Day 9: Lobuche

Hiking time: 4-5 hours

Above Pheriche, the character of the terrain changes, and we’ll begin to understand the starkness of the high alpine landscape. Our path climbs the terminal moraine of the Khumbu glacier and continues to the settlement of Lobuche (16,174 ft./4,929 m), where we’ll spend one night. This trail passes through a famous memorial that honors the many Sherpa who lost their lives in the high mountains. Lobuche is located on the flank of an old lateral moraine of the Khumbu glacier.

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EBC hiking advice above 14,000 feet:  “Start slow, then taper…”  Slow and steady is the recommended pace as we climb to higher altitudes. 

Once again, our day started in Dingboche with clear skies and a beautiful sunrise.  Like yesterday, we woke up (or should I say got out of bed because we do not sleep much) early before starting our trek to Lobuche.  The morning portion of our hike offered remarkable views of Taboche, Cholatese, and Ama Dablam.  Photographs simply cannot capture the beauty of these snowcapped mountains.

As we enter the land of the giant mountains, there are no more prayer wheels or suspension bridges. We hike thru large plains with big rocks and no vegetation, and we clearly have entered a higher more rugged alpine zone.  We followed the trail until we crossed the river into the village of Thukla.  This was a great spot to rest and refuel. 

After lunch, we headed up to memorial hill which was very difficult.  It was two hours of uphill hiking thru winding switchbacks.  Memorial hill is dedicated to the many climbers who lost their lives climbing Himalayan mountains.

After memorial hill, we had a relatively flat walk with nice views of the valley to Lobuche with the trail taking you along the left hand side of the Khumbu Glacier.  As we approach Lobuche at 16,100 feet, we notice that all of us are feeling the effects of the altitude today.  

We are excited and looking forward to reaching EBC tomorrow.  In the meantime, we are ready for some warm food and sleep.

-Johnny Alford