Nepal

Everest base camp trek

A rare chance to see the Top of The World

An exciting opportunity for walkers and adventurers to trek through the most amazing landscape in the world.

Khumbu Valley Trek

Nepal is the only Hindu Kingdom in the world. It is a nation where people of different cultures and traditions live in harmony with a land where the mountains reach for the sky.

Our trek will be an exciting adventure through the foothills of the Himalaya that
will stimulate your interest in the amazing adventures of early climbers and explorers who trod these routes to climb the highest mountains in the world.

It will follow in the footsteps of Hillary and Tenzing to Everest base camp. On the way, we will learn about an amazing tribe of people, The Sherpa, who live high amongst the foothills of the Himalaya.On trek, we will experience a way of life that pertains to the people of the lower valleys and the high mountain areas of Nepal.

We will visit a land where time seems to have no meaning, where we can relax and take stock of life without the pressures and confusion of modern-day living.

Why not take time out to share the excitement of this Himalayan adventure with a group of Irish climbers hoping to reach the world’s highest point?

Let your spirit run free in a place where magic, reality, history and legend are at one.

Join our team of trekkers and climbers as we explore this intriguing and fascinating mountainous country.

Kathmandu

Our adventure first takes us to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, also known as the City of a Thousand Temples, and where every other day is a festival. Kathmandu is home to over 500,000 Nepalese, living a humble life in this vibrant city, the starting point for many expeditions to the Himalaya. It was once a Mecca for the drop-out Hippie generation of the 60’s. However, today, Kathmandu has returned to its former ways, a place alive with the traditions and cultures of its many ethnic peoples.

While here, we visit some of the famous Temples of the Hindus and Buddhas. We saunter through the busy streets and markets of the Thamel in the old region of the city and experience at first-hand the hustle, bustle, sights, sounds and smells whilst mixing with the locals of this lively, cultural city.

Kathmandu to Lukla

From Kathmandu, we fly over the lower foothills of the Himalaya to Lukla, the starting point for our trek. This flight is recognized as one of the most exciting and beautiful in the world, giving us the opportunity to see many of the most famous mountains on this earth, with over 26 mountains above 6000 meters (20,000 feet) including Mt. Everest, Makalu, Lhotse, Nuptse, Cho-Oyu, Ama-Dablam and many more.

We land at Lukla on an impressive airstrip that was built on the side of a cliff -face, adjoining this small Himalayan village (an exciting adventure in itself!).

Lukla to Everest base camp

From Lukla, we embark on a trek that will take us on a meandering journey through the foothills of the upper Khumbu, an area inhabited by the world-renowned Sherpa people (men from the east).

We trek along the banks of the famous rivers of the Dubh Kosi and Bhote Kosi, surrounded by imposing gorges, with torrent rivers rushing through them as we make our way to the Everest region. While on trek, we stay in villages and live amongst the indigenous people of the area.

We visit Namche Bazaar, an amazing village which is the commercial hub of the Khumbu. Namche is an eight-day walk from the nearest road head. Tibetan traders regularly make the dangerous trek across the Tibet/China border to sell their wares to Nepalese entrepreneurs.

Each day’s trek is more spectacular then the day before as we make our way deeper into this mountainous wonderland of a Shangri-La. Mountains project like massive pillars from the deep, river-gorged valleys. We make our way along narrow paths etched from the steep hillsides in a mystical world of mountains.
Your mind becomes crowded with unforgettable images; the vivid greens of grasses and trees, the browns of earth and rocks, the white of protruding snow-capped mountains, the greys of clouds and the blue of the sky, breathtaking colours in a dream-world!
You are trekking in an area steeped in mountaineering history. “You rise your head, in the distance, at the top of the valley, Mt. Everest beckons, protected by the mighty Nuptse, Lhotse ridge, you turn your head, Thamserku (the mountain of the ten summits) Kangtega (saddle mountain) Ama-Dablam (a goddess mountain) massive mountains fill the landscape ahead.”

This is the heart of the most beautiful and inspiring mountain range in the world, the Himalayas ‘home of the snows’. They stretch in a great arch across Asia, 150 miles wide and 1700 miles long, from Indus in the west to the Brahmaputra in the east.
All along the length of the Himalaya, its mountain tops are revered by the people of the valleys below as the place of their gods. You are in a place that for centuries has been the setting for epic feats of exploration and mountain climbing.

On route to our objective of climbing Kala-Patthar, we visit the famous Buddhist monastery at Tengboche.

Finally, before returning to Kathmandu, we make an ascent of Kala-Patthar (5550 metres) for a morning view of the sunrise over the highest mountain in the world, Mt. Everest, as we look down on Everest base camp.

