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Friday, December 25, 2020

K2 Winter Madness: Could This Be The Year?

K2 Winter Madness: Could This Be The Year?

The winter season has just begun and in the Karakoram a large group of Sherpas, clients and professional mountaineers are descending on K2 Base Camp (or are already there), determined to solve the last great problem of mountaineering on the world’s 8,000-meter peaks: the first winter ascent of K2, the 8,611-meter Pakistani giant.

While the largest expedition is still yet to arrive, two small teams are already in action on the Abruzzi Route, the “normal” route used during the historic first ascent of K2, by an Italian team in 1954.

The players, the risks, the likelihood of success—read on for a preview of what is to come on K2 this season.

The Teams

The first team—Icelandic climber John Snorri, and Pakistani climbers Ali Sadpara and Sajid Sadpara—arrived on the mountain and began climbing  on December 1. (According to the meteorological calendar, winter begins on December 1, whereas according to the astronomical calendar—the one generally accepted by the climbing community for winter ascents— winter begins on December 21.) This team has already reached up to 6,000 meters, Camp 1, fixing ropes along the initial labyrinthine glacier and the first slopes on the southeast Abruzzi Spur. Ali Sadpara is the most experienced winter climber of the bunch, having bagged the first no-O2 winter ascent of Nanga Parbat in 2016, with Simone Moro and Alex Txikon, and having attempted Everest in winter. He has also climbed the other four Karakorum 8,000ers in various seasons. Sajid, Ali’s son, is the youngest Pakistani to have climbed K2.

On December 23, just after arriving in Base Camp, another trio of strong Nepalese climbers—Mingma Gyale Sherpa, Dawa Tenzin Sherpa and Kili Pemba Sherpa—took advantage of the favorable weather and, in a flash, equipped over 600 meters of the route, up to Camp 2, to the altitude of about 6,700 meters. This quick early progress shows the formidable strength and skill of this Sherpa team.

As mentioned, the largest expedition has still yet to arrive in Base Camp. Organized by Seven Summit Treks, the expedition will include nearly 60 people: a team of 28 Sherpa experts, plus an additional 30 clients and professional mountaineers, including the Spanish climber Sergi Mingote, co-leader of the Sherpas together with Chhang Dawa Sherpa; Spanish climber Juan Pablo Mohr; the duo of Romanian Alex Gavan (who has already climbed seven 8,000rs) and the Italian Tamara Lunger (who participated in the first winter ascent of Nanga Parbat, but stopped 70 meters short of the summit; she was also the second Italian woman to climb K2 without oxygen, and has partnered with Simone Moro on many other winter expeditions); the controversial polar explorer Colin O’ Brady; and Polish climber Magdalena Gorzowska, a former Olympic sprinter, with mountaineering experience including Aconcagua, Everest with O2, and Manaslu without O2.

Finally, rounding out the expeditions will be Nirmal “Nims” Purja and his Himalayan Elite team. Nims is a former Nepalese gurkha who last year completed all 14 8,000-meter peaks in just six months, with a mix of military-style strategy (like using helicopters for fast transfers between Base Camps), supplementary oxygen, Sherpas to fix ropes, and, of course, incredible strength and character. Notably, while setting his 14er speed record, Nims played a fundamental role in aiding and organizing the rescues of other climbers in danger at high altitude, often in the death zone above 8,000 meters.

The Challenges

Overcrowding at K2 Base Camp this winter and on the climbing route itself, the differences in the technical ability and experience of this large group of climbers, and the commercial aspect of some of the expeditions—all against the backdrop of the enormous difficulties and objective dangers of a winter climb of the hardest 8,000er—add up to a precarious situation.

NIms (left) and his team. Photo: Courtesy of Nirmal Purja.

Winter experts and other media have already raised concerns. Simone Moro, who has made the first winter ascent of four 8,000ers and who will attempt Manaslu this winter with Alex Txikon, raised doubts about the lack of experience of so many of the participants and the traffic along the Abruzzi Spur.

