Solo Trekking in the Everest Region
- Neemod
- Jul 27, 2023
- 13 min read
Updated: Jul 30, 2023
The events coordinator at R.E.I's New York City branch went pale.
R.E.I is one of my favorite outdoors stores, so obviously I didn't want to alarm anyone. The thing is I just told everyone attending my Nepal lecture what an awesome experience I had solo trekking Nepal's Everest region. I could sense what the coordinator was thinking about – how many inexperienced hikers in attendance would go try this challenge with R.E.I's presumed blessing?
So before you read on, here is the disclaimer. Solo trekking in the Everest region (or anywhere in Nepal) is generally really not a good idea. The absolute majority of trekkers go with organized groups or trekking partners. The risks of trekking alone in such extreme altitudes and cold conditions cannot be understated. Read some tips at the end of this post for safety and preparations.
Why I Went Solo?
So why did I do it anyway? Well, like many great adventures, it wasn't exactly planned...
Its not too hard to find a trekking panther if you have flexible dates. I did find one while looking for a flight in a Kathmandu travel agency. He seemed like a friendly grounded guy who I felt was trustworthy enough to offset my concerns about his shape. This adventure would come after my twenty-one days of trekking the Annapurna circuit but would be his first ever big trek.
Getting to the Trailhead is a Challenge in Itself
My trekking partner's shape was never an issue because we never made it to Lukla, the gateway to the Everest region. Situated at 2,860m/9,383ft, Lukla's Tenzing-Hillary airport is considered the most dangerous/scary/exciting in the world. It has an abyss at one end of the runway and a cliff at the other. With strong winds and constant clouds, pilots have very short windows for landing or taking off. Delays and cancellations are the norm. Some travelers get stranded for days, waiting for the weather to clear.
Catch the earliest flight possible for a chance of better weather. We did book one but were still unlucky. We endured only a 9 hours delay in Kathmandu's Tribhuvan airport. We were then teased by boarding the airplane, starting to roll to the runway... just to have the pilot announce the flight was completely canceled.
At least the refund was quick and painless. My travel agent had the money for me the next day. But I felt I was done with Everest. It seemed just too damn hard to even get there. Instead of flying, you can take a horrible 14 hours bus to Jiri and trek for a week to get to Lukla. This portion of the trail doesn't have particularly good views (and haze may be a real problem), but some trekkers described it to me as a genuine Nepali experience with very hospitable villagers. Regardless, I was completely uninspired and my trekking partner decided to go do the Annapurna.
After a few lazy days in the Thamel, I was more like Dammit, I am already here. I may never have another chance to see the tallest mountain on Earth. Its worth another shot. And this time it went like a charm. My flight went on schedule and 25 minutes later I was in Lukla.
Out-of-shape guide
You can fly a porter or a guide from Kathmandu. Their airfare will be half of yours. I was on a budget and trusted I will just find a porter in Lukla. Indeed, in the airport I was surrounded by over a dozen all competing for my employment. What an odd situation. How do you pick one? I tried testing their English with some basic questions. The results were very poor.
In the Annapurna region porters work with small groups or with independent trekkers. Most of them speak decent English and double as guides. In the Everest region large groups are the norm, so porters just do the porting and the communication is handled by the guides. Do I have to hire a guide to communicate with my porter? It seemed ridiculous.
I wasted the next day looking for an affordable English-speaking porter. In retrospect, it doesn't matter so much. I met other travelers who managed trekking with porters with very limited English. The shape, experience, and gear of the porter are more important. The guy I found eventually spoke great English, had decent hiking shoes, and a good jacket.
Sadly, what he didn't have was a decent level of shape. He later explained he was just a guide, hence his good English and lack of ability to efficiently carry my backpack. We barely made it to Namche Bazar. I paid him for five extra days and sent him back to Lukla. Now I was on my own, and have already made up my mind to continue by myself to the village of Gokyo.
