Makalu Adventure by Jayant Doshi

Part I (from 24th April 2007 till 19th May 2007)

My two trekking trips in the Himalayas had been greatly

gratifying, and I was always on the lookout for new

opportunity. I had already put down my name for a trek in

Leh and Ladakh; but then Prabhulal (known in short as PD)

told me about his plans to trek to Makalu base camp. This

trek seemed more challenging and interesting then the one to

Leh, and I immediately confirmed myself for this trek.

The Group – We were four when I confirmed myself. PD,

who will be taking his state pension later this year, has had

quadruple by-pass operation and is diabetic. However, he did

Kilimanjaro and Everest base camp in the last couple of years

so he was experienced and capable to do such treks. PD has a

resolute mind and great determination; before he did Everest trek, I often saw him sweating out in the gym. This time

he was out and about a lot, and as such there was complacency in his preparations. Paresh, the youngest and the

sportsman of the group, also did Everest trek. He went on his regular skiing trip a fortnight before Makalu trek, and

this time he injured his back. He was still hopeful that he would make this trek but he had to cancel it at the last

moment. If he had come then maybe things might have turned out differently

– but that is something we will never find out.

Nirmal, at 53, was also a youngster by our standards; and his trek to

Everest also put him in the same lot of experienced trekkers. He is a regular

golfer, and takes his regular walking seriously so he seemed well prepared.

Atul, now the youngest at 51, decided to join at the last minute, and with

only Kilimanjaro climb as his experience, this was something for the first

time for him. He took up the challenge seriously and started walking to and

back from office daily, clocking twelve miles daily. In receipt of my state

pension for several years, that made me the oldest in the group, and having

done Everest and Tapovan, I was also a bit more experienced. Before the

Everest trek, I did lot of circumstantial rather then preparatory walking, but

this time I have been complacent. However, with my golf, racket ball and

yoga I was confident that my fitness will not let me down.

The Trek - Mount Makalu is situated east of Mount Everest, and is one of

the highest peaks in the Himalayan range. There is a great difference

between the two treks. Everest trek is very popular and is well served with good tea houses, which makes trekking

much easier, while Makalu is comparatively new and less popular. Camping is the only way of trekking on this route.

Also Everest trek starts from Lukla which is 2800 metres high; Makalu trek starts from Tumlingtar, which is 450

metres high. On Everest trek, the trek starts at much higher altitude, and is cool from the beginning. Makalu trek starts

from much lower altitude; hot and humid conditions make trekking difficult until we reach high altitudes. While on

Everest trek, we start with mountains and barren landscape, on Makalu trek we go through green valleys and forests,

and pass lots of villages. On Everest trek, it is mostly going up on gentle ascent most of the time. On Makalu trek, we

go up to great heights, and then come down to very low heights, and then go up again, making it much more difficult.

We left London on 24th April, and arrived early next

morning into Kathmandu. Our trekking started on 27th

April and following is a day by day diary of the events and

our experiences. The timings given for each day’s trekking

include rest stops and lunch break.

27th

April – flight to Tumlingtar.(457 mtrs.)

Today was the beginning of our trek. When I woke

up I felt very sleepy and a bit lethargic. We drove to the

local airport – a ramshackle airport with little order or

organisation. After a long wait, our small plane left at

noon. The plane was quite small, and did not allow for

much movement, and even our rucksacks had to be put on

our laps. The flight took us to the east of Nepal to lower

ranges of the Himalayas with lot of greenery, rivers and

farms. We came to Tumlingtar where the plane lands on

an open field with grass and no tarmac runways. The

field was surrounded by mountains, and the small village

mainly caters for the incoming trekkers. Being at 457

metres height, much lower then even Kathmandu, it was

hot and humid, and mosquitoes were in abundance.

This time my preparations lacked the intensity of

my first trek to Everest. Perhaps, we were more

experienced and as such complacency crept into our

thinking. However, at this stage we all felt ready and

confident. We were told by our guide that rest of the crew

of porters and kitchen staff was held up by some strike, and as such we would not start our trek till the next day. We

had to spend rest of the day and the night in the mosquito infested hot and humid Tumlingtar in a below standard guest

house.

