchanged hats and prayer shawls and we said our farewells. We extended our thanks and hoped that we could return the hospitality that we received perhaps some day in our home country.