Mt. Makalu (8,481m)

01 / THE EXPERIENCE

Discover the journey

Do you want to feel this enormous sensation of satisfaction by the mighty summit of Mt. Everest and searching for the best option before it? Mt. Makalu might be the right choice for you. Makalu is a stark and beautiful near-perfect pyramid mountain with four angular ridges that poses a difficult task even for seasoned mountaineers. The world's fifth highest peak in the world rising to 27,765 feet (8,463 meters) is known for its isolated location and on the base of it lies a natural wonder: The Barun Valley. It is a difficult peak to climb because of the high altitude and steep slopes that call for technical climbing. A high level of physical condition and previous climbing expertise are required for the expedition, which lasts 6 to 8 weeks on average. After setting up base camp, the climbers proceed through many camps on the mountain until they reach the summit. The spring months of April and May are the ideal time to climb Makalu.

03 / YOUR ROUTE

Journey at a glance

Day Day 1: Arrival at Kathmandu — Upon arrival in Kathmandu, you will be picked up by our representative at the airport and taken to the hotel. You will meet your guide, discuss the trek program, and make final preparations for the trek. If you have an early arrival, we will take you for a sightseeing trip in the UNESCO world heritage site in Kathmandu and later, in the evening, you’ll have dinner in the hotel. From 20th March 2020 due to heavy congestion, all flights to and from Lukla depart from Ramechhap airport, 130km, a 4-hour drive from Kathmandu. It means now it’ll take an extra day to get to Lukla from Kathmandu though the flight price is the same. Day Day 2: Welcome brief, Gear check and Official formalities in Kathmandu — On this day, you will go on a sightseeing tour of the city, visiting some of the popular tourist attractions. In the afternoon, you will have a pre-climbing briefing with your guide and do some final preparation. Day Day 3: Drive to Ramechhap (439m/1440.28) and Flight to Lukla (2,800m/9,186ft) — Kathmandu - Ramechhap via Road- Lukla via Air You should travel to Ramechhap from Kathmandu to catch your Lukla Flight and follow the same route for returning to Kathmandu. After having breakfast in the morning, you’ll have to take a bus ride to Ramechhap which is around 5 hours and have lunch on the way to where you can try various Nepali cuisines. After you reach Ramechhap, you’ll take a flight to Lukla from Manthali Airport which lies at an altitude of 439 m above sea level and is located at a distance of 132 km east of Kathmandu.A flight to Lukla is the most unpredictable part of Everest Three Pass trek itinerary and if the flight takes place as scheduled, you’ll reach Lukla in the evening or else you’ll need to wait for the next day to proceed to Lukla. There are several airlines operating flights to Lukla; Tara/Yeti Air, Summit Air,etc. and you can choose the one you like. Moreover, the best views of the mountains can be seen on the way to Lukla. Dinner will be ready at the hotel and your guide will give you the brief about the itinerary for following day. Distance from Kathmandu to Ramechhap: 132 km/82mi and Ramechhap to Lukla: 73.4km/45.6mi Time: 5 hrs drive, 40 min flight Day Day 4: Trek to Monjo (2,800m/9,186ft) — Lukla – Chheplung – Ghat – Phakding – Bengkar – Monjo In the early morning, you will have breakfast at the hotel and walking part of the trek begins. The trail starts from Lukla and descends to the Dudh Kosi River in Phakding and lunch will take place on the way. The first day gets difficult due to cold, high altitude and backpacks. You will get the view of picturesque sherpa villages, Tibetan Scriptures engraved Mane Walls and Chhortens and monasteries throughout the trails. Chhortens are like temples and often have relics of buddha in them. You’ll reach Phakding or Monjo exploring the trail and have dinner and overnight stay at hotel. Distance – 13 km/8 mi Time – 5-6 hours Total ascent – 530 m/1738 ft Total descent – 543 m/1781 ft Day Day 5: From Phakding or Monjo, Trek to Namche Bazaar (3,440m/11,283ft) — Monjo - Jorsale - Namche Bazaar The trek from Phakding continues after breakfast, along the Dudh Kosi River, passing through pine forests and crossing several suspension bridges to Monjo. In Monjo, there is a national park checkpost. We will cross the river twice and reach Larcha Dovan, the confluence of two major rivers in Everest Valley