Will decides against the summit so this is our party ready to set out.
Crampons on outside the village at 8.00am.
Our first objective is Base Camp, which we already did as a practice walk two days ago.
We set off at what feels like an easier pace than we did for the practice walk – a lot further to go today.
But what’s this? We get to base camp in two hours. It wasn’t an easier pace at all – we are much faster today.
Passang has tea waiting for us. He’s gone ahead to order it.
Nice view of the route ahead as it sweeps up onto the glacier and snow fields of Mera.
Beyond base camp we put harnesses on and rope up. This is in case of crevasses – or just holes really – the trail is well compacted but narrow, step off it and the snow is deep and soft.
This is my view for the next few hours – Jangbo’s backpack – as we slog up the snow fields.
It feels like we are proper mountaineers.
Unbelievably, that dog has come with us (or are there lots of these black dogs everywhere?). He’s having more fun than we are playing snowballs while we trudge ever onwards and upwards.
That dark rocky area ahead is where high camp is. It never seems to get any closer.
Of course we get there in the end. It is a little tent village, each tent perched on its own little plot.
It’s a full service campsite – tea and soup on arrival to help recover from the ordeal of the ascent.
I feel quite emotional getting here, to High Camp! What will it feel like getting to the top? Will I even be able to make it?
The views are superb. That is Everest in the distant centre catching a bit of cloud.
This is the sunset view from my tent opening. Worth the trek just on it’s own.
Dinner is spaghetti with tomato and cheese. The cheese saves it.
Nothing to do now but try to sleep, because at 1.00am we have an early start for the summit.