Island Peak (6189m)

After dinner on Day 1, we re-arrange and repack ourselves as we will need to leave around 12:45 – 1:00 am, and drive for 4 hours to Ramechap. We try to reach Ramechap by 5-6 am so that we can board our 30 minute flight to Lukla.

This flight will definitely occupy a prominent place on your list of top ten experiences during the course of this trek!30-minute flight to Lukla will definitely occupy a prominent place on your list of top ten experiences during the course of this trek. Tenzing-Hillary Airport is one of the most challenging airstrips in the world. Built on a cliff-top 9334 ft in the air, this little runway is just 30 meters wide and 527 meters long (less than a tenth of the usual dimensions for a regular runway) with an 11.7 Degree gradient which is significant enough to make it one of the steepest approach landings in the world!

There is no prospect of a successful go-around on-short final due to the terrain which is high (a jagged, unforgiving mountain face) immediately beyond the northern end of the runway and a steeply angled drop at the southern end of the runway into the valley below! Are you scared yet? Well, don’t be! Only the most skilled and experienced pilots operate the flights that go to and from this area and they’ve practised it to perfection. The planes that land here aren’t the regular Airbus and Boeings that we’re used to either. The airport’s paved asphalt runway is accessible only to helicopters and small, fixed-wing, short-take-off-and-landing aircraft such as the DHC-6 Twin Otter, Dornier 228 and Pilatus PC-6 Turbo Porter. The views of the Solo Khumbu’s forested valleys and its panoramic snow-capped mountain ranges are absolutely surreal.

What’s more, for a plane that seats only 20 people, there’s still an incredibly charming air-hostess and everyone gets a window seat! Once you land, we stop for breakfast during which time you will be introduced to the real muscle behind this climb – our team of intrepid Sherpas and their Yaks who will be entrusted with your luggage for the duration of the trek, following which, we will begin our short walk down to our very first destination, the riverside village of Phakding. Your first night in the valley en route to Island Peak.

Arguably the longest day of the climb during the course of the trek, our ascent to Namche Bazaar will see us intimately acquainted with the beautiful Dudh Kosi River. As she meanders through the Everest Valley, we enjoy her clever little game of hide-and-seek, at times appearing as a raging torrent under the many suspension bridges that we cross in our attempt to catch up with her, and, at others, a delightfully effervescent companion as we hop over rocks and through pretty tree-lined mountain trails inching closer and closer to the true heart of the Khumbu Valley – Namche Bazaar. Huge, beautifully carved Mani stones adorn the trail that cuts through the Sagarmatha National Park, accentuated by the colourful Buddhist prayer flags that flutter in the breeze seeking blessings from the clear-skied heavens above. As for the village itself, Namche Bazaar is teeming with life! The terraced approach with its quaint potato-kale-and-spinach farms, antiquated little shops (that sell everything you could possibly need), purposeful yak caravans, playfully curious local children, and its warm, welcoming people will leave your delighted heart, spoilt for choice.

At 3340m above mean sea level, after our first official night at high altitude, our fourth day sees us waking up to a well-deserved and much-needed rest day a.k.a ‘Acclimatization day’. The lofty snow-capped peaks of Thamserku and Kongde Ri stand guard right outside your window. With dreamy scenery now merging into everyday reality, even the most persistent dreamers find it impossible to delay their excitement at seeing these amazing peaks in favour for a few extra winks of sleep. Grumbling stomachs (and calf muscles alike) are in for a treat today too. A relatively relaxed start with a hot, wholesome breakfast – simple pleasures truly are the order of acclimatization days, which come along every time we gain roughly one vertical kilometre in height during this particular trail. The purpose of the Acclimatization day is to allow your body to get used to the lower levels of oxygen in the air. The universally accepted way of doing this is to “Climb high and sleep low”. Once everyone has had their fill of the various manifestations of gourmet menus that Namche’s tea houses are known to produce, we visit the Sherpa Cultural Museum which has many artefacts of historical significance and some detailed information on the local flora, fauna, topography and prevailing conditions of the region. The plateau that the museum sits on offers some great panoramic views of the Himalayas with views of Everest, Island Peak and Lhotse. It also marks the beginning of the trail for our hike to the Syangboche airstrip (you have to see this one to believe it) and the Everest View Hotel. It’s a day full of exciting firsts for the Adventure Pulse teams including, but not limited to, your very first view of Mount Everest (weather permitting)!