Adam Bielecki, the Polish climber who has done two first winter ascents of 8,000ers, said that he believes “conquering K2 with oxygen is neither ethical nor honorable”—how most of the climbers will be attempting it. Climbers who have confirmed they will be climbing without supplemental oxygen include Snorri and the Sadparas, Gavan and Lunger, Nims Purja, and Mingma Gyale Sherpa, Dawa Tenzin Sherpa and Kili Pemba Sherpa.

Asghar Ali Porik, owner of Jasmine Tours Agency, who is in charge for the Snorri-Sadpara expedition, shared his concerns on the number of support staff and amount of equipment required by a team as large as the Seven Summit Treks expedition: “One porter can carry no more than 20Kg of weight during winter, but I have seen that many climbers of the team arrived in Skardu with 4-5 bags each; so you can imagine how many of [porters] are required to carry all the equipments; then they’ll have to carry oxygen bottles, heating [equipment], tents and kitchen stuff. At BC, one kitchen tent needs 1 cook, 1 assistant cook, 2 cook helpers to serve about 10 people. I’m worried about how they will manage all this at Base Camp, since they have not carried food and supplies in advance. Also, I’m concerned about the amount of oxygen bottles—they’ll provide 7 bottles for each client—left on the mountain. We will see how many of their clients [can deal with] the winter temperatures and lack of comforts there.”

Once on the route itself, where temperatures will routinely be -30 to -60 degrees Celsius, with extremely high winds, the dangers become even greater. The technical stretches after C2 at 6,700 meters, including House’s Chimney and the rocky area of ​​the Black Pyramid before C3, are frequent sites of rockfall.

All that being said, if the weather cooperates and the wisdom of the team leaders prevails, and if the rotation by the teams in the various technical sections is carried out carefully, the chances that someone will succeed this year could be higher than ever before.

Thursday, December 17, 2020

How Much Does It Cost To Climb Mount Everest?

How Much Does It Cost To Climb Mount Everest?

Yaks carry climbing gear to Everest Base Camp Yaks carrying climbing gear to Everest Base Camp

As of 2020, the average cost for a place on a commercial Everest team, from either Tibet or Nepal, is US$44,500. A minimalist attempt to climb Everest could be organized for about US$20,000. At the very upper level, the private climb option on VIP expedition” comes with the hefty price tag of US$200,000.

The minimalist option would suit high-altitude mountaineers who possess extensive experience above 8,000m, and are used to solo-climbing, expedition planning, and operating in the area known as the death-zone.

At the more expensive price point, the Everest Expeditions Nepal team which climbs from Tibet charges US$60,900. A place on the US Alpenglow team costs US$85,000. IMG’s “private climb option,” which includes a personal western guide for each climber, has an all-in-cost of US$118,000. The private climb option with the RMI team tops out at US$135,000. Everest Expeditions Nepal expedition” with private guide, extremely experienced Sherpa's, pre-acclimatization, unlimited oxygen tanks, nutrition and training plans, and other services takes the most expensive slot at $200,000.

As a general rule, the higher the cost, the more services are supplied, but such a fact should not be blindly relied on. These additional services would contain items such as: 

Higher ratio of western guides with experience 
Extra support from the Sherpa 
Extra bottles of oxygen that can be used at a larger flow rate 
Specific requests for diets 
Larger tents for Base Camp 
More communication facilities 

Provision of tents for pre-acclimatization to be used 6 weeks before travel. 
The table below provides a breakdown of typical expenses for an Everest expedition, so that you can better understand where the headline dollar figure comes from.

Cost to Climb Mount Everest in 2021 – Full Breakdown:

ITEAMS

COST PER CLIMBER

NOTES

Everest climbing permit from the Nepalese government

$11,000

Non-refundable

Application Fee for Permits        

$400

This is a $2,500 government fee for the team, Therefore split between all climbers. Our average team size used throughout these calculations is six.

 

Nepalese Liaison Officer              

$500

A mandatory government fee to the team of $3,000.