and lunch will be in any small hotels or restaurants on the way. Here, we will cross the most iconic suspension bridge and follow a steeper trail to the historic trading town of Namche Bazaar which is surrounded by scenic mountains. From Phakding it's an 8 hrs trek and from Monjo, it's about 5-6 hrs. Dinner will be at Namche Bazar and rest for overnight. Distance: 6,5 km/4 mi Time: 4-5hours Total ascent: 662 m/2171 ft Total descent: 70 m/230 ft Day Day 6: Acclimatization Day in Namche Bazaar — Namche - Khumjung - Khunde - Namche You will take a rest day to acclimate at the high altitude. You can hike to the Everest View Hotel for a panoramic view of the Mt. Everest with delightful breakfast and tea or coffee. Then hike to the beautiful sherpa village of Khumjung and Khunde, have lunch there and return back to Namche via yak farm above Syangboche Airport. There is a newly opened Himalayan Museum and Sustainable Park in Syangboche. You can also explore the town, visit the local markets and Sherpa Cultural Museum if time permits. Make sure to charge all your electronic devices in Namche from there on you’ll have to pay extra for charging. Overnight stay at the hotel. Day Day 7: Namche Bazaar to Pangboche(3900m/12,795ft) — Namche Bazar – Kyangjuma – Leushyasa – Phungi Thanga – Tengboche – Deboche – Milinggo – Pangboche After having breakfast early in the morning, you’ll start your trek to Pangboche, which is a very challenging day in Everest Base Camp Trek. You will cross Syangboche Airport and Shangbouche Hill on this walk to get to Tengboche and continue the trek to Pangboche. You will need to hike for roughly 8 - 9 hours to reach Pangboche. It is a base camp for climbing Ama Dablam, which is close by and about 3 kilometers northeast of Tengboche in the Imja Khole valley. Pangboche also boasts the best view of Mt. Lhotse and Mt. Amadablam. Mt. Everest peeks out a little on top of Mt. Lhotse. You will be staying overnight at a hotel. Trekking Distance: 12.4 km / 7.7 mi Trekking time: 5-6 hours Total ascend: 560m / 1,837ft Total descend: 680m / 2,231ft Day Day 8: Pangboche to Dingboche (4400m/14,435.7ft) — Pangboche - Shomare - Dingboche We will ascend to Dingboche village, summer settlement of Sherpas who also have home in Pangboche. The final village in the Everest region, Dingboche is 9.1 kilometers (5.6 miles) from Tengboche monastery and is authentic traditional Sherpa village in Everest region. The river directly flows from the charming mountain of Island Peak on the east side. Because of the high altitude, the climate of Dingboche is always cool, rainy in the summer and dry and cold in the winter. We will have lunch on the way and dinner at Dingboche where you can try Churpi (Hardened cheese), dried fruits, and other Nepali food items. Distance: 6 km/4 mi Time: 5 hrs. Total ascent: 500 m/ ft Total descent: 0 m/ 0 ft Day Day 9: Dingboche to Lobuche (4,900m/16,076.12ft) — Dingboche - Dugla(Thukla) - Lobuche Lobuche is 8.4 kilometers (5.2 miles) away from Dingboche. The trail leaves Dingboche and travels through the unique Dugla valley and the Khumbu valley. We will stop in Douglas for lunch and a lengthy rest. Normally, it takes 2 hours to get here. After that, it would take you another three hours to walk across Thukla Pass to the Everest Memorial and then descend to Lobuche. Distance: 6.5 km/4 mi Time: 4-5 hours Total ascent: 662 m/2171 ft Total descent: 70 m/230 ft Day Day 10: Lobuche to Lhotse Base Camp — Lobuche - Lhotse Base Camp You'll trek to Gorak Shep and then hike to Everest Base Camp on the rocky ridges of Khumbu Glacier. Upon reaching the base camp monument, you may take photos and videos with surrounding views of Mt. Everest, Mt. Nuptse, Mt. Lhotse, Mt. Pumori, Mt. Lingtren, Mt. Khumbutse, Mt. Lho La in Nepal Side and Mt. Changtse in Tibet. EBC is an iconic destination and a major milestone for adventurers and trekkers all over the planet. Trekking distance: 15.2 km / 9.4 mi Trekking time: 8-10 hours Total ascend: 440m / 1,440ft Total descend: 440m / 1,440ft Day Day 11-45: Climbing Period — Base Camp will already have a route set up with ropes and ladders leading to Camp 1 by the time we first arrive there. Our strong Sherpa team will be hard at work carrying loads of gear up the mountain which will help ease the burden on the climbers. Two days for ladder training and familiarization in the lower Khumbu Icefall before going ascending to Camp 1(5,900m/19,500ft). Spend a couple of days at Camp 1 then