The sheer beauty of this part of the trek to Everest Base Camp and then Island Peak cannot be overstated, and is personally, our favourite day on the trail. The wildly fun descent to our lunch stop at the riverside village of Phukithanga takes you through expansive rhododendron forests which are a verdant delight after the monsoon season and are rivalled only by their pre-monsoon avatar which captivates all your senses with Its pink, white, and scarlet flowers that dance merrily above you and line the path all the way to the little village of Tengboche. Calories are never an issue in this part of the world, with lunch invariably being followed by immediate uphill stretches. Mount Everest stays visible and resolute all through the day’s trek with her tell-tale plume of snowy clouds softly beckoning you closer. The route after our lunch stop is a steady, shaded climb whose forested slopes will have you shaking your head in utter-and-complete disbelief, at the fact that the Himalayas were, (in the not-so-distant past), entirely underwater, even as you walk through irrefutable proof of it! A beautifully carved gateway marks the end of the climb and welcomes you to Tengboche, home to the largest Gompa in the Khumbu region, the ancient and sacred Tengboche Monastery. Teams from Adventure Pulse bound for Island Peak enjoy the rare privilege of attending the prayer ceremonies at this monastery where the monks and Lama bless our expedition and request the Gods to grant us safe passage to and from the mountain.

There are certain treks, or sometimes, just specific trails that have the ability to turn your entire world upside down. The walk from Tengboche to Dingboche occupies a prime position amongst these. We start by descending to the settlement of Deboche which sits placidly sheltered in the shadow of Tengboche alongside the Imja Khola River. If the trail itself doesn’t immediately summon images of the scenery that one can usually only witness in epic fantasy movies like the Lord of the Rings, one look at the almost-elven-looking Rivendell Lodge here definitely will! The hike from Debouche to Dingbouche is filled with stream and river crossings along wooden bridges, climbing up large steps, going through impressive colourful Tibetan gates, and the ever-present, never-tiring views of the Himalayas. Disguised as one of the infamous “Nepali flats”, a term that you will doubtless hear from the locals at some stage during the course of your trek, there’s only one way to find out what this trail is truly about! Cliché as it sounds, you will find that you discover more about yourself and who you really want to be with every passing step, as you gradually follow the river, crossing above the tree line into this improbably-beautiful, almost-lunar segment of our expedition. It’s amazing to see just how much life there is up here despite the fact that you are at an altitude of more than 4000m and over 50 kilometres (not to mention a whole aeroplane ride) away from the nearest roads! The huge metal bridges that span the riverine valley will soon take you to the village of Dingboche where our groups invariably experience that magical, mesmerizing phenomenon we’ve all come to recognize as the first snowfall on the trail!

The acclimatization day at Dingboche is quite like the one at Namche Bazaar and involves a short day-hike uphill to a point called Nangakarshang which is ringed by some of the most technical and difficult peaks to climb. The viewpoint showcases the peaks of Lhotse (4th highest mountain in the world), Manaslu (the 5th highest mountain in the world), a new face of Ama Dablam (our constant travelling companion, initially deemed unclimbable by Everest’s famous summiteer, Sir Edmund Hilary), Island Peak, Baruntse, Lobuche East and the ever steadfast Thamserku amongst others. We get back to our tea house in time for a scrumptious lunch and spend the rest of the day enjoying Dingboche, exploring the area (basically following our noses as we chase the delicious smells that waft toward us from its little bakery) and playing various board/card games; or just reading a novel in a cosy corner in front of the Bukhara( fire stove) in the wooden dining hall.

After having acclimatized in Namche and Dingbuche climbers usually feel a lot more energetic continuing their journey towards the chukung valley. After having an early breakfast in dinbuche, we depart and make the hike to Chhukung at 4,700m/ 15,420ft. The objective is to reach Chhukung by lunch so that you have enough time rest in preparation for the Island Peak Expedition.