 

Nepal Tourist Visa           

$100      

This is the more expensive visa and allows you to stay longer than a month (which you will need to)

 

Refundable Rubbish Fee             

$650      

This is sometimes refunded in part or full if the team has left zero waste on the mountain, especially at base camp.

 

Personal Climbing Gear

$6,000  

Down suit, sleeping bags, boots, crampons and all the rest. This is an estimate: you could spend less, or far more!

 

Airfare to Nepal               

$2,000

This is an estimate and can depend on where you live.

 

Kathmandu Hotel           

$500      

A couple of nights at the beginning and end of the expedition. Estimate

 

Airfare to & from Lukla 

$350      

Don't even consider trekking this, unless you have an extra two weeks!

 

Equipment transport: Lukla to Base camp         

 

$600      

This is all the expedition's equipment. Transported by porters and yaks.

Tea House Food & Lodgings on Trek to Base camp          

 

$350      

Usually an 8 day trek.

 

 

Food & fuel (for water & cooking) above Base camp         

 

 

$750      

 

 

Estimate

 

Personal Tent at Base camp       

$400      

 

These tents are comfortable and important.

 

Food at Base camp for four weeks  

$2,500  

You will be in and out of Base camp, but will spend around 4 weeks there in total. All food has to be carried up the valleys from lowland villages, or flown in on helicopters. Then Sherpa staffs have to prepare it.

 

Everest ER Fee 

$100      

This covers unlimited visits to the base camp doctors and supports their work.

 

Rope Fixing Fee               

$750      

This pays for the rope (3,000m) and the Sherpa staff to carry and fix it all. All teams pitch in.

 

Oxygen Tanks   

$5,000  

10 tanks @ $500 each. 6 for the climber and 4 for their climbing Sherpa.

 

Oxygen Mask & Regulator          

$2,000  

One set for the climber and one set for the climbing Sherpa. These are rented.

 

Transport of Oxygen     

$1,000

Transport of the oxygen tanks to Camp 4, the Balcony and the South Summit

 

Mountain Tents               

$3,000  

Tents at Camps 1, 2, 3 & 4. Mess tent & cooking tent at Camp 2. Toilet tents at Camp 2. Many tents are destroyed each expedition by wind and storms.

 

Load Sherpa      

$3,000  

These Sherpa assist in carrying supplies up and down the mountain. Stocking the camps, setting up tents and building camp

 

Sherpa Cooks   

$2,000  

Our top Sherpa chef will run the base camp kitchen, assisted by two kitchen assistants. Additionally, we will have a second Sherpa cook at Camp 2 to provide food and water at this advanced base camp.

 

Climbing Sherpa              

$5,000  

Your Sherpa climber will climb with you as you ascend from camp to camp and will plan to summit with you.

 

Guide/Team Leader      

$6,000  

The Team Leader makes everything happen. This covers their $11,000 permit, oxygen tanks, food, transportation, and equipment costs (for a team of 6)

 

Mountain Clean-up        

$500      

Remove all tents, bottles, equipment and rubbish from the high camps.

 

Summit Bonuses             

 

$1,200  

These bonuses are earned incrementally as the climber reaches milestones (Camp 1, Camp 3, etc.). Bonuses go to cooks, porters and load-carrying Sherpa's, not just the climbing Sherpa who accompanies you to the summit.

Optional Costs  


 

Trip Insurance  

$600      

Estimate. This covers you in case the expedition is cancelled late or you need to cancel. Very little, if any payment, is refundable less than 60 days out.

 

Medical Insurance          

$400      

Estimate. Includes evacuation insurance from Base camp

 

Spending Money            

$1,000  

Throughout the trekking and when at Base camp there are opportunities to buy gifts or snacks or drinks. Plan on bringing this, but you may not spend it all.

 


You can check out the latest details for our Mount Everest 2021 Expedition here.

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

The height of Mt Everest has increased by 86 centimeters.

