Everest Base Camp - a few questions

Hello everyone. I'm a guy living in hyderabad(AP). I wanna do the EBC trek sometime this year(november?). Is it easy enough for a first timer(no trekking experience)? I'm young(18) and can jog long distances. What weight of backpack do you suggest carrying in the mountains? Also what sort of shoes(brands would be appreciated)? Can anyone suggest good places to purchase trekking shoes, backpacks etc in Hyd? My plan is to take a train from hyd to gorakhpur, then cross the border to the nepal side. Do I require any ID proof(I'm an indian national) for crossing the border? Where can I change indian currency to nepali rupees? After crossing the border I want to take a bus from whatever town there is to kathmandu. Then I'll take a bus to jiri and start the tek from there. How many days is the total trek (Jiri-Lukla-EBC-Lukla-jiri) going to take? I don't want to do it quickly. I'd rather do it slowly and peacefully, taking in all the sights. I'm on a shoestring budget and want to avoid unnecessary expenses. Also, I wanna explore a bit of kathmandu after my trek and before getting back home. So is a total time of about a month( 30 days) enough for the trip? Could this trip be done in about Rs 25000 - 30000?($550-$650)? Any help would be greatly appreciated

Any help ?!?!

Check out this information: http://wikitravel.org/en/Everest_Base_Camp_Trek

Thanks, but I'd like some advice from anyone who's done the trek. Especially on the number of days and the cost(approx). Anyone?

Hi lonetraveler welcome to IM,keep the passion in you and enjoy the trek. Try to travel light,get a good sack remember most of the weight of your sack should rest on waist.You can buy a woodland shoe or coleman they are good.November will be too late I think.

Would november be too late? But I think the crowds would decrease as well, easing up the route? Have you done this trek? How long would the trek take?

November is high season along the ebc trails, therefore a bit more expensive than at other times,especially food.Nearer to ebc dhal bat will cost you nrs 400(irs25o),and so on.I managed to spend in 2009 on average indian rs1000/1200 x day,no meat, no alcohol,no soft drinks, no porters,no guide.I actually trekked to gokyo,an alternative to the very crowded khala pattar trek, in late december.I was told that during peak time(sep/oct/nov)guides run ahead of their clients to book a room/bed as the demand is very high.It took me 20 days from jiri to gokyo top(5390m)back to lukla, took flight back to ktm($113).I took it easy, carried 10/12kg.Very nice trek,you need to be fit,especially for the jiri-namche bit, you will be climbing 9000m only up to namche.Take your time to get used to altitude, especially after namche.Also, you will be charged for charging up your camera too(nrs100/200x hour),national park permit was nrs1000(obtainable in ktm).Hope that helps,enjoy.

Thanks a bunch Would you suggest I do gokyo or kalapathhar? Which is better when it comes to views of everest?Is the route for both the same till namche? And the food is exorbitantly priced Would you suggest I pack a lot of food( chips, biscuits and other canned stuff) in KTM itself to save money in the mountains?

The trail divides just after namche,from gokyo you can see 4 8000m peaks(everest,cho oyu,lothse,makalu),but from kala pattar everest and its glacier is nearer and more spectacular,so i was told.Ebc is more crowded than gokyo,and maybe 2 days longer,but you can do a round trip across a 53oom pass,cho la(2 days), and do both.I only carried biscuits,nuts,dried and fresh fruits, and chocolate as food,i believe hot food is better than tinned food.I was very lucky as someone gave me some diamox pills, usually to combat altitude sickness,in my case to help me sleep.From namche upwards i slept on average 1 hour x night,diamox helped.Drink a lot of water even if you don't feel thirsty,it's essential.Higher up you won't feel hungry at all, i had to force myself to eat.I suggest you decide which way to go once reached namche and see how you feel.Both ways are worth the effort in any case.

Thanks a lot, alex Greatly appreciated

Hi,

I am also planning to do EBC in November last or December !st week. I am from Assam and reside here in Bangalore. If you are not planning to do this alone as your name says "thelonetraveler" I would love to join you.

Best,

Sam

thelonetraveler, Bold are answers.
Hello everyone. I'm a guy living in hyderabad(AP). I wanna do the EBC trek sometime this year(november?). Is it easy enough for a first timer(no trekking experience)? I'm young(18) and can jog long distances.
- I done in 20005 Arpil. You can do it.

