Lukla, one of the most dangerous airports in the world
Lukla, a small village is also the easiest gateway to the Everest Region, with a small airport. Lies in between the Himalayas at an altitude of 2840 Meters, Lukla airport is one of the most dangerous airports in the world.
The airport was constructed in 1964 in between the small areas of the hills with just 527M of runway and a deep cliff on the other ends. This little airport has only connectivity with the Kathmandu airport and every day during the finest weather, a flight from/to Kathmandu (1350M) to Lukla (2840M) is operated daily only in the morning.
Due to its dangerous terrain and the short runways, a small ‘TWIN OTTER’ plane flies to Lukla carrying only 16-18 People at a time. For the safety of the travelers, special license-holder pilots can only fly to Lukla airport.
Namche Bazaar, the highest settled town, the unofficial capital
Namche Bazaar which lies at an altitude between 3440-3500 Meters is one of the largest settlement towns of the entire Everest Region. This is the official capital of the region and holds all the modern amenities with Banks, ATMs, Hospitals, Post offices, Police stations, Bar and Disco, restaurants, Hotels, Pool houses, etc.
Trekkers reach Namche Bazaar on the second day of their trek and spend 2 nights acclimatizing while ascending. Namche Bazaar is a perfect place to explore the diversity of the region and is also the trade hub of the entire region.
Travelers with a limited timeframe can easily trek to Namche Bazaar and explore the majestic Himalayan range and if one wants for further take a Helicopter ride to the base camp, that too is possible following the Namche Bazaar Trek with Helicopter to Everest Base Camp program.
Everest View Hotel
Everest View Hotel is one the highest-located luxury hotels in the world, lies at an altitude of 3880 Meters, and the location of hotel is at the hilltop just an hour's hike from Namche Bazaar.
The location of the hotel is one of the best places to explore the range of the Himalayas including Mount Everest. A day hike from Namche Bazaar makes trekkers experience the first majestic view of the Himalayas from a closer distance.
For trekkers who prefer to explore the Himalayas in a short time frame, trekking to Everest View Hotel will be the best option to carry on. This can be done via Hike or Helicopter flight.
Tengbuche Monastery
Tengbuche is another important village in the Everest Region at an altitude of 3867 Meter. Mostly inhabited by the Sherpa community, Tengbucheholds some tea houses and lodges and trekkers spend a night here while ascending.
The best part of Tenbuche is its popular monastery, also known as the Tengbuche Monastery. This is one of the largest monasteries in the entire Khunbu Region. Built in 1916, Tengbuche Monastery is one of the centers of attraction of the entire Everest Region and holds a great place for the local community, one can easily visit this while trekking to Everest Base Camp, Ama Dablam Base Camp or Three Pass Trek.
Every year, numerous festivals are organized in this monastery, however, the Mani Rimdu Festival is one of the most famous festivals organized within the Monastery premises that lasts for 19 days. This festival falls during the month of October-November according to the Tibetan calendar and the Sherpa community celebrates this with full enthusiasm.
Gorakshep, the highest settlement village
Gorakshep is the last overnight camp during the Everest Base Camp Trek and also the highest settlement village in the entire Everest Region. Situated at an altitude of 5190 Meters, Gorakshep holds a couple of tea houses for trekkers.
Gorakshep being the last stop before conquering the Everest Base Camp (5364M) is one of the iconic villages and also the best highlights of the Everest Trek. From this highest settlement place, trekkers head towards 2 different spots, namely Everest Base Camp (5364M) and Kalapatthar (5545M) as a day tour and descend back to Gorakshep.
The Sherpa
Sherpa is one of the popular ethnic communities in Nepal, mainly the inhabitants of the Himalayas. They live throughout the Himalayas of Nepal, Tibet and India. This community is well-known for its extraordinary capabilities of surviving at the high altitude with less oxygen.
Sherpas in Nepal works as a Climber and guides trekkers to the Himalayas. They are known for their kindness and hospitality in the Himalayas. Further, they also work as a Porter to carry goods in the mountains.
They are known throughout the world for their extreme capabilities and high technique of survival in the Himalayas.
Sagarmatha National Park, the highest UNESCO Park
Sagarmatha National Park also known as the Everest National Park is the highest situated UNESCO Natural Heritage Site. Declared as a UNESCO Heritage Site in 1976, this Park covers an area of 124,400 hectares of land, and the altitude ranges from 2635 to 8848.86 Meters.
This diversity in the altitude is the home of different flora and fauna of the Himalayas. Out of the total area, 69% is barren land above 5000 Meters, 28% grazing land, and 3% forested. Sherpa is the Indigenous community settled in this Park and mainly relies on agro-pastoral work.
Sagarmatha National Park holds numerous mountains, peaks, lakes, and glaciers and is famous throughout the world for Mount Everest, the highest mountain. Trekkers entering the Everest region pass by this Park from Monjo.
Gokyo Lake, the highest freshwater lake
Gokyo Lakes lies in the Everest Region of Nepal the highest freshwater lake of the Himalayas. This is a combination of 6 different lakes ranging from an altitude of 4600 meters to 5100 Meters and together they are collectively known as the Gokyo Lakes.
Gokyo Lake is a trekking destination and holds a couple of tea houses on the bank of the Lake. On the acclimatization day, trekkers hike towards GokyoRi (5357M) to have a stunning view of the Himalayas and the numerous lakes around.
