Everest Base Camp

Well I'm back prematurely! I had decided to participate in this trek in part as a tribute to Cecilia - we both enjoyed walking - and also as an incentive to lose some weight! I managed to lose 19lb prior to the trip. Some of you already know that I suffered an adverse reaction to the altitude sickness pills I was taking and consequently I had to return home.

The pills concerned were Diamox, a prescription-only drug that is normally used to treat glaucoma but which is also known to help treat the effects of altitude sickness. I asked my GP if he would prescribe them - which he did - and I thought it would be a good idea to try one a couple of weeks before I travelled out just in case I suffered any side effects. Nothing happened so I assumed I was good to go. Two days into the holiday I took a tablet 'for real' and the following morning I had severe blurred vision which got slightly worse as the day progressed.

Anyway, I'm now back in the UK with my eyesight restored. The trek hasn't beaten me though, I'm going back on 25 October 2009 - but without the Diamox this time!

Despite the shortness of the trip, I did have a great time, and even managed to take some photos - click the 'Photos April 2009' link in the navigation bar to see the full set.

Day 1 & 2 - Heathrow to Kathmandu

I arrived at Heathrow early evening on 5 April. It was easy to spot other members of my group as the company I was travelling with - Exodus Travels - had supplied us with identical kitbags. I introduced myself to the other members in the check-in queue.

We travelled to Kathmandu via Bahrain, arriving in Kathmandu early evening on Day 2. An Exodus minibus drove us to the hotel in central Kathmandu, an amazing journey through dusty streets rammed with cars, people, and animals. It seemed a miracle that there were no accidents.

After checking in at the Royal Singi Hotel, my room-mate Louis - a Kuwaiti who now lived in the UK - and I went for a wander into the city. There is a constant problem with the electricity supply in Kathmandu and a lot of the time it is turned off, so walking through streets with no street lighting and negotiating traffic coming from all directions was an adventure in itself. It wasn't until the following day that I realised Nepalis drive on the left - it's not immediately obvious!

The rest of the evening was spent in the hotel propping up the bar with Louis and Hans - a Norwegian Scot. Now that was a strange accent.

Day 3 - Kathmandu

This was the first full day in Nepal and a sightseeing tour of the city had been planned. It was a very warm sunny day and we passed the time walking through the Thamel district - a maze of narrow streets packed with small shops and stalls, Durbar Square, and Swayambhunath (also known as the Monkey Temple). This latter attraction is situated on a hilltop just west of Kathmandu. Myself, Hans, and Yvonne (a Swedish Bristolian!) hired a taxi there. We agreed with the driver that he would take us there, return one hour later, and drive us back to our hotel. I was expecting to have to pay half of the fare upon arrival but the trusting driver was happy for us to pay him after he'd driven us back to the hotel.

The Monkey Temple is a large Buddhist temple, so called because of the holy monkeys that live in and around it. Although an interesting place to visit, it was by far surpassed by the excitement of the taxi journey there and back. The driver collected us, as promised, an hour later and he managed to improve upon the level of excitement of the outward journey, largely due to the increased traffic which necessitated having to do a number of U-turns and follow a different route down paths which I'm not convinced were even roads. Because of the large number of vehicles, people, and animals the taxi's wing mirrors were constantly being knocked in and the driver kept leaning over me in order to adjust the left mirror. Anticipating this, I decided to adjust the mirror myself - a process I needed to do every minute or two whilst taking care to avoid having my fingers crushed.

Back at the hotel I decided to take a Diamox pill in readiness for the following day's trekking. Oh dear.

Day 4 - Lukla & Phakding

We awoke at 4am in order to catch a 6am-ish flight from Kathmandu airport to Lukla, the mountain airstrip where most trekking parties, including Everest climbers, start their walks. I realised quite quickly after waking up that something was amiss and it didn't take me long to accept that what I originally thought was early morning bleary eyes was something a little more severe. I immediately suspected either the Diamox or the iodine water purification tablets (the tap water is undrinkable in Kathmandu. You shouldn't even clean your teeth in it).

I hoped it would pass and so we got the early morning flight into Lukla, a 30 minute journey that culminates on landing on the very short airstrip. We started the 3-hour trek up to Phakding where we would spend the night. Unsurprisingly it was ever so slightly annoying not being able to see the scenery properly thanks to the glorious blur-o-vision. I did take photos, so when I got back home I could see where I'd been!

On arrival at Phakding I reported my condition to Ugs, our Nepali group leader. He contacted the Exodus office in Kathmandu who in turn contacted a local doctor. The message came back that I should return to Kathmandu the following day in order to get checked out.

Day 5 - Phakding & Lukla

A slight lie-in this morning and unfortunately my eyesight was no better so I said my farewells to the rest of the group. One of our porters, Mingmar, was tasked with walking back to Lukla with me, carrying my kitbag which on the previous day had been the job of a few yaks.

It took us a little over 2 hours to arrive back in Lukla. Mingmar could speak a little English so the trip wasn't undertaken in total silence. There were a number of steep hills to climb at an altitude of around 2,700m and Mingmar didn't break out into a sweat once in spite of the 15kg kitbag he was carrying. I was puffing and panting even with my small daysack!

We were unable to get a flight back to Kathmandu that day because of the deteriorating weather (it was cloudy, which constitutes un-flyable weather in these parts) so we stayed overnight in a lodge in Lukla where I was introduced to two more Nepali Exodus staff - Pemba and Sukman. They would arrange my flight ticket the following morning.

Day 6 - Kathmandu

I was woken at 5am by Mingmar who brought me a wake-up cup of tea. The weather was good so I would be getting the first flight out of Lukla. Because of the short runway, the aircraft has to race the engines to the point at which it seems the plane is going to break apart, and then release the brake (or whatever!). The plane then goes tearing off down the runway, throwing you into the back of the seat, and within seconds the plane is airborne - a relief seeing as the end of the runway is a 2,800m drop! Pemba travelled with me on the short flight back and on arrival I was handed over to one of the main Exodus tour reps, Dhiren. Dhiren had already made an appointment for me at the travel clinic so we drove there and I was seen quite quickly by an American doctor. He suspected the problem was related to the Diamox, even though I had tried one two weeks previously and suffered no ill effects. He made an appointment for me with an optician so the next port of call was the optician's house which turned out to be a bit of an oasis of calm hidden down a side street.

I spent about an hour with the optician - he was Nepali and had worked for Dolland and Aitchison in Edinburgh at some point in the past. He said it was almost certainly the Diamox that was causing the blurred vision and that my vision would eventually return to normal. In fact, that afternoon I began to notice an improvement in my eyesight. However, as I hadn't completely returned to normal and it would be difficult for me to rejoin my group on the mountain, I was advised to return home.

After the optician, Dhiren took me to the Gulf Air office for me to change my flight tickets. I stayed in the Royal Singi Hotel that night and travelled back to London the following day.

Despite the disappointing curtailment of the trip, I'm not overly gutted. I think this is largely due to the experience of getting back down off the mountain and meeting the great Nepali people who ensured I was looked after and received the medical attention I needed. Roll on 25 October - which will be mine and Cecilia's wedding anniversary - when I go back.