After good lunch, I felt I had lost my appetite, while Nirmal got scared by rumbling noises in his stomach. We

spent the afternoon walking in the village, while we

played bridge at night before retiring. We were staying

at Makalu Hotel, very aptly named for our purpose, but

the hotel would fail every safety standard. The steep

steps leading to our rooms on the second floor were

scary, and the wooden planks gave the impression that

they would give in any moment. Our bedrooms had

windows overlooking mountains and green farms, but

other then that everything was lacking in comfort. The

bed consisted of a wooden plank covered with a bed

sheet; and to add to our woes, the fan in the room was

not working either. The hard bed, hot and humid

atmosphere and the mosquitoes made it a bad night for

us all. We spent the night tossing and turning in our so

called beds.

28th

April – to Khadbari (1040mtrs.) – 4 hours.

Everyone was awake quite early, and moaning about the sleepless night. Today was the first day of our

trekking. It was quite warm and the sun was out in full strength. We walked for just four hours going over some gentle

and some steep slopes. We climbed from 457 metres to 1040 metres. We walked through farms with variety of fruit

trees. Humidity and lot of sweating made walking conditions difficult, and passing vehicles created clouds of dust

which made breathing difficult. Mountains, valleys, greenery all around, colourful flowers and clear skies made the

walk pleasant. We reached Khadbari at noon.

Our crew and equipment had still not arrived and we were put up in a hotel which was much better compared

to the previous night. We got a chance to bathe and wash our sweat drenched clothes. We had a walk in the local

weekly market, and got a glimpse of the life in this mountain town. We played bridge and had good night’s sleep.

29th

April – to Gogune – 8 hours

We were woken up early by the crowing of cocks, barking of the dogs, revving of trucks and people going

about their daily routines. The height had not dampened

the temperatures, and the morning was still hot and

humid. By mid- day, the temperatures had crossed 26

deg. C. We started our trek at 7.20 in the morning. The

spectacular mountain scenery compensated for the hot

weather. Today we kept going uphill most of the time,

and bypassing the main road and using short cuts made

the walk more difficult. Our crew and equipment had

arrived and we were treated to a freshly prepared hot

lunch. Our entourage included 17 porters, 5 kitchen

staff, 2 guides and 4 of us, making a grand total of 28.

As days passed by the number of porters was reduced

and finally on our return we had total of 16 left.

We reached our camp site at 3.30, and had our

first experience of the tents which would become our

homes for the duration of our trek. There was one tent

for cooking, a dining tent with chairs and table for us, a

toilet tent, two tents for four of us and one tent for the

guides. Our tents were reasonably comfortable, though

when two are sharing there is not much space left to

move around. We had to keep our larger bags in the

dining tent. After unpacking our sleeping bags, and

changing our clothes, we sat down to some games of

bridge. However, temperatures dropped suddenly and

everyone got their warm clothes on. Whilst I was

comfortable in the tent, I did not sleep well. Rain and

breathing noises disturbed my sleep, though I woke up

feeling fresh.

30th

April - Gogune to Num (1490 mtrs.) – 9 hours

We were up by 5.00 and ready by 6.30. With sun rising early, porters and others woke up early to do their

chores, and it was but natural that we would wake up so early because of the noise. The sky was cloudy and dark and

rain and thunderstorms were lurking in the background. The guide assured us that everything will be fine and we left

at 7.40. The clouds had drifted into the valleys and our visibility was affected by thick mist. The path had puddles of

water, the ground was muddy and slippery, heavy rains had caused land slides or eaten away parts of the road. It

started raining and we just about managed to put our rain

clothes after we got ourselves wet. Rains became heavy,

and the temperatures dropped. Soon rains slowed down

and the cloud thunder became louder. As per the saying,

thundering clouds never bring rain, and we prayed that

this was true. After some bursts of rain, it became dry,

mist slowly lifted, the clouds moved and sun came out

with its warmth, and brought relief to our water drenched

clothes. By 10.00 a.m. or so, it started getting warm, our

clothes had dried and we were sweating in the heat. We

saw snow covered mountain ranges on the way.