Also what sort of shoes(brands would be appreciated)? Can anyone suggest good places to purchase trekking shoes
- I used ACTION TREKKER shoes.

My plan is to take a train from hyd to gorakhpur, then cross the border to the nepal side. Do I require any ID proof(I'm an indian national) for crossing the border?
- No ID proof required.

Where can I change indian currency to nepali rupees?
- You can change currency in Kathmandu in any bank.

So is a total time of about a month( 30 days) enough for the trip?
- I done in 30 days Pune to Pune
Could this trip be done in about Rs 25000 - 30000?($550-$650)?
- It will be more, I spend 35000+

only ever done the post namche parts of the Khumbu. squillions of people do it each year, if you are fit there's no problem, i have done it several times with a pack and i am not a SWAT team member. You have a lot of questions, all can be answered by the Trailblazer guide to the everest region by jamie Mcguinness. Expensive in Indian terms but you will save the price easily by using it. Buy on the web or in KTM

You can do it on your budget. Jiri to lukla you can get by on about 300-400 INR a day. After that you will average closer to 600-700 INR (~1000 to 1100 NPR) if you do it cheap. You will have to eat in the lodges that is how they make money, if you don't eat there they will charge you much more for the room. The way to conserve money is bring snacks from Kathmandu or buy in Namche at the shops (relatively cheap)don't drink tea up high (it's bad value vs. calories) Drink water and if you are not going to drink the local water bring your own treatment (pills, filter, ect). Take extra camera batteries so you won't need to charge. And don't look at your pics on the display too much, so take enough memory cards that you won't have to constantly edit.

I've been up to the everest region twice first time I spent 30 days just trekking entered and exited via Jiri did Chukhung over Kogma La to EBC then Cho La to Gokyo then Renjo La to Thame. 2nd time spent about 2 weeks up there flew in flew out and went up to Gokyo and hung out at my friend's lodge in Deboche. So on time its up to you but I'd try to spend as much time as possible up there there is a lot more than just base camp. I'd also recommend not going from Jiri if you can swing the flight. It's just more impressive to spend your time higher up in my opinion if your limited on time. That said, there are advantages of hiking from Jiri, few other trekkers, nice more homely lodges, and its just cooler to walk in, and you can look down on all those pansy tourist who flew in. You will also be well acclimatized and in good shape by the time you get to Namche. The main negatives: (1) eats up 5-7 extra days and 5 is very fast need to be in good shape and deal well with altitude. (2) The trail from Jiri is a bitch, lots of up and down since you are going perpendicular to the valleys, every day you go up only to go back down again. And the reward for this work is, by Himalayan standards average views that are mostly the same-- green hills, villages, and maybe a few snow capped peaks in the distance if the weather cooperates.

On Gokyo vs EBC. The Gokyo valley is great (my second time back in the Khumbu that was the place I went back to after covering the whole area the first time) and a bit cheaper than Gorak Shep (EBC). But you can and should do both and link them by the Cho La pass highly recommended also take the Renjo La out of Gokyo back to Namche via Thame. You could do that trek from Lukla comfortably in 20 days. From Jiri one way an extra 5 days.

Late November early December is a great time to do the trek end of the season so not as crowded not yet that cold (but chilly) and good chance of having very good weather.

On shoes something that is water proof is a good idea if possible main thing though break them in with some short weekend hikes before you go. Brand isn't that big of a deal more important in India is finding ones that are not Chinese knockoffs that fall apart and don't provide the water proofing they claim.

A good sleeping bag is also nice to have but not a 100% necessary if you have other warm cloths. That stuff always comes down to how sensitive you are to cold different for different people.

I also second the Trailblazer guide to the everest region by jamie Mcguinness recommendation by Capatian Bruce.

Here are my pics and write ups from my Everest treks if you want to get some ideas of where to go.

http://www.micahimages.com/journal_wp/tag/everest-trek/

Hi Micah,
After watching your pics of Everest, I felt I am there. I done Base Camp (Kala patthar) in 2005 April.
Specially porter pictures are lovely. Thanks for the link.