Trekking trough Nepal for peek at Mount Everest
Three Indonesian journalists, Rudi Badil from the Kompas daily, Don Hasman from the Suara Pembaruan afternoon daily, and Hery Suyono from Intisari magazine, along with businessman Edison, trekked in Nepal between Feb. 27 and March 11 this year. Led by Rudi Nurcahyo, the tour manager of trip sponsor Equator Tours & Travel of Indonesia, they followed the well-trodden path from the Lukla airport to the Solu Khumbu region, stopping briefly at the Sagarmatha National Garden and Namche Bazaar, a village where trekkers and mountaineers gather to acclimatize. Rudi Nurcahyo captured the beauty of Nepal, its people and traditions, with his camera and wrote the following two stories.
KATHMANDU, Nepal (JP): Soaring into the sky at 8,848 meters, Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world, beckons every trekker with its beauty.
Called Sagarmatha in Nepalese, meaning "Summit of the World", Mount Everest has long taunted many a climber's courage and ability. The peak has so far proven unsurmountable to Indonesian mountaineers.
There were climbers from Norway who were on their way to the peak of Everest. They were really bent on making it to the top.
"If we can't reach the peak, we should at least be able to admire its grandeur, if only from a distance," one of them commented.
That was exactly what we intended to do: Catch a glimpse of its beauty as soon as the 16-passenger Twin Otter touched down in Lukla, the small airport which has become an assembling place for adventurers from all corners of the world.
Most trekkers hire Sherpa guides. The Sherpa are the ethnic group who live in Solu Khumbu, located between Nepal and Tibet. Khumbu is part of the phrase Kumbila Tetsan Gelbu, meaning "God Protects the Land". Six hundred years ago they settled Kham in East Tibet and eventually became known as Shar Pa, meaning "arrivals from the East".
A hardy people, who have gained a reputation for extraordinary strength, the Sherpa's capability to lug heavy loads across mountainous terrain has astounded many trekkers.
The Sherpa eke out a living as mountain guides, interpreters, cooks, traders and inn keepers as well as herding the long-haired yaks that live on the slopes of the Himalayas.
The Sherpa are deeply religious. They repeat the sacred phrase Om mani padme hum! (Oh lotus seated god of the celestial jewel!) all day. They also believe that there is life after death.
Other ethnic groups, like the Rai, Tamang and Magar, have also set up home 2,866 metres above sea level in the village of Lukla. These settlers have boosted the population of a town which, a few years ago, only had a few houses. The newcomers dominate the hospitality business and hold a market every Thursday. On Saturdays, a larger and much livelier market can be found higher up in Namche Bazar.
During the peak seasons, between March and May and September and November, plane tickets between Katmandu and Lukla become scarce. Every year 6,000 trekkers visit the Sagarmatha National Garden. Flights are often delayed by bad weather. Excursions must therefore be planned with such conditions in mind.
Descending the first day from Lukla to Phakding, we entered the Solu Khumbu region. Immediately an awesome panorama of a steep and stony valley was played against a backdrop of the Kang Talga mountains (6,685 metres), and Thamserku (6,608 metres). The scene begged for rolls of film.
Our route paralleled the rapid Dudh Kosi river, which has its origin 6,066 meter above at the Ngojumba glacier. The Dudh Kosi is a holy river to the Sherpa. In Nepalese, dudh means "milk" and kosi means "water".
We passed Chaumrikharka before entering Chapling, the smallest settlement we encountered on our trip. Located on a slope, it had just 10 houses. Further on in Chumlo, the western side of the 5,579-meter Mt. Kusum Kanguru became visible. It meant we were leaving the Dudh Kosi valley.
Our kit, except for our day packs, was carried by yak and porters. In snowstorms, or on dangerously snowy terrain, yaks are used to plow through the snow to leave a passable track.
A yak can carry up to 120 kilograms slung across its back. Other than the yaks, the dzopkyo are also used as pack animals. The dzopkyo is a male cross between a yak and a cow. The females are called dzom.
The long-haired yaks are longer and larger than the dzopkyo.
After Ghat, we walked along a stone walled path to Phakding, 2,640 meters above sea level. It took us four hours to reach Phakding where we stayed the night.
The following day we passed over several bridges and traversed a pine forest. A soft breeze accompanied us until Benkar where we encountered mani stones. The mani stones depict the religious messages of Buddha. The inscriptions are mostly prayers for good health. The Sherpa always pass these stones on the left side. The word mani means "gem" in Sanskrit.
Sagarmatha
The uphill trek brought us to Monjo, near Sagarmatha National Garden. The entrance fee to the park is 650 rupee, just Rp28,000.
The Sagarmatha National Garden, measuring 1,243 square kilometers, was officially opened in 1976. In the fall the weather is crisp while the winters are dry and cold. From June to September the monsoon season takes over, bringing the average annual rainfall up to 1,000 mm.
Visits are best made between May and October. From December to February, temperatures drop below freezing, and the heavy snow renders climbing impossible.
After Monjo and the national garden, we crossed the Jorsale bridge, which spans 120.6 metres over the river Dudh Kosi and connects two hills near the junction of Bothe Kosi at the border of Nangpa La. After the bridge we ascended 590 metres in four hours to Namche Bazaar. It was our first peek of Mount Everest since we started trekking.
We stayed two nights in Namche Bazaar and took the opportunity to explore the village and its museum and information center for climbers. We had a good look at Mt. Everest and Mt. Ama Dablam (6,856 metres) on its right. We also had the opportunity to watch the activities at Syanboche, an airstrip 100 metres above Namche Bazaar.
The next day we headed for Tengboche Monastery. Perched on a plateau at 3,867 metres, this was the highest point we reached on our excursion. The view is the most spectacular imaginable. The mountains, Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, all giants above 8,000 metres, challenged us with their towering images. Mt. Ama Dablam, very clear in the vast sky, lifts its peak, straight as a finger, into the thin, clear air.
Tengboche is the main Buddhist temple in Tibet. An old sect was also established by Padmasambhava. The main temple of Tengboche, destroyed by an electrical fire in January 1989, is still being renovated.
Buddhist dramas are held in the temple courtyard every full moon. A three-day mask drama called mani rimdu was held last October. The drama was inspired by Tibetan Buddhists. A Nepalese drama is known by the same name. The first mani rimdu was staged in Tengboche in 1930.
The next day we descended to Khumjung (3,790 metres). Still in the Khumbu region, the village is built on a vast plateau to the south of Mt. Khumbila.
Khumjung, made up of 80 cottages, is slightly smaller than Namche Bazaar. It has a school named after Sir Edmund Hillary, the first climber to conquer Everest. He and his Sherpa guide, Tenzing Norgey, reached the top in 1953. Sir Hillary also built a hospital in the region.
Khumjung is surrounded by Mt. Ama Dablam and Mt. Kang Taiga (6,685 metres) in the east and the Rolwaling Mountains in the west. Ama dablam means "mother of a star-shaped pendant", an accessory Sherpa women wear with their formal clothing. Kang taiga means "saddle of snow".
The holy Mt. Khumbila is visible to the north.
Khumjung is the only village with the largest number of chorten (stupas). The biggest and most attractive among them wear metal enameled tops.
From Khumjung we returned to Namche Bazaar for lunch, then went on to Jorsale and stayed the night over in Monjo. The next day, we headed back for Lukla and boarded an 14-seat MI-17 chopper, piloted by a Russian.