After lunch we started again. This time we were

walking down the slope of the mountain through thick

growth of trees. Some of this down slope walking was

treacherous. We walked at a fast pace for three hours. We

came to a small town in the valley and our camp was made on the side of one of the local tea houses. There was one

Tibetan and one Sherpa wedding in the town, and we got an oversight of the celebrations.

PD showed signs of exhaustion and had lost his appetite. As soon as we camped he went to sleep, and after

rest he still showed signs of exhaustion. He could not eat anything and only had a bottle of soft drink. We got worried.

Would he be able to continue? But he surprised us all by his resolute determination. He walked every day without ever

even mentioning that he could not carry on any more.

1st May – Num to Seduwa (1460 mtrs.) – 8 hours.

Dogs barking in a rhythmic systematic style woke us up by 5.15 and we were on our trek by 7.15. Num is

situated at a height of 1500 metres on top of a mountain.

Seduwa was across the valley on another mountain at a

similar height. But to reach there we had to go down the

slope of the mountain into the valley up to Arun river, and

then climb the mountain to reach Seduwa. We had to walk

down almost a thousand metres, and some of the walk

down the slope was very steep and difficult. Most of the

time we were shaded by trees, but we sweated a lot due to

the humid heat. It became one of the most difficult days of

trekking we had encountered so far. Coming down the

slope was difficult, walking through rocks and tackling

difficult patches, but then climbing on the opposite

mountain proved even more difficult. Climbing up

normally makes one breathless, and that leads to frequent

rest stops. Everyone found this a very difficult day, and

the thought that we will have to do it again on our

return brought shivers to some of us.

Our camp site was beautiful. Our tents were set

on a flat ground facing a range of mountains with a

valley in between, all covered with trees and bushes. It

was full moon night and the atmosphere was wonderful.

We soon forgot the difficult walking we had done and

did some breathing exercises to relax ourselves.

2nd

May - Seduwa to Tashigaon (2200 mtrs) – 6 ½

hours.

As was to be expected, the dogs and the cocks

performed their duties faithfully on time, and we were

up early as usual. While the mind was awake the body

refused to move. I lay there half asleep till 5.30. The fresh mountain air, and the lovely atmosphere, inspired me to do

some yoga exercises. It felt great.

After breakfast we left just before 7.30. The guide told us that it was going to be an easy day. The

temperatures were in the late 20’s and it felt very hot and muggy. We walked through some forests and passed lots of

streams. We had an early lunch on a lovely spot on the banks of a stream with lots of greenery around it. From our

lunch spot we could see the village where our camps

were to be set for the night. It looked like a fairly

straight walk on a flat path, but we were in for a

shock. We had to descend and ascend a few times

before we reached our camp site. The descent was

very steep and the ascent that followed was even

steeper.

Nirmal, one of our younger colleagues, was

coping well. He used to walk steady and at good speed

and we both normally were in front while the other

two came behind with the guide. Unlike me, Nirmal

did not sweat much. Also I tended to get breathless

while going up an ascent, but Nirmal was breathing

normally all the way. He did complain about some

stomach upset, but otherwise he seemed to be doing

well. For Atul, this was his first trek and he seemed to

be coping well. He seemed to have a good appetite. Later he did say that his thighs and legs were being taxed to the

maximum.

PD, in spite of his health problems, seemed to be doing fine. He showed signs of exhaustion, but still kept

walking steadily every day. He lost his appetite, and complained of nausea as soon as he smelt any food. While his

complaints and problems started right from the beginning, surprisingly he seemed to carry on quite well every day.

For the past few months I kept getting a twinge and pain in my right knee and ankle. Golf and racket ball did

not aggravate the pain, nor did it get worse with time, but the fear of it happening while trekking was upper most in

my mind. However, so far my legs are perfectly fine. I am having no pains or tiredness. I eat well and sleep well,

though sometimes calf muscles pain me in my sleep, which is natural after a long day’s walk. But in the morning

when I wake up, and during the day’s trekking, I feel perfectly fine. My problem has been breathlessness when going

uphill, and lot of sweating. I needed to wipe the sweat

every other minute.

