November 13 at 1:30am we got our wake up call. We ate some soup, had some breakfast and started changing/getting ready. We left our campsite just before 3:00am. The group was Nima in the front, me second, Vik third and Kaji at the back end. We were all tied together (with about 5 metres in between each of us) and the rope tied to our harnesses. It was pitch black when we started, cold and windy. We were going very slowly because our toes and fingers were frozen. The other guys had started about 30 minutes before us. As we were going, we started seeing lights coming towards us. It turns out that 3 from the English group had decided to turn back an hour into their ascent because it was just too cold and they couldn't do it. That was quite disheartening. Somehow, Vik and I managed to maintain our wits and help each other get through the next few hours. We just took it literally one step at a time and really slowed things down to ensure we were breathing correctly and getting enough rest. Going slowly and not stopping is much better than going quickly but stopping for 2 minutes every 5 minutes. At one point Nima turned around and said "Are we going up or down? to me in a very sarcastic tone so I could tell he was getting annoyed with how fast, sorry slow, we were going. He even started yanking the rope so I would speed up but I did my best to keep the pace slow and steady.

 

 

Vik and I pretty much both collapsed at the top for a few seconds (actually probably minutes) just to collect our breath. We weren't even ready to take in the scenery and views around us - it was just way too much all at once. We were both experiencing relief, triumph, tiredness, deliria. It was such a mix of emotions but something neither of us will every feel again I'm sure. That feeling of being "on top of the world" is pretty damn cool. I know we weren't b/c obviously Everest and other peaks are higher but for those 10 minutes on the Mera Peak summit, staring at the other peaks in the distance - it truly felt like we were at the highest point.

 

The descent from the summit just felt like a chore. Both of us were hurting, had bad headaches and no appetites. We had to walk all the way down to Khare that day too, past High Camp and past Base Camp. That afternoon of walking was really a test of will and determination. Both of us were struggling and just wanted it to end. In total, we must have walked for about 10 hours that day and we finally reached Khare at around 3:00 pm in the afternoon. We celebrated with the English lads (congrats to Mark and Damian for summitting as well) and had a nice feast that night to celebrate our triumph. We slept very well that night and woke up the next morning both thinking the same thing. Let's get back to Lukla as fast as we can - we want this to be over and we are finished with camping!

 

The next 3 days was spent walking back to Lukla. We were retracing ground that we had already covered so it made the walk a tad boring most of the time. I just found my mind wandering a lot because the hard work was already behind us. The problem with a wandering mind though is that you lose focus and then you tend to trip, fall, etc and the downhills make things even crazier. Attempting the Zetra La pass again was also scary. The first part of the descent, we used a harness and rope. The rest of the way, we were just doing free climbing and I was sure I was going to fall. Well, I did fall several times but luckily I didn't hurt myself too bad as the snow was pretty soft. Other parts though weren't as forgiving so that made for an interesting afternoon.

 

Vik and I finally returned to Lukla on November 17 and managed to get an earlier flight back to Kathmandu on November 18. Arriving in Kathmandu and getting to our hotel was definitely a treat. My first shower in 17 days! Grooming by beard was a chore because it had grown quite long in the 25 days. Wow, it was so nice to just sit around and watch TV and order room service for that first day. We both completely relaxed and chilled out. That night we met up with the English lads and had some Indian food.

 

So, the trek is done. I'm back in India now and I wonder - "Would I ever do anything like that again?" The short answer is no. I think it's a been there done that thing. I can cross it off my list and find something else to tackle. Overall I enjoyed it but it could have been so miserable if the weather hadn't cooperated (just based on all those other people we met along the way). I am really proud of my accomplishment and I've especially glad I was able to experience it all with somebody else. Vik and I really enjoyed ourselves and helped each other through rough stretches so all in all, I think we are both very satisfied with our accomplishments.

 

Thanks for taking the time to read this entries and peruse my photos. I hope that maybe some of this will inspire you all to do something like this and experience a trip like this. Taking yourself outside of your natural environment, stretching your limits and just testing your self are all great things to do from time to time. I'm glad I did it and glad that I passed the test with flying colours.