"I cannot put to words the feeling that such a place will give you. You will just have to experience it yourself.” A place where the Sherpa tribesmen claim is the region were the “Yeti” (a creature) or abominable snowman (half-man, half-beast) lives.

Why not join us on an amazing adventure, trekking through the foothills of the Khumbu amongst the indigenous people and the highest mountains in the world? Let this be a dream realised on an adventure of a life-time.

Trek grade

This is an exciting adventure into the foothills of the Himalaya and the trekking is easy to moderate, on good tracks that most fit people should be able for. You need to have a reasonable fitness level and be in good health.

Island Peak

For those interested in climbing we have included as part of the Himalayan challenge the beautiful trekking snow and ice mountain of Imja Tse this can be added to the Everest Trek and Kalla-Patthar which we’ll be using as an acclimatization trek for Island Peak.

Brief on Island Peak

Island peak also known as Imja Tse stands at 6189 meters (20,305 feet) and is situated in the heart of the Khumbu region of Nepal at the end of the Dingboche Valley in the Everest region and is one of 18 designated ‘ trekking peaks’ in the country. Island Peak from the lower valley looks an intriguing and awesome mountain surrounded by some of the highest mountains in the world. To climb on it offers a great chance to see this part of Nepal and to climb a 6,000 metre mountain.

It offers an easy technical, if physically demanding challenge for climbers who wish to progress from trekking and hillwalking to general mountaineering on one of the most attractive high altitude trekking Peaks in the Himalayas.

Climbing techniques required

On the final day of this climb we will require to use scrambling techniques on a ridge to reach the ice field. Before we use crampons and ice axe to cross the crevassed snow and ice field to the 200 metres upper headwall, which leads to the mountains inspiring summit. On route we will be roped together and on the headwall use fixed rope skills (Dumaring) to climb it.

A little history on the Mountain

In 1952 the mountain was given the English name of Island Peak by Eric Shiptons party who were on their way to explore the Barun Gorge. Seen from above Dingboche, which is on our route, we will notice that the mountain does really resemble an island, but an island that’s surrounded in a sea of ice. It was not until 1983 that it received it’s local name of Imja Tse.

The mountain was first climbed in 1953 by a prestigious team of mountaineers in preparation for an ascent of Mt. Everest. They were Charles Evans, Alf Gregory, Charles Wylie and the famous Tenzing Norgay with a compliment of seven other Sherpa’s who were testing out oxygen apparatus for the climb on Mt. Everest.
The view from the mountain is very impressive giving a grand view of some of the highest mountains in the world. It is when you climb it you can understand why it was given the name Island Peak.

Views from the summit of Island Peak

As you stand on it’s summit it is like standing on an Island surrounded on all sides by a deep valley likened to that of a sea. On the far side of the sea a semi-circle of mountainous cliffs rise akin to that of a mainland. To the northwest the summit of Nuptse (7879 meters /25850ft) then the jagged Nuptse/ Lhotse wall impressively curves its path to Lhotse (8501 meters/27890ft) before the ridge turns abruptly for Lhotse Shar a formidable peak at (8393 meters 27,503ft) whose ridge divides the boarder between Nepal and Tibet.

As we pivot on our summit spot on Island Peak and turn clockwise now you begin to feel as if you in the center of an Amphitheater your eyes follow the serrated ridges that surround you to pick up a series of imposing tops. To the east above the broken Lhotse Glacier the snow cone summit of Cho-Polu 6734 meters/22093, peaking over its head in the distance yet another 8000’r Makalu (8475 meters 27805ft) to the southeast we catch the ridges of Baruntse (7720m/25328ft) and then continuing southward we see the high pass that takes you into the Hunku valley before our eyes finally take us back to the spectacular pinnacled mountain of Ama-Dablam 6856m/22,493 which stand as a sentinel to Everest and all it’s surrounding peaks.

This is one of the greatest summit views in the world, a sight that will never be forgotten and one that will be hard to beat.

Trek grade

This is an exciting adventure into the foothills of the Himalayas and the trekking is easy to moderate that most fit people with hillwalking experience should be able for. You need to have a reasonable fitness level and be in good health. Most days will require 4 to 6 hours walking excluding acclimatising days.

Grade of climb

This is an ideal mountain for those wishing to progress from general mountaineering to try a high altitude mountain. It will give you all the aspects of a high Himalayan mountain adventure. It does require the use of crampons and ice axe.

This is a very worthwhile objective that will allow you to try a beautiful mountain in spectacular surroundings.