Go Gokyo
The Everest Base Camp (EBC) trail attracts most of the trekking crowds. The base camp itself has hundreds of climbers awaiting their turn to scale Everest. But for all your effort to get there and proximity to the famous mountain, you will not see the summit itself as Everest's icefall obscures it. Some trekkers still enjoy the international flavor, but many others are disappointed by the lack of views. If you are low on time, energy, or tolerance to the conditions you should just try to summit Kala Patthar, an exposed peak that offers the best views of Everest in the region (most people will do both.)
Situated west of the EBC, the Gokyo trail is a great alternative with a fraction of the hype or visitors. It has nothing like the cosmopolitan base camp experience and the coveted views of Everest from the Gokyo Ri viewpoint are admittedly less impressive, but it compensates with a spectacular mountain panorama, five stunning azure lakes, and a lot more serenity.
For a solo hiker, Gokyo is an obvious choice. Most of the trail is easy to follow. The hardest section is getting to Namche. Beyond Namche, for acclimatizing reasons, most of the daily sections are relatively short 3-4 hours walks. You are never more than 2 hours walk from a tea house or a village.
Another consideration is that the competition for beds is not an issue. I heard enough stories about how independent trekkers in the EBC have to sleep on the floor because lodges get completely booked by big groups. Lodge owners on the EBC, especially at Gorakhshep, have earned a reputation for giving solo trekkers a bad attitude.
If you have the time and stamina and want to see Gokyo Ri as well as Kala Patthar, you should ascend on the Gokyo side, cross over the arduous Chola La pass, and descend on the EBC side.
BUT do not under any circumstances ever attempt to cross the pass alone. On my way to Namche Bazar I saw some notices about a solo Russian trekker who is assumed to have lost his way on the pass. What you should do is hang around Gokyo until you find a temporary partner, or better yet a guided group you can tag along to. (I generally dislike large groups, but they do come in handy sometimes).
Lukla and Namche
You won't escape the commercialism and crowds entirely going to Gokyo. Between Lukla and Namche both trails follow the same path. Lukla and Namche will spoil you with tons of lodges, bars, bakeries, gear shops, and even internet access. These are very welcome when you return from the trail craving calories and relative Western comfort. But I felt that something about the spirit of the mountains has been lost here.
The scenery is still amazing regardless. Namche is situated in a natural amphitheater surrounded by jagged Himalayan peaks. Sipping tea at sunset and watching those peaks turn golden-red already satisfied a lot of my Himalayan photo memories. A fifteen minutes hike from town I got my first distant glimpse of mount Everest itself from the national park offices.
Visiting a local school was also an interesting experience. The students may hike for over an hour a day in each direction. Take that into account when you complain about your daily commute. If you are in Namche on Saturday, the weekly market is also worth a couple of hours.
Unlike the Annapurna circuit, I was surprised to have to pay separately for a hot shower (it was worth every Ruppee after two cold weeks in the mountains). I was told it is not the cost of heating the water as most lodges have solar panels, but the cost of pumping them up the mountain that makes the bathing experience as expensive as your rent.
Leaving Namche was a bit confusing as I had to climb steep stairways and navigate some alleys. Eventually I was able to turn east to what was technically a nearby village. The trail continued behind a large Mani stone (a boulder decorated with Buddhist mantras) adjunct to some lodges. About 2 hours later, close to the village of Sanasa, a yellow sign pointed up to Gokyo.
Yak Trails
The atmosphere changed dramatically as I stepped into the woody start of the Gokyo trail. At least I was hoping it was the Gokyo trail. There was no one around to ask or take encouragement from. I hiked without seeing any fellow adventurers, or for that matter even yaks or porters. I began suspecting that the yellow sign was misplaced.
I was clearly on some sort of a trail, but if it was the wrong one how far is the nearest tea house? Will I make it before the sunset and the Himalayan sub-freezing temperatures? I was not even carrying a tent. The whole concept of trekking in Nepal is that you sleep and eat in lodges and tea houses along the trail.
