Island Peak Climbing with EBC Trek - 22 Days

After your arrival at the airport in Kathmandu you will be greeted by one of our representatives who will later escort you to the hotel. After hotel check in you can decide whether you would like to have a relaxing rest at the hotel or hang around city depending upon the availability of time. O/N you stay at the hotel.

Today after breakfast we will set out for a guided city tour where you get to discover several historical and spiritual attractions of Kathmandu. You will be seeing the world heritage sites like historical Durbar Square, the sacred Hindu temple of lord Pashupatinath, Buddhist pilgrimage Swoyambhunath (famous by the name of Monkey temple among tourists), Boudhanath Shrine and many more cultural and natural monuments. The Kathmandu City tour will more or less familiarize you with Nepalese urban lifestyle. Later we will have a discussion session where we discuss about our trek plan and preparation. Our trek leader would be obliged to brief you about our expedition and answer your queries. O/N you stay at the hotel.

After breakfast you will be escorted to the domestic terminal of the Kathmandu airport to board a flight to Lukla, a gateway for our trekking expedition. The scenic flight to Lukla is surely going to be a once in a lifetime experience for you. The air route to Lukla is one the most beautiful air route in the world. The 40 minutes flight above the majestic mountains will land you at Tenzing-Hillary airport in Lukla. Upon arrival at Lukla we start our trek until we reach Phakding. The trail to Phakding lets you discover the green landscape with a scenic view of Kusum Kangraru. 0/N we stay in a guest house.

Today we take a stiff walk through a beautiful pine forest that leads us along the Dudh Koshi River and Hillary Suspension bridge to reach the check post and the entrance to Sagarmatha National Park. The trail follows the confluence of Dudh Koshi and Bhote Koshi rivers. Walking further we reach chautra where we have the first glimpse of Mt. Everest peering over the Lhotse-Nuptse ridge. Two hours of more walk eventually lands us in Namche Bazaar(3440m) which is a gateway to Mt. Everest and trading point for many Sherpa people and Tibetan merchants. Namche Bazaar is an ideal market for visitors to purchase traditional crafts and other mementos. We will spend two days in Namche for acclimatization and visit local markets and traditions of the people living in the Himalayas. O/N we stay in a guest house.

We have set this day for acclimatization. We have all the options today whether go for hiking to Thame or visit Khunde or relax and explore Namche Bazaar itself. Namche Bazaar is the center of the Khumbu region and it has government offices, internet cafes, Shops, restaurants and colorful market each Friday evening and Saturday. A few hundred vertical feet of trekking will really us to properly acclimatize. Our guide will take you to the Tourist Visitor Center near the headquarter of Sagarmatha National Park (UNESCO world natural heritage site) where you can observe an assortment of things related to the first Everest ascenders, Sherpa culture and learn about the various plant and animal life of the Everest region. A day full of hangout at the Namche Bazaar lets you discover the Himalayan beauty of the Khumbu region. O/N we stay in a guest house.

We set out towards the trail that leads us to magnificent village of Tengboche enjoying the awe-inspiring views of Mt. Everest, Mt. Nuptse, Mt. Lhotse, Mt. Ama Dablam and close-up view of Mt. Thamserku. Our journey today would rather be an exciting one for it offers magnificent view of the Himalayas and the Himalayan range throughout our expedition. On the way, we can spot wildlife musk deer, a herd of Himalayan Thar and multicolored pheasants. The trail via Kayangjuma eventually reaches Sansa, which is the major trail junction to Gokyo valley and Everest Base Camp. We walk further through the beautiful pine forest crossing prayer flags festooned bridge over the Dudh Koshi river to reach Phunki Thenga. After few minutes of halt for lunch we climb through the forests for few more hours to reach Tengboche where we spend our night. Tengboche is a great place for close up views of Mt. Everest, Mt. Ama Dablam and Mt. Nuptse. The biggest Buddhist Monastery of the Khumbu region “Tengboche Monastery or Gompa” is the central attraction of Tengboche. We pay our visit to the monastery and witness some ceremonies out there. We will also spend plenty of time capturing the scenic beauty of the Himalayan range in our cameras. Overnight, we stay at a guest house in Tengboche.

