Description
Our Island Peak & Everest Base Camp expedition offers an amazing adventure, trekking through the Khumbu region and the foothills of the Himalaya, the highest mountain range in the world. The Himalaya contain eight of the 14 eight-thousanders either entirely or sharing a border with India or China. Their names alone inspire awe – Mount Everest, Kanchenjunga, Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Dhaulagiri I, Manaslu and Annapurna I.
Our adventure begins in Kathmandu, a city full of vivid colour, endless festivals and ancient culture. Having experienced the vibrancy of Nepal’s capital we take a 30-minute flight to Lukla in a region where some of the world’s highest mountains rise majestically into the sky.
Our trekking starts in Lukla from where we make our way deeper into this wonderland where mountains project like massive pillars from deep, river-gorged valleys. We trek along narrow paths etched from the steep hillsides in this mystical mountain region which stretches across Asia, from Indus in the west to the Brahmaputra in the east.
The trekking and the views are spectacular as we make our way ever higher, stopping in traditional villages and visiting local tea houses and Buddhist monasteries en route. Seven days after starting our trek we reach Everest Base Camp where we mingle with other trekkers and climbers whose sights are set on the summit of what the Neapalese call Sagarmatha (Forehead in the Sky) and what is known to the Tibetans as Chomolungma (Mother Goddess of the Earth).
At Base Camp we will be in a place that, for centuries, has been the setting for epic feats of exploration and mountain climbing. Here we are in a cathedral of majestic mountains where, according to the people who live in the valleys below, the gods reside. When you turn your gaze on Everest, the highest of them all, there is definitely a sense of being in the presence of something extraordinary.
We begin our trek to the base of Island Peak, also known as Imja Tse, staying in tea houses en route. Once at Base Camp, we set up camp and prepare for the climb which will take us to the summit of the 6,160m peak, first reached in 1953 as part of a training exercise by a British expedition team which went on to reach the summit of Everest afterwards. Island Peak offers an easy technical if physically demanding challenge for climbers who wish to progress from trekking and hillwalking to general mountaineering on one of the most attractive high-altitude trekking peaks in the Himalaya. You will need to have experience and knowledge of scrambling, use of crampons and ice axe and rope skills to complete the climb.
At the summit, there are magnificent views of Makalu’s West Face, Baruntse’s North Face, Ama Dablam’s North Ridge and the imposing Lhotse Shar, which towers 2,300m above Island Peak’s summit. After returning to Base Camp we make our way back to Lukla and take a return flight to Kathmandu. There you will have a few days to explore and immerse yourself in the energy of that captivating city, savouring its tastes, sounds and unique atmosphere.