After arriving we will have lunch and can even look at hiring climbing equipment. This time is critical to sort out personal climbing equipment required on Island Peak (Imja Tse) and possibly rent anything additionally required. Having a good night’s rest is critical at Chhukung, especially as the accommodation is indoors in a tea house.

This morning, will be a late start, primarily to allow enough time to pack and transfer the camping and expedition equipment to the Island Peak Base Camp with the help of Yaks. Packing up all the gear and loading them on to the yaks often takes time. The aim is to have a heavy breakfast before we depart from Chhukung towards Island peak base camp. The hike up to Island Peak base will take 3 to 4 hours. There is an amazing Imja glacier and lake, with stunning views of the moraine formation in the Imja valley. Depending on the weather, we will do our first training session at the island Peak Base Camp. We will practice abseiling, Jumaring and get used to your climbing equipment. The accommodation at Island Peak Base Camp is tented.

In the early hours of the morning we will set off for the summit of Island Peak. Today is the day, we will make our first summit attempt on Island Peak 6,189m/ 20,305ft, however, there may be delays due to weather conditions. This is a long hard climb through the night. As we set off, there is a steep 400m/1,312ft zig-zag rocky scree path with some scrambling. It is possible to wear trekking shoes and carry the climbing boots for this part of the terrain. This is a straight forward trek, but very strenuous as we cross this section during the night. Once we hit 5,900m/ 19,357ft the altitude slows our pace dramatically and the final rock section never seems to end. The crampon point is identified by a narrow ridge which takes us to the start of the glacier of Island Peak (Imja Tse). We take a break to hydrate and to get all our gear on, rope up and cross the glacier before the 100m/ 328ft headwall which is fixed by our climbing Sherpa’s. This marks the most difficult section of the climb to the summit. Though endless, once we cross this obstacle, we enjoy the success of reaching the summit of Island Peak with incredible views of Lhotse, Nuptse, Amadablam, Baruntse and even Makalu. After this, we begin the long decent back to Island Peak Base camp. It is critical to be aware of every step because most accidents happen on the way down when the adrenaline of the summit has passed and the exhaustion starts setting in. After reaching Island Peak Base Camp, we will rest for an hour or so before making the journey all the way back to Chukkung.

On account of the weather, this day is kept as a buffer day for the Island Peak summit push. The mountains are always unpredictable and so it is a good practice to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

From Chhukung, our aim is to trek to Debouche at 3,650m/ 12,045ft. This hike will take about 4 to 5 hours, and is extremely pleasant as we find ourselves back in the tree line and in an oxygen-rich atmosphere. The aim is to arrive for Lunch or maybe a little later. This will be a good opportunity to rest from the hectic physical schedule of the past few days after our Island Peak experience. The aim is to hike back to Namche Bazaar.

The objective of today is to trek back to Namche Bazaar. After breakfast, we will start walking at 8 or 9 am and trek back to Namche Bazaar. This hike will take 4 hours at a comfortable pace especially since this is a familiar route. We will be back below 3,500m/ 11,483ft and you will feel much better. The evening at Namche Bazaar can be spent at the Irish Pub or any of the several bakeries to celebrate a successful Island Peak (Imja Tse) Expedition.

After a night of celebration in Namche Bazaar, it’s important to make an early start for Lukla. We make a long descent to Jorsalle followed by Monjo where we exit the Sagarmatha National Park. We again cross the several high suspension bridges along the 7/8-hour journey back to Lukla. We stop for a break in Phakding for lunch and then make the 3-hour journey back to Lukla, where the team once again can celebrate the successful Island Peak expedition. As this is the last night spent with the porters and Nepali staff, it is customary to appreciate their hard work during the Island Peak (Imja Tse) expedition with monetary tips to show gratitude.

We must be up early to finish breakfast and catch the flight from Lukla back to Ramechaap and then drive another 5 to 6 hours to Kathmandu. For those who didn’t get the chance to see as much of Kathmandu on arrival, now is your opportunity to do so.

You can visit the temples of Pashupatinath, Swayambhunath and districts of Bhaktapur and Patan Durbar Square should also be on your essential to see list while in Kathmandu. There is also plenty of shopping to be done in the Thamel.

Final Departure to your country. Our staff will be at the hotel to help you to the airport and organize a group drop for you.