Compared to Everest trek, this trek has been

quite difficult and varied so far. We are still at much

lower level, and our walking is affected a lot by a

strong sun and high temperatures. Steep descent into

the valley, and steep climb to the top of the mountain

were exacting and not comparable to anything on the

Everest trek. Camping, on the other hand, has been

pleasant. The sites for the last two nights have been

exceptionally scenic and beautiful.

3rd

May – Tashigaon to Kauma (3500 mtrs) - 9 hours

There were no dogs or cocks to wake us up,

but by now it had become a habit to be awake at first

light, and some of us were awake by 5.30. The sun

was rising from behind the mountains, and was trying

to show itself through the cloud cover. Streaks of

cloud crossing the sun made it look unusual but very

beautiful. In the mist, the far away mountains were

hardly visible, but their boundaries appeared as

outlines in the misty sky and gave a good view.

We started our trek just before 7.30. We knew

that today we would be climbing quite high, and that

most of our walk would be uphill. We were actually

going from 2000 metre altitude to 3500 metres, which

would be quite a lot for one day’s walking. We had an

early lunch break. We were sheltered from the hot sun

by a huge rock protruding from the mountain. We

started our walk to cross the two passes after 11.00.

We kept walking uphill for over two hours, and came across patches of snow which we had to cross. The sight of

snow excited every one and we took photos. Even in the snow, it was still hot and humid. We were in our normal hot

weather clothes.

But then we kept getting more and more snow. We had not been prepared or advised about this sort of walk.

Sun had disappeared and the threat of rain loomed on our heads. Walking on soft snow is not that bad, but here one

need to know if the snow is solid or there is a cavity

underneath. Snow melts from below and makes a cavity.

Our porters had gone before us and we just had to

follow their tracks. Nirmal and I were together, and we

were checking the ground well before putting our feet

down. At one point, I was checking the ground for my

next step, when the snow under my right leg collapsed,

and my leg went right inside the hole. I was inside the

snow almost up to my waist level. My hands were

resting on snow and feeling the cold. My leg had gone

at an angle and I could not pull my leg out. The guide

came and helped me out. Because it was hot I was

wearing only tee shirt, and my mittens left my fingers

frozen in the snow. I was cold, but I had no choice but

to bear it.

Snow seemed endless, and we seemed to be walking on it for hours. I got my feet inside a few more times.

Nirmal had his share, and one time he fell with his leg bent, but nothing happened to harm us. Others had their share

of mishaps. During our nine hours of trekking for the day, most of it going uphill, and then walking in the snow, made

it the most difficult day so far for us.

Atul, the youngest and probably the fittest, one who trained a lot before the trek, summed it up. This was the

most difficult day for him that strained his thighs more than he could take. He never imagined that trekking would be

so difficult. Climbing uphill for most part of the day had taken toll on his thighs. Surprisingly, PD, who still was not

eating much, fared quite well and I did not hear any complaint from him, though he did admit this was a very difficult

day of trekking. PD had been surviving on a bar of chocolate and a soft drink for the last few days.

It was quite cold so we wrapped up in warm clothes, and later got into our sleeping bags. PD did not wish to

eat and called it an early day and went to sleep.

4th

May – Kauma to Dobate – 9 hours 45 minutes.

It rained lightly during the night, and lightening

and thunderstorms were persistent. We woke up early as

usual. It was cold. Today we were crossing two mountain

passes (Keke Pass and Shipton Pass) and had a long day

ahead. Shipton pass is at 4126 metres height. When we

were about to leave, it started raining and we all put on

our wet suits and gaiters. We waited till 8.00 to let the

rain slow down. Rain did not last for long. Our first two

hours of trekking was a steep ascent. We all found it

difficult. Then we started getting small patches of snow

and found walking on it as exciting. Walking on snow

became longer and longer. At one point we had almost

five miles of snow to cross. Walking uphill in the snow

was difficult, but walking downhill was even worse.