Trekkers can hike towards Everest Base Camo Via Gokyo and Chola Pass or can descend back to Lukla.
Two Everest Base Camps
Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world with an altitude of 8848.86 Meters and still growing. This tallest mountain works as a border between Nepal and Tibet. Thus, we can say there are 2 base camps of Mount Everest, one in Nepal and the other in Tibet.
The Base Camp towards Nepal lies at an altitude of 5364 Meters and lies to the South, with stunning views of the Himalayas, glaciers, Khumbu Icefall, etc, whereas the north base camp lies towards Tibet at an altitude of 5150 Meters.
Although there are two base camps, Mount Everest lies in Nepal and trekkers hike for 7 days to reach the base camp via Kathmandu.
The unpredictable weather
The weather at the Base Camp of Everest quickly changes and thus is highly unpredictable, compared to the lower altitude. However, the trek to the Everest Base Camp begins from a lower altitude, starting from Lukla (2840M).
This starts after a short flight from Kathmandu (1350M). Due to the weather at Lukla, there is still a possibility that the flight to/from Lukla might get canceled. During the trek, the lower altitude remains mild and might have rainfall (monsoon).
As you trek higher, the trail remains clear with the possibility of clouds, and fog and sometimes covers the view of Everest.
During the winter, the night temperature might reach -25 Degrees Celcius and the day might go to +8 degrees Celcius. However, during the spring and autumn season, temperature is mild with +5 during the night and +10 during the day.
Additional Trail in the Everest Region
Despite the popular Everest Base Camp Trail, the region is blessed with other alternative and additional trails as well. Everest Region is famous for its diverse trekking trails depending on travelers' interests and time frame. Some of the popular additional trails in the Everest region that one can add to the Everest Base Camp are:
Gokyo Lake
Gokyo Lake Trek is one of the popular alternative trekking trails in the Everest Region. This trail gets diverted from Khumjung and takes one to the Gokyo Lake, the highest freshwater lake in the entire region.
One of the best highlights for trekkers is one can combine the Gokyo Lakes and Everest Base Camp. For this, you will need to go through the Chola Pass and then towards the Everest Base Camp, making a circle and meeting the same trail at Khumjung.
Three Pass Trek
Yet another adventurous trek in the Everest region will be the Three Pass Trek. This will be a challenging trek but doable. Everest Three Pass Trek will take you to the 3-High Passes of the Everest Region. This includes Kongma La Pass (5530M), Cho La Pass (5420M) and Renjo La Pass (5360M).
The best part of this trek is, that apart from the Three High Pass, you will be able to Visit Everest Base Camp and Gokyo Lake when one follows the Three Pass Trek Itinerary. This makes the trek a perfect trail, visiting all the best parts of the Everest Region in one-time frame.
However, if one wants to skip some part of the trek that too will be possible.
Kalapatthar
Kalapatthar (5545M) is yet another best trail in the Everest Region that will take you higher than the Everest Base Camp (5364M). Kalapatthar is a picturesque spot in the Everest region and the best part is to visit early in the morning to have the majestic view of the Himalayas and the first rays of the light falling upon the mountain.
Kalapatthar is a day hike destination from Gorakshep, the last-highest overnight camp during the Everest Base Camp Trek. If the weather is clear, visiting Kalapatthar will be once in a lifetime experience.
From Kalapatthar one can have the majestic ranges of the Himalayas, including Mount Everest, and the 360-degree panoramic views of the Himalayas vista.
Ama Dablam Base Camp
One of the most stunning, fascinating, and most-seen mountains throughout the trek in the Everest Region is Mount AmaDablam. A very unique mountain with its unique shape is a highly respected mountain as well.
Ama Dablam Base Camp is just on the way to Everest Base Camp and one can reach there easily with just an additional day into your itinerary. The trail will take you to the base camp of AmaDablam at the altitude of 4600 Meters and there are lodges to stay.
Moreover, if you are planning for the Everest Base Camp Trek, then joining AmaDablam Base Camp as well will be the best option. This will help you to explore the majestic AmaDablam and also will work as an acclimatization day before heading uphill.
Thame and Khumjung Village
Thame and Khumjung are two popular Sherpa villages in the Everest Region with stunning views of the Himalayas. These villages are the early settlements of the Sherpa Community and for those trekkers who don’t want to hike higher, this will be the low-altitude trekking trail with stunning views.
Thame village is one of the most famous among the two. This village holds a maximum number of famous mountaineers including Tenzing Norgay Sherpa, Kami Rita Sherpa, Apa Sherpa, and also Lama Zopa Rinpoche who is the head of the Foundation for the Preservation of Mahayana Tradition.
The right time for the Everest Trek with a stunning view
Here comes the main question: When is the right time for trekking the Everest Base Camp and the higher altitude above the base camp? Trekking to the Everest region is possible throughout the year, however, for the stunning views of the Himalayas, one needs to be very careful about it.
The best and the right time for trekking the Everest Base Camp when it comes to the stunning view will be October, November, December, January, February, March, and April. But if you are planning for the Three Pass Trek, you can skip December and January because those are winter and you might encounter thick snow while crossing the High Pass.
Here the month of May is pre-monsoon in Nepal; June, July, and August are Monsoon and September is post-monsoon. Thus, during pre and post-monsoon, you can expect rain at the lower altitude and the cancellation of flights to/from Lukla might be a problem. Further, during these times clouds cover the Himalayas and the view might not be praiseworthy.