The height of Mount Everest has increased by 86 centimeters. Government of Nepal and China jointly announced the increase of height of Mt Everest Tuesday. With this, the height of Mt Everest is now 8848.86 meters. Nepal for the first time measured the height of Mt Everest Challengewith its own means and resources.

Nepal measured the height of Mt Everest taking around two years. During the Nepal visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping last year, Nepal and China had made agreement to announce the height of Mt Everest jointly.

With the joint declaration today by China and Nepal, Everest’s new official elevation is now set at 8848.86 Meters (29,031 feet, 8.315 inches to be rather exact).

With the top of the world first measured at 29,000 in the 1850’s, it was then publicized as 29,002 feet high. The 2 feet were reportedly added, as the exact 29,000 was thought to be too perfect to be believed. The defined height of Everest has been controversial and has continued to go up and down ever since.

There was also a point in 1987, when an American expedition measured K2, the world’s second tallest peak, and found that by their calculations, as reported in the Washington Post, K2 could perhaps be a bit taller than Everest. That would have caused a great conundrum in the climbing world, and rumors circulated for a few years that Everest might actually be.

While being a few meters taller or shorter is of little consequence to climbers, with the top of Everest defining the border between Nepal and China, having bragging rights over defining the exact height has recently increased in importance. Mountain ranges involving borders have long created geopolitical challenges, and certainly no more so than in the Himalaya.


Sunday, November 29, 2020

How Nepal did the first time measurement on Mt. Everest height

How Nepal did the first time measurement on Mt. Everest height

Introduction of Mt. Everest 

Among the Himalaya mountain range, Mount Everest is a Highest peak in the world. Everest is located between two countries Nepal and Tibet (China). 

Everest makes an elevation of 8,850  meters (29,035 feet) and which is the world’s tallest mountain. 

In the 19 century, a former Surveyor General of India named mountain George Everest. 

Now it is named Mount Everest but its Tibetan name is Chomolungma, which means the “Mother Goddess of the World”. 

And the Nepali name is Sagarmatha on which “Sagar” means sky and “Matha” means head.

Nepal has been trying to measure the height of Everest from first when it was recognized as the tallest peak of the world. 

The height of Everest has been changing with advances in survey technology. For two years Nepal has been working to measure the height of the mountain. 

After the completion of the survey, China will also be joining for the announcement of height. 

Mount Everest 8848m High, which is famous for Everest Expedition. More than 1000 people climbed Mt. Everest every year. 

Every climber dreams to reach the top of the world.

How was Mt. Everest first measured?

The First Mount Everest height was measured by the team of India. The survey of India had determined the height of Mount Everest in 1847 and 

declared the height as 8778m above from sea level and identified Everest as the world’s tallest peak.

Ways of measuring height

There are many different ways to calculate the height of different Mountains. As Mt. Everest is the tallest mountain on the earth, 

different ways are used to calculate the elevation of Mt Everest. Height can be measured from mean sea level, from the depth of the ocean, 

or even the distance from the center of the Earth. As the planet is not perfectly round so some Andean peaks would actually be taller.

How much did Nepal spend to measure Mt. Everest’s height?

Nepal has started its survey for the measurement of Everest. The survey was started using sophisticated methodology including readings 

from ground-penetrating radar and a Global Navigation Satellite System from the top of the mountain which requires a lot of money. The Department of Nepal has spent $1.3 million dollars on this survey.

Many scientific instruments and technology worth 80 million have been donated by the Seiss company.

The organization which helped to measure height?

This ongoing measurement height of Mount Everest is measured by Nepal itself. While now Nepal has been doing a survey on its own. 

From Nepal, different departments are helping for this project like the Ministry of Land reform, the Survey Department, and the Foreign Ministry.

Although Nepal is doing a survey on its own, as the survey completes China will also join in announcing the height of Mount Everest.

Surveys

1847 AD The first survey was done by India which declared the height of Mt. Everest 8,778m and mentioned it as the highest peak of the world.