This was the one point where I began having some doubts about going solo. Still, I decided to push on relying on a tip I read somewhere – trekking anywhere in Nepal you can just follow yak manure as trail markings. After a couple of hours I passed by a small tea house and six hours (it seemed much longer) after leaving Namche I was relieved to arrive at the village of Phortse Tenga.
Making the Connection
The next few days were short and rather easy. Besides catering to trekkers, the tea-house owners along the Gokyo trail raise herds of yaks. The wide meadows where the yaks pastured certainly added to the tranquility of the area.
I trekked in mid-April, rather late in the season. Some lodges were nearly empty. On two occasions it was just me and the family running the place. It made up for a very genuine experience, feeling like I was visiting someone's home. Despite being the only guest my hosts fired up the heater for me, showing true hospitality. It burns yak manure. The smell is not really an issue. Or maybe with -20C/-4F temperatures outside I just didn't care.
Because of the short sections I took my time and started walking late in the morning. The days took an unhurried, almost lazy, pace. I would trek for hours at a time with hardly a soul around, sometimes not meeting anyone until arriving at the next tea house. This is where I truly started feeling an amazing sense of adventure and a connection with the striking mountains surrounding me.
Pizza and Chocolate
A few hours after I left Machermo, I climbed past a small waterfall and arrived at a vast cairns field by the shores of Gokyo's first lake. Thirty minutes later, passing another lake, I walked into the village itself. The setting along the azure waters of the 3rd lake was nothing short of stunning. Peaks of some of the Himalayas' best blockbusters poked above the wall of the nearby moraine.
The large lodging complex at the top of the village was busy with a large group that have crossed over from the EBC. I did enjoy its excellent yak cheese pizza, certainly one of the most memorable pies I ever had. I found a lodge closer to the lake. It was simpler and had a good bunch of independent trekkers. We passed the evening playing cards, which is how you pass most evenings trekking in Nepal.
I climbed Gokyo Ri early the next morning (clouds obscure the peaks by 9-10 am) to have a view above the moraine of what is probably one of Earths best mountain panoramas. I rewarded my efforts with a chocolate bar I carried all the way from Namche. I don't have much of a sweet tooth, but got hooked on chocolate bars after trying a deep-fried one on the Annapurna.
The next day I walked to the 4th and 5th lakes past the village. The confusing trail splits many times inside the rocky channel sandwiched between the moraine and Gokyo Ri. I got lost a bit, but it made for a fun adventure. The channel is wide enough so I could keep my general bearing. There were even some cairns to follow and at other times I just climbed the moraine for a vantage point.
Moving Onward
Gokyo's peacefulness lured me into spending a couple of days more, relaxing and just strolling around the lake. The exhilaration of getting here made me want to pursue an even greater challenge – crossing the Cho-La pass to the EBC trail. I even found a guided group I could tag along to.
Alas, I felt I was coming up with a cold and it also started snowing the morning the group was leaving. I watched them, feeling a bit saddened, and when they were finally gone I began retracing my steps down to Namche.
You can also return to Namche by crossing the Ranjo-La pass. Both passes can be combined with the Kongma-La pass for the ultimate Everest test of endurance and determination – the Three Passes Trek.
Flying Solo
There are no acclimatization concerns when descending. You can cover as much distance as your legs would endure. I made it back to Namche in two days.
The Namche-Lukla descent was the longest day I had on the trail. It would have been nice to break it in the easy-going village of Monjo. But I reserved my return flight to Kathmandu when I left Namche and had to be in Lukla by 4 PM to pay for it (With the unpredictability of trekking, it goes without saying you want to have a flexible ticket or just book one when you are about a day or less from Lukla.)
A good word here to the manager at Agni Air. I made it only by 4:30 PM when the office in town was already closing. He took me to the company's office at the airport to buy my ticket. In the morning, there was one vacant seat on an earlier flight. The manager literally plucked me from the crowd and shoved me into that flight.
Solo traveling does have its advantages sometimes.
Costs
All prices are in USD.