proceed to Camp 2(6,400m/21,000ft) and stay several nights there to help the climbers adjust to the altitude. We also make a trip to Nuptse Camp 3(6,800m/22,300ft) to help fasten this process. Our Camp 2 is set up with cook tents, specialized cooks, and a heated dining tent with tables and chairs which will provide some level of comfort to the climbers. On the mountain, we use shared sleeping tents. After finishing this phase, we return to Base Camp to recover before making one more loop up the mountain to Camp 3, where we spend the night. Then we descend once more to Base Camp where we wait for a weather window to launch our summit attempt. When we do, we ascend through Camp 2 for a few nights before making our summit attempt after spending a night at Camp 3. The group will probably descend to Camp 3 after their long day of climbing. You would go back to Base Camp the next day. Overall, the climbing plan needs to take into consideration the various factors that can affect a climb in the Himalayas. With the right weather conditions and a strong team effort, the summit attempt is achievable. Day Day 46: Clearing up base camp — After our summit to Nuptse peak, our sherpa team will spare a day to clean up solid wastes that are residing in the mountains and make a fresh environment. Due to the tourism movement in these regions, there were huge chunks of garbage which are now controlled by such actions by climbers and the organizations responsible for clean environment. Day Day 47: Base Camp to Pheriche — Base Camp - Pheriche We complete our climb here and start our return trek to Pheriche which is 15 kilometers or 9.32 miles away. Pheriche was primarily a farming village raising potatoes and buckwheat, and keeping yaks. However, now in the summer many of its men are employed by trekkers as guides and bearers. The trek generally takes 6 to 7 hours to complete with a lot of descending and few ascends on the way. Overnight stay at Pheriche. Trekking Distance: 15 km/9.32 mi Trekking Time: 6-7 hours Total ascent: 250m/820.21 ft Total descent: 1,050m/3,444.88 ft Day Day 48: Pheriche to Namche Bazaar — Pheriche - Namche Bazaar Now, we also leave this fascinating village and continue our journey to Namche Bazaar, the most famous town in the Everest region. Most Sherpa who are in the tourism business are from the Namche area. It is also considered the main trading center and hub for the Khumbu region. If you have never tried yak steak, then it might be the best place to try some. You can stay there an extra day and explore the nearby villages and meet with the locals who are really humble and hospitable with foreigners. Trekking Distance: 20 km/12.43 mi Trekking Time: 6-7 hours Total ascent: 400m/1,312.34 ft Total descent: 1,700m/5,577.43 ft Day Day 49: Trek from Namche Bazaar to Lukla — Namche - Lukla It’s a long and final day of trek back to Lukla. It is about 20 km but mostly downhill with occasional uphill climb. The last couple of hours is uphill climb. We will retrace our steps on the left bank of Dudh Koshi river passing through lush forests and villages of lower Khumbu valley en route to Lukla. It will take about 8-9 hrs. Dinner and overnight stay at Lukla. Trekking distance: 18-19 km /11-12 mi Trekking time: 6-7 hours Total ascent: Minimal ascent Total descent: 900 m/2,953 ft Day Day 50: Drive to Ramechhap and fly to Kathmandu — You’ll need to fly back to Ramechhap and drive to Kathmandu. After reaching, we will transfer you to a hotel. In the evening, you can go shopping for souvenirs, trying Nepali or Newari Cuisine (Ethnic group and native people of Kathmandu Valley. We will organize a farewell program for you to create memories with us. Day Day 51: Departure from Kathmandu — If your flight is in the evening, we will take you for sightseeing in one of the Buddhist stupa; Boudhanath/Swayambhunath which is also listed in UNESCO World Heritage Site. Then, Our representative will receive you from the hotel and drop you at the airport for your return journey back home.

YOUR DAY-BY-DAY ROUTE

Day-by-day itinerary

Day 1Arrival at Kathmandu — Upon arrival in Kathmandu, you will be picked up by our representative at the airport and taken to the hotel. You will meet your guide, discuss the trek program, and make final preparations for the trek. If you have an early arrival, we will take you for a sightseeing trip in the UNESCO world heritage site in Kathmandu and later, in the evening, you’ll have dinner in the hotel.+