1849-1950 AD Again the survey group from India has re-measured the height of Everest from the Nepal side and declared the height as 8,840m.

1954 AD  BL Gulati Are-measures the height of Mt. Everest who was from the Survey group of India and declared as 8,848m, which is the authentic height adopted till now.

1975 AD  Now the height was measured from different sides and by different countries. China measured the height from its side and declared the height as 8,848.13m.

1999 AD  Brad Washburn who was from the Boston Museum of science measured the Height of Everest from a different way. Bread Washburn uses GPS and Radar detects the height and declares the height as 8,850m.

2005 AD Again China has re-measured the height of Everest. But this time China has measured the rock-height. And the rock-height was declared as 8,844.43m.

2015 AD Research by the Chinese government has said that Everest has moved 3cm to the south-west due to the earthquake of 2015.

2017 AD Nepal first declared the height of Mount Everest. And started the survey of measuring the height of Everest. Nepal has started measuring.

2020 AD Nepal tried to declare the height of Mount Everest and aimed to end the 2-century long controversy.

Conclusion

However, Everyone needs to know the height of the tallest mountain on Earth. Many surveys are conducted in the 19th century. 

But now Nepal is doing a survey on its own and Nepal has the aim to end the 2-century long controversy of the world. And while announcing the height of 

Mt. Everest china will also be joining for the announcement.


Has the height of Mount Everest increased?

Has the height of Mount Everest increased?

KATHMANDU : Government of Nepal is soon planning to announce the new height of Mount Everest. The cabinet meeting of Ministers agreed to the proposal of Ministry of Land Management about revealing the new height of world's tallest mountain.

In May 2019, two government surveyors from Nepal and China successfully scaled Mount Everest collecting data for the measurement of height.The government of Nepal decided to measure height of Everest amid debates that the height may have been changed due to various reasons including devastating earthquake of 2015. The current height of Everest is 8848m.

According to the sources, the height of Everest may have been increased.

Nepal and China will jointly announce the new height of Everest soon. 

The trail to Everest repaired during lockdown

The trail to Everest repaired during lockdown

SOLUKHUMBU  : The communities of Khumbu has been using nine months of pandemic in tourism to clean and upgrade the trail to the world's tallest mountain. The mountain guides, porters and hotel entrepreneurs who did not got any clients on 2020 were engaged on cleaning, repairing and upgrading trails and bridges. 


Complains of visitors last year about poor state of trails, waste management, lack of signage etc were addressed.

The youths of Khunde, Khumjung, Thame and Namche was self motivated to conserve and maintain cultural heritage. The mani walls and chaitya along with the trail are painted and repaired.

The women's group of Khumjung utilized their lockdown to cleanup neighbourhood and put a place in waste management that has set example for other communities.

A new helipad has been constructed in Namche during pandemic.

Mountain flights resumed after 8 months

Mountain flights resumed after 8 months

KATHMANDU : Mountain flights are famous for the spectacular sighseeing of popular mountain ranges including the world's highest mountain Everest. Mountain flight is among the first choice of tourists visiting Nepal.

The autumn season is considered as the best season for Mountain flight. Mountain flights is resumed for this autumn season after eight months of closure due to Covid-19 pandemic. The last mountain flight was conducted by Buddha Airlines on 17 March 2020 before the nationwide lockdown imposed by Nepal Government.

According to the Marketing Manager of Buddha Airlines Rupesh Joshi, Mountain flights has been resumed by Buddha Airlines with attractive packages and discount. 

Mountain Flights will be conducted every Saturday. 'Buy one get one free' scheme is provided to costumers in which costumer will get one mountain flight free ticket on purchasing a ticket. The duration of mountain flight is usually one hours starting from Tribhuwan International Airport. The flight flies through Ganesh Himal, Sagarmatha range, 

Kanchenjunga range and flies back to the airport. The fair for mountain flight is NRs. 8,825 for Nepali nationals and 117 USD for foreigners. Buddha Airlines, Simrik Air and Yeti Airlines are conducting mountain flights in Nepal.