Trekking has somewhat of a different economy than regular travel in Nepal. Daily costs are $15-$30 (cheaper in Annapurna or Lantang, more expensive in Everest). Accommodation is almost symbolic on the treks, costing $1-$3, and you mostly pay for the food with a commitment to two meals (usually dinner and breakfast). Come in with several other trekkers and you can probably bargain to get the rooms for free.
Water is very costly high the mountains with bottles going for as much as $3 each (more than your room!). You can bring water treatment tablets and then your water is free. I had two kinds of tablets with me. The first irritated my stomach. Luckily switching to the second kind helped. Some people carry a UV water purifier, but the cold conditions can destroy your batteries. So carry tablets regardless!
Porters or guides average $12-$15 a day – this includes all their food and lodging. English speaking guides on the Everest will charge $20 a day. Add 10-15% to this amount as a tip – a good porter more than deserves it.
There is also a one-time expense of $20-$30 for permits.
As a solo traveler in the Everest you will average $20-$30 a day. Bring a porter and it is more like $35-$45.
Flights are costly. Each direction is about $125. If you bring a porter from Kathmandu his ticket will cost half of that.
Safety Tips
Ok, so I got you excited and now you want to try solo trekking in the Everest region. Great. Here are some useful tips to make the experience safer.
Get in shape – No brainer. I didn't have a desk job before traveling to Nepal. I was on my feet for hours each day. It certainly helped. But even if you don't have the advantage of a physical job, don't just settle for the treadmill in the gym. Use the stair master or go do some real stair climbing. Skip the elevator and go climb some stairs.
Climbing down is almost as important as climbing up to strengthen your muscles and prepare your knees. If you don't have access to high buildings where you live, go climb some hills or really whatever you can climb. And also try to carry a pack with as much of the weight you plan on taking with you.
Try to get acclimatized – I did the Annapurna trail before attempting Gokyo. My body was already acclimatized to high altitude which made me much more confident about going solo. If you can't spare the time, just try to find something less epic. There are enough short hikes in Nepal, even out of Kathmandu. To make it effective you do want to get to above 3000M/10,000Ft
Carry altitude sickness pills – I did get a mild case of altitude sickness on the Annapurna. The pills helped relieved it within a day. You can take them as a preventive measure or to treat symptoms. It is possible to get them in Kathmandu, but you are better off buying them back home after a visit to a travel clinic.
Carry extra money – In case you will need to pay for a horse to carry you down or to use a satellite phone (some big lodges have them) to call for help.
You may also want to consider carrying a mobile phone and a local sim card. The SIM is a bit of a pain to get in Nepal, and reception at high altitudes is nonexistent. But I did use my mobile to reserve my return flight.
Don't skimp on insurance. Get one that covers extreme sport and emergency evacuations – I met some people who had to evacuated from the Annapurna due to altitude sickness. Their insurance covered the chopper ride, and they later wrote to tell me the flight over the mountains was an amazing experience. Free flight or not, make sure your insurance can cover emergency evacuations.
Walk slow – Pace yourself and let your body acclimatize to the altitude. Rushing up the mountain will put you at more risk.
Know your way – While the trail is clear for most parts, do invest in a map and try to get good trail directions as well. I used Lonely Planet Trekking in the Nepal Himalaya. It had a great section-by-section breakdown for Gokyo, the EBC, and even the 3 passes should you feel inspired.
You should get the printed book and not the digital version. The cold weather will eat the batteries on your eReader, phone, or tablet and there are very few opportunities on the way to recharge. You don't want to be stuck with a dead device just when you need trail instructions. For easy access, I tear out and keep the relevant pages for the day in a waterproof map case like this one.
Eat garlic – besides fighting off vampires, garlic is considered to be a natural remedy against altitude sickness. Any lodge or teahouse along the trails will have a bunch of dishes with healthy portions of it. While it is not scientifically proven and even if you are not big on garlic you should try to consume some daily while on the trail. Not all lodges have fresh supplies and they will use powder instead, so consider buying some before catching a flight to Lukla.
Have fun – There may be some hard parts on the trail. But don't forget you are having an amazing adventure so keep an eye on the big picture and have fun with it.
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