The morning view of the Himalayas from the Tengboche monastery is simply breathtaking. You cannot resist saying a big WOW! We will spend some time capturing the scenic views in our cameras from the Tengboche monastery. We then set off for Pheriche via riverside trail all the way through the forest. After crossing the river we trek through the almost barren landscape. We reach a traditional Sherpa village of Pangboche from where we continue ascending a small hill following the trail that leads to Pheriche. Pheriche village is located on the riverside and host a small Sherpa settlement. If interested you may take a class with a mountain specialist in the medical clinic at Pheriche. You may spend the evening exploring the village and interacting with Sherpa people. Overnight, we stay at Pheriche.

We set off for Lobuche today. The trails continue by the riverside and reach Duglha. We will then ascend the terminal moraine of the Khumbu glacier to reach Chupki Larka; ridge top that offers exotic mountain views. The top of the ridge is festooned with array of stones with prayer flags uses as a memorials to Scott Fischer (Am American Mountaineer) and Babu Chiri Sherpa (who successfully invaded Everest 10 times). The trail further descend down to the Khumbu Glacier moraine where we find ourselves in front of several raising peaks like Mt. Khumbutse, Mt. Lingtren, Mt. Pumori and Mahalangur Himal. We are quite close to Mt. Everest but surprisingly it still remains hidden. Overnight, we stay in a guesthouse.

Today we will be trekking to Gorak Shep, explore Everest Base Camp and later climb down to Gorak Shep for the night stay. The trail to Gorak Shep goes ahead via the moraine of Khumbu Glacier. We will be setting a long walk enjoying the majestic views of the Khumbu region. We pass through the pyramid sign post and trek further witnessing the crest of north ridge of Everest along with Mt. Pumori, Mt. Mahalangur, Mt. Lingtern, Mt. Khumbutse, Mt. Nuptse and other neighboring Himalayas. Climbing further we find ourselves in Thangma Riju that offers a 360 degree panoramic view of snowy mountains. Climbing through the stream of Changri Glacier we have our first sight of Kala Patthar. Reaching Gorak Shep we find ourselves surrounded by snowy mountains including Mt. Everest. After a brief halt at Gorak Shep we continue the trail straight ahead through Indian Army Mountaineers’ memorials that takes us to Everest Base Camp. After reaching EBC we really feel like appreciating the bravery and courage of Everest climbers who dare to invade Everest passing through the hazardous Khumbu icefall. We can see mountains like Mt. Nuptse, Mt. Khumbutse and Mt. Pumori from the Everest Base Camp but Mighty Everest remains hidden. We will be spending tonight at Gorak Shep in a guesthouse.

Today we set off for yet another exciting and adventurous hike to the Kala Patthar and further to Lobuche. We start in the early morning to catch the spectacular view of Mt. Everest and the Himalayan range from Kala Patthar. We need to gear up with some fine cloths so as to protect ourselves from the cold wind which is quite common in the region. En route we can see some scenic mountains like Lingtren, Changtse, Khumbutse etc form a distance. We can also witness Mt. Everest revealing itself as we continue our trek. On our way we can stop for some time to snap the beautiful natural scenes and the Himalayan range. A long and stiff walk for several hours we will reach Kala Patthar. Climbing a distance we will reach an altitude marked by cairns and prayer flags. The natural scene of mountains and the Himalayan range are superb from this point. You cannot take your eyes off from the views that you will witness from this point. We will capture scenic beauty in our cameras and get back to Gorak Shep and finally climb down to Lobuche for the night stay.

We will be setting off for rather a difficult part of our trek today. We trek via Khumbu glacier to Kongma La base Camp (5000m) passing through the famous Kongma La Pass (0ne of the three high passes of the region). After ascending Kongma La, we see cairn wrapped in prayer flags which are the marks of the pass. We will then ascend up the Imja Khola valley to reach Chhukung. If you do not wish to follow the Kongma La pas there is an alternative trail via Dingboche to reach Chhukung. Chhukung is a small village of this region. Overnight, we stay in a Guest house at Chhukung.

