Tips to improve your Everest Base Camp Trek experience
Most of the adventure lovers’ loves adventure what they going to encounter during their adventure trips. One of the dream destinations for adventure lovers is Everest Base Camp Trek. You will get different level of experience if you take care of small things or if you know something in advance that will help to boost up your experience in Himalayan regions. The article focuses on giving the best authentic tips for better experience of the adventure hike to Everest Base Camp. One need to keep in mind that Everest Base Camp is accessible in various ways. Now a day, you can avoid walking and still reach to Everest Base Camp. The simple tips which enhance your trek experience in the whole Everest area is summarized below.
Take Cash on the Trek
There are limited ATM during the trek and that are concentrated at the beginning of the trek. As you go higher the price goes high and there is a chance that you might need to spend extra on comfort like heated rooms, hot water bags, and batteries charging so take sufficient cash for these things. Remember, Cash is King in the mountains. If you rely on ATM’s many days they are out of order and you might get a trouble. Even the exchange rates in mountain are not that good like Kathmandu. You can ask with your guide he might have extra cash and you simply payback in Lukla or even in Kathmandu if he is flying back to Kathmandu with you.
Take enough liquid
Staying hydrated in the mountains is the best way to avoid mountain sickness. Mountain sickness is often triggered by not having sufficient liquid, food, sleep and rest besides acclimatization. Drink enough liquid in any forms but avoid alcoholic beverages while going higher. Your trekking organizer are not able to provide you an extra bowl of soup but do not hesitate to buy it on the spot if you think you are lacking the liquid intake. You can figure out the cheaper way of purifying the water if you can’t fund for the bottled water. The bottled water would cost around $4 in the base camp and if you drink three liters a day that would be $12.
Eat and sleep sufficient amount
Good amount of food and good amount of sleep is necessary for the successful hike to reach the Base camp and Kalapathar. If you starve then go for traditional Nepali meal where you can get extra amount without extra charge. Popular by the name Dalbhat, which is one of the fresh foods prepared in the kitchen every meal. Wide varieties of western dish are available in most of the popular villages.
Bring your own towel with elastic or pillow covers
As the temperature is low throughout the year and there is a limited laundry facilities, an extra pillow cover on your own would be very beneficial while you are sleeping in the tea houses. You can use your towels as pillow covers by fixing them with elastics on the both end. Don’t forget to pack your towel or pillow cover for use on the next tea house.
Book, music, cards and handy games
Probably you reach the tea house and finish the day hike around 3-4 o’clock. It is really useful if you bring books, music and games to pass your time before dinner and after dinner. Don’t stay too long in the dining area after having dinner as that is the sleeping area for your guide and porter. If you hang around there until very late the guides and porters are not getting sufficient rest because they are the first to wake up as the dining halls are the public areas.
Energy bars and snacks from Kathmandu
Any extra weight and volume you have on your bag you can pack with energy bars and light snacks from Kathmandu which will be beneficial to change your taste and consume as light meals during the hike. Wide variety of energy bars and light snacks are available in supermarkets in Kathmandu. As you go high in the mountains the prices of these go higher and much more costly than Kathmandu.
Know your weight limits during the domestic flights
The flight from Kathmandu to Lukla and come back allowed only 10 kg of bag and 5 kg of hand carry so consider this. Extra weights are allowed with extra pay at the airport but remember that would be either carried by you or your porter on the high mountains. Don’t carry stuffs which are not necessary for the trek, don’t forget what you must have for the trek.
Baggage storing facility in Kathmandu
Your trekking organizer or the hotel you stay facilitate for storing unwanted gears in Kathmandu so take advantage of it. If you do not stay at the same hotel they might incur some extra cost for storing your luggage. Ask with your trek operator for details.
Acclimatization is very important
Please check your itinerary carefully, some of the cheap operator to cut the price of the trip they skip the acclimatization day. If you skip the acclimatization day your chance of reaching the base camp is reduced by 505 or more. The price at the beginning seems promising to you but you are not achieving what you expect to achieve. If you have plenty of exposures in the high mountains then please feel free to consult with your organizer.