Monday, November 23, 2020

Road to Everest: Tourists can breakfast in Kathmandu and drive to Khumbu for dinner

Road to Everest: Tourists can breakfast in Kathmandu and drive to Khumbu for dinner

With a new bridge, Khumbu region has become accessible by land, an alternative to flying to the precarious Lukla airport.

Road to Everest: Tourists can breakfast in Kathmandu and drive to Khumbu for dinner

    The newly constructed bridge over Dudh Koshi river at Orlang Ghat, Solukhumbu. 

                    Photo Courtesy: Khumbu Pasang lhamu Rural Municipality

Pasang Tshering Sherpa of the village of Khumjung in the Everest region was thrilled to hear that a motorable bridge over Dudh Koshi river to complete a road link to the Everest region was inaugurated on Saturday.

“Friends, if you are buying cars, please consider buying one that can roll on the roads of Solukhumbu. The time when we will be able to have breakfast in Kathmandu and dine in the Everest region is not far,” Sherpa posted on his Facebook page.

Khumbu, also known as Everest region, the dream destination for many over the world, will soon become more accessible. As of now, the popular way to get to the top of the world is to take a 25-minute flight to Lukla’s Tenzing-Hillary airport and then trek towards Everest.

But the construction of the bridge over the Dudh Koshi river at Orlang Ghat of Solukhumbu is a landmark for connectivity.

With access only by air, the Everest region is perhaps one of the most expensive places in the world to visit because all supplies have to be flown in or carried on people’s backs, deterring potential tourists, especially domestic ones.

A single cooking gas cylinder costs around Rs15,000, as it is ferried by porters and mules. A trekker has to shell out around Rs300 for a cup of tea. Air freight charges from Kathmandu to Lukla stand at around $1.50 or about Rs180 per kg.

Locals from the region had long been calling on the government to construct the road, citing high costs of commodities, flight service unpredictability and dangerous flights to Lukla Airport, which is considered one of the most dangerous airports in the world.

“Now, vehicles can roll up to Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality ward number 1,” said Binod Bhattarai, chief administrative officer of Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality.

Although Lukla, 2,860 metres, lies at ward 2, motorcars will not go directly up to the airport.

“We have planned to extend the road up to ward number 2 by the end of this fiscal year, and up to Chaurikharka in the next fiscal year,” said Bhattarai.

The road will end in Chaurikharka, at about 2,800 metres after going as high as 3,000 metres.

Chaurikharka is about a day’s walk from Lukla and a day away from Chaurikharka lies Namche Bazaar, the largest town in the Khumbu region. From Namche it’s five days’ walk to Everest Base Camp.

The government had first decided to open a track to the Everest region after more than 3,000 tourists were stranded in Lukla in November 2011 after adverse weather conditions halted flights from Kathmandu for six consecutive days.

Flight cancellation due to adverse weather is a recurring problem and in the monsoon season, there are no flights to Lukla.

During the tourist season in spring and autumn, hundreds of tourists are often stranded at Lukla airport as no flights can land due to bad weather and high winds. Tourists are forced to return to Kathmandu by helicopter paying up to $500 per person, again weather permitting, as against $180 for an aircraft ticket.

In case of bad weather, the other option for trekkers now is to walk up to Jiri, retracing the footsteps of Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa during their historic ascent to the top of the world on May 29, 1953. Jiri to Surkhe, an hour’s walk from Lukla, is a nine-day walk.

It was the Himalayan Trust, the charity Hillary set up, that built the airport in Lukla in 1964.

Dubbed the Highway to Everest, the project started in 2014, but it hit a roadblock after the 2015 earthquakes.

After the 2017 elections that installed local governments under a federal dispensation, Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality took the initiative to take the road project forward.

According to Dip Kumar Basnet, the municipal overseer for the road project, of the 77-km Salleri-Surkhe-Chaurikharka two-lane asphalt road, track opening works of 58 km have been completed so far.