We will follow the trail climbing steadily towards south of the valley and later continue turning east. The trail then continues along the southern edge of the moraine from the Lhotse Glacier. We will be having a relaxed walk via Imja and Lhotse glacier moraine to the Base camp of Island peak. Upon reaching the base camp our guides will conduct the training session on peak climbing skills and using climbing gears like ice axe, climbing boot and crampons, harness, ascender, rope handling etc. Although it is not mandatory to take any training for Island peak climbing, it provides with basic techniques on gears handling and techniques that helps in successfully climbing the peak. Overnight, we stay at Island Peak Base Camp.

Today we move to island Peak High Camp from its base camp. The path to high camp leads up beyond the base camp. We then ascend few meters towards the hillside. The path is quite sandy initially and later goes through the grassy path. We ascend the hill and reach the high camp of Island peak.

Today is the climax of our trip. We will be summiting the Island peak. We begin our climb early in the morning few minutes after the midnight. We begin by climbing a rocky ditch. This is not difficult but still the short rocky steps may create some problem. We will then follow a ridgeline which leads to an exciting traverse through the snout of the summit glacier. We need the rope support to go up through the glacier as it contains several crevasses. The guides will help you in fixing the ropes where necessary. A vertical snow hill leads us to the summit ridge. After summiting the peak we take pictures of scenic beauty from the peak and descend down to Chhukung for the overnight stay. We have all the reasons to celebrate the night today.

Weather plays vital role for Island peak climbing. For any reason if we could not climb the Island on 14th day, we will summit the peak today. If the weather is fine and all the crew members are ready to summit the peak on 14th day as planned then we don’t need this spare day.

We gear up for a long day trekking today. We trek through Imja Khola to reach Pangboche village. We will also visit the famous monastery in Pangboche which is believed to be the oldest in the Khumbu region. We then descend down the trail via green landscape filled with pine forest. The trail further leads to an uphill climb to reach the village of Tengboche. We pay our visit to the Monastery and descend down to Dudh Koshi River. We climb the hillside and enter the Namche Bazaar. Overnight, we stay in Namche.

We will be wrapping up our trekking expedition today. Leaving Namche Bazaar behind we descend down the rocky trail crossing suspension bridges over the Dudh Koshi river. As we walk the trail becomes more smooth and easy. We find the environment really warm and cozy compared to previous days of our expedition. We can feel the fresh air blowing from Himalayas that makes our expedition more energetic and vibrant. We pass through beautiful forest filled with Rhododendron, pine trees and different natural vegetations. We get to snap beautiful mountains and the panoramic views on our way. We will be pleased passing through Sherpa villages that offer a unique blend of Sherpa culture and tradition. Upon arrival at Lukla we conclude our long expedition and have a relaxing time with our friends and crew members. Overnight, we stay in Lukla.

We will wave our final goodbye to the beautiful mountains today. The flights from Lukla to Kathmandu are usually scheduled for the morning because the windy afternoon may cause difficulties flying the aircraft. The early morning scenic flight over the Himalayas drops us at the domestic terminal of Kathmandu airport from where you will be escorted to the hotel. Today we have the whole day to relax at the hotel or hang around in the city for buying gifts to your near and dear ones. You will be joining a special farewell dinner in a cozy traditional Nepali restaurant hosted by Breakfree Adventures and its team. O/N at the Hotel.

Your trip to the majestic country of Nepal comes to an end today! You will be escorted by one of the representatives of Breakfree Adventures to the international terminal of Kathmandu airport approximately three hours before your flight schedule. We exchange our last good-byes and now you will be leaving Nepal with all the good memories you had during the wonderful trekking adventure. We hope you had a lovely time with us. Breakfree Adventures would be obliged to be your travel partner during your next adventure in Nepal. Have a safe flight back home!