Day 15 and 16: Returning home in style

The morning started early and following breakfast we left the teahouse and headed up the steep steps to the airport. Aadam raced up the hill, enjoying the cardiovascular endurance he’d developed, coupled with the plentiful oxygen supply. Dan and I chased after him as the rest of the group shook their heads wearily. On arrival to the airport, we weighed our bags and proceeded to the security check, which simply involved a man asking me, “Do you have any rocks in your bag?”. I told him I didn't and he ushered me along. We watched the plane land and then loaded ourselves on, squeezing ourselves between the narrow ailse. I sat at the front with Aadam, right behind the two pilots. There was no curtain separating the passengers and pilots so I could see all the screens and controls. Take off was smooth and luckily it was a calm, still and clear morning. The pilots casually drank tea from glass mugs as we flew between the mountains. The flight passed by quickly and I enjoyed watching the sunrise over the peaks, reading the elevation figures on the pilot’s screens and following the flight map. We landed securely in Kathmandu and as we waited for the bus to take us to the terminal building, we saw the pilots walk over to another plane in their leather jackets and sunglasses. Aadam joked that it was like a Nepali version of Top Gun.

We were taken back to the hotel in Kathmandu in a mini bus and were all beside ourselves for the prospect of running water, warm showers and flushing toilets. Despite having undertaken many adventures of this kind, I’m still shocked at the simple luxuries I have a new found appreciation for on returning to civilization. Hiking in the Himalayas in the winter season adds additional challenges due to the extreme low temperatures freezing all the pipes that serve taps or showers. You need to flush the toilets manually using a bucket of water – but this freezes through the night so you are tasked with smashing through the ice to access the unfrozen water below. This proves to be a strength sapping challenge in sub-zero temperatures, using only the light of your head torch. Additionally, the majority of toilets are squat style which in general you adapt to using, with the exception of a few designs. The worse one I encountered was a wobbly sheet of corrugated iron, that felt unstable to stand on, with a small wonky square cut out of the middle. All of these experiences made me have a deep appreciation for the western toilet in the hotel room, in addition to the warm running water. After a long overdue shower, I closed my eyes and rested on the bed, basking in the warmth and comfort provided by a mattress and pillows.

I met Aadam and Lee in the hotel café, where we ate lunch before venturing out into Thamel, in search of some final souvenirs. We’d forgotten how chaotic the city was and we instantly had mild regret for leaving the peace of the hotel, as we attempted to cross the busy roads. The city was overwhelming compared to the mountains. The traffic was loud, the air was thick and polluted and it was densely populated. Chaotic, tangled bunches of cables draped down onto the pavement and stray dogs slept in the sun. We had fun exploring and I had many friendly chats with people as they asked us where we were from and what our plans were. After our exploration, we returned to the hotel where we met Bikash and the others, so we could all go for a final dinner together.

The group gathered in the hotel lobby and before Bikash led us to the restaurant he joked, “Any headaches, any nausea, any dizziness?” A question he would frequently ask us in the mountains before we began walking. It was a lovely evening, everyone relaxed and chatted about the adventure we’d had. After dinner we all said our farewells to Bikash, he encouraged me to stay in touch and to return to Nepal for further mountain adventures. After Bikash went home, we all had a final drink in a bar near the hotel and by the end of the evening there were a few complaints of headaches, nausea and dizziness, but this time not induced by altitude.

After only a couple of hours sleep my alarm woke me up abruptly, which meant it was time for me to head back to Kathmandu airport for my early flight. I’d organised my bags the night before, so simply had to roll out of bed and head downstairs to my airport transfer. My taxi driver was friendly and despite the early morning, he was eager to talk, “First time to Nepal?”, “When will you come back?”, “You liked the mountains?” and as he pointed down a road we drove by he said, “That’s where I live”. Kathmandu airport is just as chaotic as the city, but I eventually made it through check in and security. Aadam’s flight was an hour earlier than mine whereas the rest of the group flew back to Australia the following day. Aadam was already at the airport and had managed to get himself into one of the lounges, where his plan was to get me in as a guest. I’m not sure how he pulled it off, but after a brief check of my boarding pass, I was in the lounge enjoying the free breakfast buffet and cups of tea. We chatted over breakfast before he left for his flight to Manchester. I stayed in the lounge and headed back to the buffet for seconds.

Once it was nearly time for my flight, I headed to the gate to wait for my departure. As I sat browsing the photos on my phone, I heard my name called, requesting that I go to the desk situated at the gate. I wondered what this would be concerning, a further security check potentially or an issue with my luggage? The man at the desk asked for my boarding pass which I presented to him. He ripped it in two and replaced it with a new one that had a silver band at the top, reading, “business class”, saying, “You’ve been upgraded madame, you can board now”. I struggled to contain my excitement and replied excitedly, “Really?” I know these free upgrades are random and as a result of the economy class seats being overbooked. But I chose to believe it was a reward for achieving my goal over the last weeks. I thought back to the countless times that I have boarded a plane and had to walk through the business class seats when making my way to economy. But this time I didn’t have to keep walking. The seat was comfy and spacious and the air steward offered me a welcome drink. I was given a menu to select my meal, my table was covered in a white table cloth and a napkin containing a variety of cutlery types was placed down. I was a little bewildered as to which ones to use for each dish, but I think I figured it out. I was offered 4 possible flavours of olive oil to go with the artisan bread basket, presenting me with potentially the most pretentious decision I have made in my life. I sampled all the varieties of fruit juices and teas and accepted any snacks I was offered. This level of luxury was world’s apart from the last two weeks and despite looking like a fish out of water in my muddy hiking boots complete with my “Everest base camp” t-shirt, I embraced the experience and thoroughly enjoyed myself. The seat reclined fully to a bed and I tried to drift off, but the excitement of more potential drink or snack offers prevented me from fully sleeping.

My flight landed very late at Heathrow so I stayed in a hotel before returning home the next morning. After passport control and collecting my baggage, I arrived at the hotel and slumped on the bed. As I drifted on the edge of sleep, I reflected on the last few weeks. Completing the Everest base camp trek offers a wonderful amalgamation of physical challenge, cultural experiences and nature encounters. This experience provides many challenges. Some were familiar and alike to previous adventures; the cold, the persistent daily mileage and the elevation gain. But the altitude above 5000m was new to me and certainly elevated the difficulty of the experience as you navigate the headaches, the shortness of breath and the depleting appetite. If you can follow all the mitigation strategies and be lucky enough to have success, then I believe that spending time hiking at altitude is worth it. Although it is challenging and the prospect of altitude sickness is frightening, being immersed within the mountains at this height is comparable to nothing else. It delivers jaw-dropping scenery which can be truly appreciated as your pace slows down allowing time to fully observe the surroundings. Living outside for a while allows you to witness nature in all it’s moods; from clear skies, to clouds racing over snowy summits to the endless stars that would reliably appear each night following sunset, bringing life to the darkness.

Like all adventures, this has been a truly rewarding and fulfilling experience. The vastness of this environment is difficult to comprehend and I’m aware that the completion of this hike has merely given me a glimpse into the Himalayan world. But like all wild mountainous environments, a glimpse is enough to captivate me, have a hold on me and ultimately draw me back.