Snow melts first at ground level and form cavities which

cannot be seen from the ground. A foot on such a hollow

cavity would mean the leg going deep into the snow

crevice. Walking down hill was prone to slipping and

falling, and one had to be more careful. Had we been

advised and guided well on this stretch of our trek, then

we would not have faced the problems we did, and we

would not have created the fear in our minds. A little bit

of advice, and splitting us in two’s with one guide taking

each group, would have made the trek much easier. But

the harm was done. Everyone found the trek most

dangerous, and this led to the decision to quit the trek.

It was 5.45 when we reached our camp site. We were supposed to walk further but we were too shattered. We

shared our camp site with another Korean group. Walking uphill taxed our thighs and walking down hill taxed our

knees. We could all feel the effects of the days trekking. Atul and I had little bit to eat and others went to sleep straight

away. We did not take much longer either to follow them.

Atul declared that he was not going to walk back the way we came. He based his decision on two points.

Firstly, he talked about the probability of the danger and

risks on this trek, and that if the probability of even

slightest risk existed, he did not wish to take that risk. He

also stated that he had seen what was to be seen, and did

not wish to walk back the same path again. He said that

he will be going back by helicopter. Nirmal joined in

agreement. I was tired also, and believed in keeping with

the rest, so I also agreed on that. In the morning PD also

agreed to go back by helicopter. However, very soon I

had second thoughts.

5th

May – Dobate to Yangley – 8 hours.

As we were tired we had asked the guide that we

be allowed to rest and not to be woken up. We got up at

6.30 and we were on our way by 8.30. This was a

mistake that could have proven costly, and the guide can be blamed for not advising us about the same. At first we

walked down a very steep slope, covered with huge rocks and reached the valley of River Barun.

We had our lunch on the banks of the river. I lay on a big rock, and enjoyed the sunshine and the atmosphere.

Later I walked down the bank to go and dip my feet in the river waters.

After lunch, we had a few close escapades. PD, while walking slipped and fell down, but did not injure

himself. Later, while walking along the slope of the mountain, and crossing a patch of snow, a rock came hurtling

down the slope, a guide shouted at PD, PD panicked not knowing which way to turn, and another guide just pulled

him in time to be saved from the falling rock. It was close, and would ruffle any one. It shook PD badly; but it also

affected others who watched this incident.

The mountain has lots of streams flowing down its slopes. Mostly these streams are not that forceful. But

today we came across at least three such streams where

the water was flowing with lots of speed and force.

One of the guides took his shoes off, rolled his

trousers, and stood in the middle of the streams to help

us cross them, while the other guide helped from the

other end. In spite of that, we all got our shoes wet and

filled with water. At times it appeared that an accident

or injury was just about avoided. We made three such

crossings, and each one was difficult and frightening.

Today’s walk was even more difficult and

dangerous then yesterday’s. This only strengthened the

decision and the resolve made by Atul and others to fly

back to Kathmandu by helicopter. PD specifically

asked me to note down in my diary that today was the

most dangerous day of trekking. On my return on my

own, when I had nightmares of this particular stretch of trek, I did not even notice or realise when I crossed this so

called “most dangerous” stretch of our trek. Why?

Thinking about it, I realised that there was no danger at

all provided the guide knew, and followed the simple

logic of such mountain areas. As day rises and gets

warmer, snow melts, and the streams get lot more water.

Also melting snow dislodges rocks and causes rock

slides. Another guide told me that a sensible guide

would never take his clients on that section after mid-

day. When I crossed that section at about 10, there was

little water in the streams. Even the Austrian trekkers,

whom I met, were there by 10.30. They must have

camped where we did but must have left quite early in

the morning.

When we told Kitap day before, that we were

tired and did not wish to be woken up early, he should

have warned us of the dangers of going late on this stretch. It was totally unprofessional, and very careless of Kitap

not to have given us this basic warning. It was Kitap who explained to me the logic of melting snow and increased

risks if we went late. How then he did not bother to tell us that we had to start early on that day? Not only did he risk

our lives by his careless attitude, but he also caused the rest of the team to decide to fly back.

