One of the main things I love about travel is the beautiful adventures it takes you on. Nothing beats going to places unknown, completely off the grid, where it is just you, some fellow travellers and some breath taking scenery. If you need to ignite your thirst for adventure then watch this video of an expedition around the Isle of Skye brought to you by the new malt whisky Talisker Storm.
In all the travels I have done over the years nothing quite beats the time I went to Everest Base camp in the snowy Himalayas. There is something so humbling and raw about being this close to nature and surrounded by the tallest mountain peaks in the world. All my friends and family thought I was bonkers setting off to do this journey in the middle of winter, where temperatures easily reach below -30 degrees over night, but to me I saw it as an adventure of a lifetime and boy did it live up to my expectations.
The Everest Base Camp trail starts out with the thrilling airplane ride into Lukla airport. The runway here is so short that it’s been built on a slope to stop the planes in time before crashing into the side of the mountain. In fact this airport is rated one of the most dangerous airports in the world.
After landing in Lukla we headed on our way for what would be14 days of non stop walking amongst some of the most difficult terrain I’ve come across. Now the best thing about going in the middle of winter was that we weren’t on the trail with a thousand other trekkers, who normally walk this trail over the peak-climbing season in May. In fact, we had many moments on our trek where it was just us, our Sherpas and the beautiful Himalayas.
Scattered along the trail are beautiful mountain towns that are completely set up specifically for the trek. You definitely won’t be going hungry that’s for sure! As there are no roads to support these towns, it’s quite common to see Sherpas carrying huge heavy loads of food, water, building material and even a fridge up the mountain. Yup I saw a guy with a fridge on his back!
As you progress closer to base camp the towns get smaller and smaller and the facilities definitely get a lot more basic. Don’t expect too much luxury up there. The higher you go the trail gets steeper and more difficult as the oxygen decreases. Every day we saw emergency helicopters flying in to rescue people from altitude sickness, making the danger of this trail very real. The higher we went the colder it got. We soon had to start sleeping with our electronics as they froze over at night.
After day 9 we set out super early and finally made it to Base Camp with only one of our fellow travellers coming down with altitude sickness. After reaching base camp we decided we wanted more and after refuelling on a big lunch we set off to Kala Pattar. This highest point of the trek can be reached without any mountaineering equipment. It was no easy task I assure you! However, when we finally made it to the top our reward was an amazing view of bright pink snowy peaks as the sun was setting, and the best view you can get of Mt Everest.
