Climbing Lobuche Peak in Nepal, near the Khumbu Glacier (20 days)

Arrival in Kathmandu (1400m)

The wide expanse of the silvery Himalayas will be visible from the window of your plane, it is a treat flying above Nepal.

After a few minutes of weaving in between the Himalayan mountains, you will land in Kathmandu.

You will be warmly welcomed as per Nepali culture, with a garland at the airport terminal by a company representative and a driver.

A private vehicle will escort you through the vibrant streets of Kathmandu to your designated hotel.

Our representative will help you check-in and will brief you about the trip beginning the next day.

Fly from Kathmandu to Lukla (2800m) and trek to Phakding (2656m)

In the early morning you will be served a hearty breakfast in your hotel.

Then as per your flight timetable to Lukla you will be transferred to the airport in a private vehicle.

A thirty minutes flight to Lukla is one of the most thrilling experiences.

Just before landing at Lukla airport the plane flies above a deep gorge and then makes the landing on the pitch-black air strip.

The overall flight is a sheer adventure.

As you check out from Lukla airport, your trek guide will take care of you.

He will brief you about the trek, which will be beginning in few minutes.

As you start the trek, you will be moving along Dudh Koshi River to Phakding.

It is a short trek of 2-3 hours to begin your adventure.

The first day trek is designed to familiarise you with the area and the nature get you warmed up.

Trek to Namche Bazar (3450m)

Early morning after breakfast at your teahouse at Phakding, you will set off for the day.

Your lunch will be served at one of the teahouses on the way.

From Phakding, the trail continues north up the Dudh Koshi valley.

The route follows the captivating course alongside Dudh Koshi River and then climbs to the village of Chumao.

Passing the interspersed villages with magnificent fields of rhododendron, magnolia and giant firs; the trail sharply descends the big valley of Monjo.

At this point the trek enters into Sagarmatha National Park.

Beyond the park entrance the trail makes a steep rock-strewn descent into a large farm and at a short distance you will arrive at Jorsale village (2850m).

From Jorsale, after several steep descents and ascents you will finally come into the Sherpa capital Namche (3450m).

You will have a rest day today.

Namche is a live amphitheater of Sherpa culture in the Khumbu region.

Perched on the slopes of crescent shaped hills, Namche is the busiest stop over of the whole region with a wide array of shops, restaurants, hotels, lodges and communication centers.

You can explore the town and the surrounding area.

You can also visit Khunde Hospital established by Sir Edmund Hillary, or walk uphill to have the mesmerising sunset view of Ama Dablam, Nuptse, Lhotse and Everest.

You will commence the day’s trek along a diagonal trail until it brings you to the huge conglomerated rocks that dividie the trail between Khumjung and Khumde.

However, you will slide down to the bridge and cross over to Phunki (3250m).

The distinctive prayer wheels that continually rotate around the water will make you halt for a while for a closer look.

Afterwards, you will resume the trek up a long uphill climbing section through the evergreen forests full of colorful flowers including rhododendron (during spring).

The entire experience is blissful with the pleasant aroma of wild flowers when the wind changes its direction.

Finally, the trail brings you to the awe-inspiring verdant plateau of Tengboche (3876m).

Historical and sacred, Tengboche monastery has a remarkable view of Mt. Everest and Mt. Ama Dablam.

This is a perfect reward for reaching Tengboche.

The trek once again hits the Himalayan trail, going through the forest and past the yaks grazing on pastures.

It goes up beyond 4000m.

At the horizon, the Everest summit and the majestic rock palisades of Nuptse and Lhotse seems exceptionally beautiful.

Passing by the spring and continuing downhill the trail brings you to Gompa of Devoche (3757m), Milingo (3820m) and then to a bridge over Imja Khola at (3780m).

The short upward climb brings you to the monastery of Pangboche (3985m).

The monastery claims to own a scalp and hand of the legendary Yeti.

After exploring the monastery, the trek sets out again crossing a saddle, along a plain straight trail.

You will continue towards Orsho, where you will cross Dudh Koshi river to go up towards Dingboche.

Dingboche serves as an entrance to the Chukhung Valley.

Today we’ll take a short walk through the ridgeline above Dingboche to Thugla.

With a gradual uphill walk, you will head towards a small pass.

From there, in the far east, you can spot Mt. Makalu for the first time.

You can also get the first views of Lobuche and Pumori.

As you move on, you can get a real close-up view of Tawuche.

After passing a road coming from Pheriche, you will cross a small river and head through a rocky terrain.