Look for different deals in international flights
You can check for options with different airlines to get a better deal to arrive in Kathmandu. Few extra hours waiting in the airport might reduce your flight cost significantly or changing the airline you might get much better price than you expect. Must of the local operator from Nepal does not cover international flights so as the flight tickets you have to organize on your own, look in advance and flexible with your itinerary for few days.
Free days before trek
At least one free day before trek give you time to recover from Jetlag, take sufficient rest or discover Kathmandu on your own or do the trek preparation so you get better experience than midnight runners.
Flight delay and diversion
The weather in Lukla keeps changing very fast so the delaying the flight or diversion of the flight to and from Lukla is very common. In many cases there will be helicopter with extra cost or supplement so prepare for that. Now a day the road towards Lukla is also under construction, if you wish to get the unforgettable experience of the Nepalese mountain road you might need to take a long local drives which in many cases might cost more than the flight tickets if you get no one to share your vehicle.
Go with Reputed Company
Do not hesitate to pay few dollars extra to join the reputed company. The reputed company has the professional staffs, more movements in the area and navigates better when you are in trouble. The reputed company also has good connection in the local area too. In case of hard time or bad weather they can quickly organize the next best step.
Try Alternate routes
There are quite a few treks that include Everest Base camp than the traditional missionary route to reach the base camp. Trying these alternate routes might be harder than the traditional route but creates different experience. The best alternative to traditional Everest Base Camp trek is Gokyo Valley and Everest Base Camp. If one cannot make Cho-la pass there is a way to avoid the pass still visiting Gokyo valley.
Buy gears in Kathmandu
Trekking gears are available in knock down price in Kathmandu. The price of the gear varies with the quality but still they are much cheaper than your home country. We can send our staff to locate the best stores if you wish.
Prepare for any types of bathrooms
Local tea house owners are trying their best to keep the bathrooms clean that does not mean, that will meet your standard. In many places only choice is squat toilet where many of the westerners are not used to so prepare for it. As the water gets freezes everywhere it is very hard to use and maintain western toilets. I am extremely sorry to say but the writer has seen difficulties for plus size people to use the squat toilets.
Bring worn in shoes
Buy your trekking boots at least few months before you leave your home. You can do the hike with those boots to make comfortable space inside for your foot. New shoes mostly help to develop blisters as you go for continuous walk for many days. You can wear your hiking boots even in the city area if you do not have opportunity to go out with these boots.
Go for few hikes before you do the Everest Base Camp trek
It would be extremely beneficial if you could do few small hikes before you head for the serious hike to Everest Base Camp. The hike might be on your own country or it might be in the lower elevation in Nepal or any of the Himalayan regions. We have several hiking itineraries which are much easier than EBC hike. This does not mean to discourage you but we are discussing about developing a habit and train your feet and body.
Ask your guide for alternative routes
Once you have a permit to reach the Everest Base Camp, still there are alternate routes so you can figure out by asking your guide about the alternates of few hours to few days which might give you new experience or you can skip some part of the trail which you have already walked or which you are going to repeat.
Free days after your trek
The free days after the trek give confidence of not missing the international flights even the weather in Lukla is not favorable and somebody got stuck there. The free days might be utilized to do some day tours in Kathmandu or do the safari trips in Chitwan if everything goes normal.
Considering all above fact we have prepared an exceptional itinerary for maximizing your Everest Base Camp Trek experience. If you Love more adventure you can give a try to Three High Passes Trek in Everest or you just enjoy the panoramic view of Everest doing Everest Panorama Trek.
Are you crazy to have stunning view of the Everest but don’t like to hike at all? Why don’t you try our helicopter trip to Everest?
Our team gets highly inspired to produce informative materials if you share information with your fellows who want to make a good hike in the Himalayan regions. Thank you for your time and hope this will certainly help to make your Everest Base Camp Trek experience better than you expected. Any doubts our professional team is ready to answer and hear you round the clock, don’t hesitate to write us.