Salleri is the headquarters of Solukhumbu district. The Kathmandu-Khurkot-Ghurmi-Salleri road section is around 270 km.

If things go as planned, people will be able to drive to the Everest region, crossing highlands and in view of panoramic mountain ranges within a day from Kathmandu, according to Basnet.

“If there is no shortage of budget, the project can be completed within one and a half years,” he told the Post. “The black-topping works will also begin soon.”

Chief administrative officer Bhattarai said they would require another around Rs100 million for the remaining track opening works.

Once the road is completed, said Basnet, the region is likely to receive domestic tourists and trekkers in droves, as the road facility will make commodities and travel cheaper.

“The road will bring tens of thousands of people to the Everest region,” said Basnet.

At present, annually over 57,000 foreign trekkers and mountaineers visit the region, and tourism entrepreneurs believe the road access could take that number close to 500,000, including domestic and international tourists.

The numbers, however, could be damaging for the fragile environment of the Khumbu region.

But Bhattarai said they are conscious about the degradation of the Khumbu environment.

“As part of the local government initiative, petrol and diesel vehicles will be allowed only up to Khari Khola,” said Bhattarai.

Khari Khola, at an altitude of 2,140 metres, is two days’ walk before Lukla.

“From there, only electric vehicles will be allowed to Chaurikharka,” he said. “It’s part of the government’s initiative to keep the Everest region emission-free.” 

Wednesday, November 4, 2020

Nepal building a highway to Everest

  Nepal building a highway to Everest

A new road linking Lukla to the rest of the country will transform the region, not all of it for the better

November 4, 2020


Excavators at work on Thamdada, 24km south of Lukla, despite the fact that the Khumbu Municipality has run out of money to complete the Phaplu-Chaurikharka road. All photos: SURENDRA PHUYAL

Excavators are clawing through sheer cliff faces, rocks tumble down to the Dudh Kosi below, and once in a while the sound of dynamite echoes in the gorge. 

A new road linking the town of Chaurikharka just below Lukla to the rest of the country is due to open by December 2022, and work is going on despite the pandemic.

Although the road will not enter the Sagarmatha National Park which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it will make trekking and climbing in the Everest region more accessible. But it will turn Lukla airfield largely redundant, while locals fear an erosion of the region’s Sherpa culture, architecture and lifestyle.

On the Chinese side of Mt Everest, there is a highway from Lhasa right up to North Base Camp below the Rongbuk Glacier at 5,200m. Since 2016, it has become vital to transport goods and people for expeditions to the world’s highest mountain from the north. 

Kathmandu is already linked through a 277km highway to Phaplu of Solukhumbu district, which is a two-day trek below Lukla. Work started on the 77km road linking Phaplu to Chaurikharka six years ago, but progress has been slow due to difficult terrain, delays due to the 2015 earthquake and Blockade, and lack of money.

This means that for at least the next two years, trekkers, climbers, and local people will either have to trek from the nearest road-head near Phaplu or Jiri-Shivalaya-Bamti Bhandar in Ramechhap district or as many do, take a 30-minute flight to Lukla from Kathmandu.


                      Sunkoshi Bridge at Harkapur on the highway from Kathmandu to Phaplu. 

Like all infrastructure projects in Nepal, completion of this road is delayed. Khumbu municipality has run out of money for the remaining 24km dirt track to Chaurikharka from Thamdada. 

The completion of the road was the pet project of the former Chair of Khumbu Rural Municipality, late Nim Dorje Sherpa who died in June. He believed that connecting Phaplu to Lukla would further lift living standards, bring down prices, and reduce the drudgery of his Sherpa people.  

“It’s still our top priority project,” says Lhakpa Tsheri Sherpa of Khumbu Municpality, adding that the construction has been delayed somewhat by the Covid-19 crisis which has also devastated the region’s trekking and climbing income this year. 

Khumbu used to earn Rs200 million a year just from trekking and climbing fees, not counting the what visitors paid for lodging, food and portering. This year, the income is down to Rs60 million.