Yesterday I had told others that I will join them. Yesterday I was tired when I concurred with others; but today

I was feeling fresh and invigorated. Whole day I kept thinking about this. I had been sponsored by many well wishers.

They would not say anything if I did not complete the

trek, but my conscience would not accept that I did not

do what I had promised I will do. Will I be able to live

with this? Also, so far I had no problems. My ankle and

knee were fine. I had no headaches and my stomach was

fine. I was not feeling any after effects of these long days

of difficult walking. Friday tired me, but that was to be

expected after a long and difficult day of trekking. But

next day I was fine and back to normal. I found walking

on snow and crossing difficult streams as challenging but

not dangerous. I felt that the risk factor was very small,

and that trekking would be dull if there were not some

such challenges. To fly back by helicopter was an easy

option. But I had come here to do a specific trek, and

there was no reason why I should not complete the trek

for which I had come here.

6th

May – Yangley to Jakkharka (2646 mtrs.) – 6 hours.

Last night I told Nirmal about my decision. Others had gone to sleep. He did not make any comment. In the

morning I told others about my decision. No discussion took place. They understood that I seemed firm on my

decision. Whether they felt that I was being brave doing this difficult return trek on my own, or that I was being

foolish to contemplate doing this trek on my own – that I will never know. But one thing I know, and appreciate a lot

was the fact that they did not try to persuade me to change my mind. I guess I must be grateful for their understanding

and accepting my decision. Had they tried to persuade me to change my mind, it is quite possible that I might have

wavered and got confused. The guide, more implicitly

rather than explicitly, expressed his disapproval at my

decision.

One guide left today to arrange for the

helicopter. We started our trek to our next camp site.

Today it was easy going walk along the river with some

gentle ascents that did not bother us much. My mind was

full of thoughts. In two days, I would be alone with

guides and porters, but none of my friends would be with

me. I am not at all regretting my decision. On the

contrary, more I thought about it I was glad that I had

made the decision to continue.

We camped before 3.00. It was sunny day, and I

lay on the grass in the sun for a long time. It was my

birthday today and the cook made a cake for me.

However at the time of the cake cutting only the guides, cook and Nirmal were

present. Others had gone to sleep early. But it was nice to have this simple

celebration on top of the Himalayan range.

7th

May – Jakkharka to Sherson (4614 mtrs) – 6 hours.

We left at 8.00. Today the trek was easy going on a flat terrain. It was

sunny at first but became cloudy and windy as day progressed. On the way we

lost the track for a while and we had to walk down a slope scattered with loose

rocks. That was a difficult walk, and I used my hands to walk down the slope. I

was scared of slipping or falling down the slope on those small rocks.

We were early to our camp site and spent the evening playing cards.

While we were playing cards, suddenly the temperatures started falling and we

were shivering. We took a quick dinner and got into our sleeping bags by 7.30. It

snowed all night.

8th

May – Shersong to Makalu Base Camp.(4800 mtrs) – 2 ¾ hours.

We woke up at 6.30. There was no rush today as we had almost reached

our destination. There was a thin layer of snow on the ground, very thick mist

with a thick cloud cover, and temperatures were quite low giving a chill in the

air.

We started walking just after 8.00. It felt quite cold, but the walk was easy on a flat terrain. We did not have to

go far, and as such we took lots of rest breaks. We made

to Makalu base camp by 10.45. It was cloudy and misty,

and all the mountains surrounding the base camp were

not to be seen.

We had reached our destination. This was the

target of our trek. Completion of our mission brought an

air of jubilation. Atul confessed that he was not sure if

he would make it. He thanked everyone for bringing him

here. We had reached our destination but because of the

weather conditions we could not even see the Mount

Makalu, which we had been eagerly waiting to see for

many days. Weather conditions did not permit us to do

anything, and we had the whole day in front of us. We

spent our time playing cards, and hoping that the

weather will clear either today or tomorrow to give us a

glimpse of the Mount Makalu. After lunch, we walked up the small hill in front of our camp. From the top of the hill

we could see some lakes on the other side. …(continued….Part II

)