The Big Day: Eye on the Prize

6:00 AM:  Wake up knock on the door, followed by a bowl of wash water and a mug of hot Sherpa tea.

7:00 AM Breakfast:  Toast with cheese and tomatoes with scrambled eggs downed with three mugs of ginger tea.

Morning med check.

8:00 AM Head out through rocky streams, scree and more loose terrain.

I stopped along the way to photograph Everest.  I was so tense from concentrating on my footing yesterday, that my shoulders and base of neck were stiff.  I informed Ming and took a Tylenol.

10:22 AM  I arrived at Everest Base Camp second of our group, after Chelli!  Chelli gave me a big smile and hug, saying, “Congratulations!”  I looked around to see who else beat me to the goal, as I was getting used to being in the last group.  “Are you first?” I asked Chelli.  “Yes!” Chelli replied with glee.  Wow, my mantra during this trek was “Eye on the prize, Judy.  You can do it.  One foot in front of the other.”  I kept up a steady pace and made it to the goal.  I was overcome with joy, pride and disbelief.

Cheers, hugs, kisses, handshakes of congratulations all around, as each member of our group reached EBC.  I was handed a welcome mug of hot orange drink by one of the kitchen staff.  Our kitchen staff was already there with our tents set up and lunch preparations under way.

Ginger tea was poured before the last of our group arrived.  Sharon and Tim hugged each other in victory, before resting on a boulder to take in some pure oxygen.

We took turns taking photos of each other with the Everest Base Camp marker.  After all of our group had arrived and congratulations were made, Ted gathered us together for group photos with and without our indispensible staff.

As I stepped away for my turn behind a boulder, I heard the familiar crack-like thunder of an avalanche.  I looked up to see within a dusting of snow a large block of snow sliding down the side of the mountain across from our location.  I shouted to Dan, “Dan!  There’s your avalanche!”  Dan quickly positioned his camera to take some photographs of the avalanche.  I took a few photos, too.

I took photographs of Lily with her letter from her beloved departed brother.  His memory gave Lily the courage and strength to make it through despite her painful ankle injury.

Lunch was served at Everest Base Camp:  Ramen noodles, kernel corn, French fries, pancakes and ginger tea.  Although two tents were set up with cushions and rugs for our comfort, most of us opted to sit on a rock to eat in the sunshine with a view of Everest Base Camp perched on top of the Khumbu Glacier.

I joined a small group that trekked to greater Everest Base Camp to take some photos and see if any researchers or trekkers would give a talk.  Along the way, one of my poles got stuck in a crevice and broke when I pulled it out.  Kumar repaired it and we decided to join the other group returning to Gorak Shep.  After informing Annie of our change of plans, Annie called ahead to let the other group know we were returning to camp to join their group; but by the time we returned to the Everest Base Camp marker, all traces of our brief stay were removed and the group had long gone.  Well, why not take a few more photos with the marker unhindered by the tents?

2:30 PM:  On the way back to Gorak Shep, it began to snow.  Just little flurries at first; I even stopped to take a photo of a snow flake on my black glove.

3:25 PM:  Back in my room at Gorak Shep, I laid down to rest.  Ming checked up on me.  I said I was fine, just tired, call me for dinner.

4:00 PM:  Annie came to my room to say there’s a meeting, but change all of my wet clothes first.

At tea, Ted congratulated us.  Tomorrow’s agenda:  If it is cloudy at 4 AM, we’re not going to hike to the top of Kala Pathar.  If it is not cloudy and you are planning to hike Kala Pathar, wakeup call will be 4:00 AM; if you are NOT going to hike up Kala Pathar, wakeup call would be at 6:00 AM.  We are going to stay in Pheriche with a boxed lunch at Lobuche, since we didn’t like the lodge at Lobuche.  This means we will hike a double day back to Pheriche if we were willing to trek a little longer with the reward of staying at Pheriche.  We all agreed.

I really want to hike to the summit or to the vista viewpoint of Kala Pathar because then I would be able to have a fantastic view and photograph of Mount Everest for my next book.

The yak dung burning stove was fired up, but not kept up.  We sat around the stove as long as we could.

6:30 PM Dinner:  Tomato soup with papadum, spaghetti with yak meat sauce, garlic naan and salad.

During after dinner med check, I sat next to Noni.  I overheard Noni saying, “Then I will be ready at 4.”  Annie replied to Noni, “Don’t get up at 4:00 AM and call everyone else to get up.  Let the Sherpas do the waking up.  They’ll decide whether it’s safe to go up, not you.”

Water container refills and called it an early night.

8:00 PM:  Lily stopped by my room to talk.  She filed her nails while I journaled.