“It is because of this loss of income that the construction of this last 24km stretch slowed down,” explained Binod Bhattarai, Chief Administrative Officer of Khumbu Municipality. “Now there is hardly any money to complete the project. We are struggling.”

The Municipality has decided to open Khumbu for trekking and climbing even though nine Covid-19 cases were detected in Namche Bazar last month, and it could have spread. Local people have stopped trekkers from going above Pangboche on the Everest Trail.

South of Lukla on Thamdada, bulldozers are at work on the track, while flights to and from Lukla buzz overhead all morning. The road alignment then drops precipitously to the river and Surke helipad below Lukla, before a final ascent to Chaurikharka.  


Bhattarai is not giving up, he says: “The Province 1 government has assured financial support for this project, and other officials and MPs, too, have said that the work need not stop. So, we are hoping that we can make up for a lost time.”  

Not everyone in Khumbu is happy with the road. They think it will spoil the region’s pristine beauty and fragile culture, as has happened when roads have reached other parts of remote Nepal in recent years. 

Sonam Gyalzen Sherpa from Namche, who is chair of the Sagarmatha National Park Buffer Zone Management Committee, says the economy has to be balanced with ecology. 

“The Road will enter the boundary of the national park from Surke and it will surely have some adverse impact on local culture and nature,” he said. “But since the Khumbu is remote and needs a road we are trying to ensure that the EIA is carefully done and its recommendations are strictly adhered to. It will be a big challenge for sure. We are currently discussing how we can mitigate damage.” 

However, there are also strong voices in support of the road. A cylinder of cooking gas that costs Rs1,500 in Kathmandu is Rs15,000 in Gokyo or Lobuje in Upper Khumbu. The cylinders have to be taken on a 12 hour truck ride to Phaplu, then transferred to mule trains that take several days to get up to Namche. Sugar, salt and other food items cost several times more than in Kathmandu.

Zopkyo trains carrying gas cylinders from Phaplu to Lukla. Higher up on the Everest trail, the cylinders cost ten times more than in Kathmandu.

“The road will surely make our life easier,” says Ang Jangmu Sherpa who runs a lodge in Debuje on the Everest Trail. “It will encourage more Nepalis to come trekking, and make certain goods such as cooking gas more affordable.”

Says Ang Rita Sherpa of Lukla’s Nunbur Hotel: “Even if there is a road, most foreign trekkers  are not going to travel to Lukla on a rough 14-hour road, but it will raise living standards in Khumbu.”

“With careful planning to reduce environmental impact and maintain the quality of the trekking experience, tourism in Upper Khumbu can benefit from the new vehicular road access to Chaurikharka,” says Sonia Miyahara, Managing Director of Hotel Everest View.

Yaks and zopkyos carry goods up the Everest Trail near Namche Bazar. Locals hope the road to Lukla will make essential items cheaper.


Besides the lack of money, the road has several other terrain-related hurdles. A dozen bridges need to be built across the Dudh Kosi gorge with a big one in Orlang Ghat that will cost Rs80 million.

Locals lament that despite the central government bragging about Mt Everest and Khumbu as an adventure destination and collecting revenue from fees, it has not chipped in for the road project.

“The federal government has done very little to help despite us knocking on doors of various ministries,” said the Municipality’s Lhakpa Tsheri Sherpa. 

Locals are hoping that even if the 10m wide highway is not fully completed, the track will allow trucks and jeeps to negotiate the final stretch by 2022.

Mules descend from Lukla to Phaplu at Paiya village along the partially completed track.

In Kathmandu, Infrastructure Minister Basata Kumar Nembang told Nepali Times that the federal government was committed to the project: “The Phaplu-Lukla road is one of the plans we have given high priority even in this pandemic situation. That road project will go ahead as demanded by local representatives.”

Whatever the arguments for and against the road, one thing it will do is remove the need for travelers to be stuck, sometimes for weeks in Lukla, due to bad weather.