You will soon reach Thugla at the end of the moraine terminal in the Khumbu Glacier.

A short steep climb up to Chukpo Lari will lead to a beautiful place where there is a line of memorials in tribute to the climbers who lost their lives while climbing Everest.

From this point, you can see the outstanding views of Ama Dablam, Cholatse and Taweche.

As you move ahead following the valley to Lobuche (4910m) your next destination, the terrain will be drier and rockier with no vegetation at all.

The trail starts ascending steeply beside the moraine glacier.

After few hours of walking, you will finally reach Lobuche settlement, which is a small cluster of tea houses.

Gorakshep is just a 300 meters upward climb from Lobuche.

The early morning start of the trek will quickly take you to Gorakshep.

With the dawn break you will resume your trek.

Trek to Everest Base Camp from Gorakshep is a six hours round trip.

Since camping at the Base camp is prohibited, you will have to make it early, do your activities and trek down back to Lobuche.

Following the Khumbu glacier- sometimes the moraine glacier too, you will enjoy the sight of peculiar 15m-high-seracs of ice.

At the Base Camp you will have some ice fun, take group and individual photos for your Base Camp memory, view the Himalayan giants and trek down along the retracing trail to Lobuche.

Gorakshep is the common vantage point to climb Kalapattar and trek to the Everest Base Camp.

The climb of Kalapattar is one of the rewards of this trip.

The steep climb up the grassy slopes improves the surrounding view with every step towards the top of Kalapattar.

Kalapattar in Nepali refers to “black rock”.

The place offers the telescopic view of Everest and other Himalayan peaks as a scientific telescope is also placed there.

Kalapattar is a unique vantage point providing the most elegant view of Everest, including the entire South Col and Lho La- pass between Nepal and Tibet.

Feasting your eyes at Kalapattar, you will slide down back to Lobuche.

After leaving Lobuche, you will trek along a flat land trail for about half the journey.

After that, you will start ascending along the Lobuche Glacier.

After about four hours of walking, you will reach Lobuche Base Camp.

On your way, you can enjoy the stunning views of Cholatse, Tawache, Ama Dablam, Pokhalde, Thamserku, Kantega, etc.

Today, you will scale up slowly to the High Camp.

The closer you get to the summit, the more the amazing panorama starts unfolding in front of you.

You will start early today. After scaling up some steep slopes and ice gullies, you will reach the summit of Lobuche.

After reaching the summit, you will be left speechless by the petrifying beauty of the whole panoramic view before you.

After celebrating your achievement for some minutes, you will return back along the same trail to the Base Camp for overnight stay.

This day is a reserve day in case of changes in weather or members’ health condition etc.

You will descend through Lobuche.

As you move ahead, you will slowly trek from dry terrain to sparse forest areas.

Sherpa villages including Pheriche and Dingboche along with the wonderful views like AmaDablam, Pokalde, Thamsherku will be available.

On the returning trail, because of the easy descent walk, you will cover the long distance and yet you will feel much better.

Finally, the trek for the day ends at Pangboche, the home of the monastery with the Yeti claim.

Today you will continue your trek on the descending trail.

Traversing the rhododendron and magnolia forests, exploring the monasteries at villages like Tengboche and Khumjung, you will once again arrive at Namche.

This time you will enjoy your success with drinks, explore the Bazaar, and hunt for souvenirs.

Today you will trek through Dudh Koshi valley and retrace your path along Monjo and Phakding to reach Lukla.

On the way, recall that the trek to Namche from Lukla was over 10 hours and took two hard days to complete.

Now the reverse trek from Namche to Lukla is just 6-8 hours consuming a simple single day.

At the end of Day 17, you arrive at Lukla and your trek concludes.

Congratulations your trek has been an amazing, unforgettable journey.

As per your flight schedule, you will board the twin otter plane and fly back to Kathmandu.

At Kathmandu, like before, you will be received by a company representative and a driver.

You will be escorted to your hotel.

The long trek in the Himalayan region might have worn you out.

Take pleasure in the free day at the Nepali capital. You can just wonder in the lively streets of Thamel and Asan, travel around the cultural sights of the city or you may simply chill checking your mail box at hotel room.

In the evening, your tour officer will pick you up for dinner at one of the cultural restaurants of Thamel.

Enjoy the evening with TAGnepal and after the dinner, you will be escorted back to your hotel.

Your tour officer and a driver will be at your hotel reception to pick you up three hours prior to your departure. You will be transferred to the airport in a private vehicle.

Our tour officer and driver will see you off. Have a safe flight back home!