Island Peak Climbing

Touring the World Heritage Sites in Kathmandu Valley that includes: Kathmandu Durbar Square, Swayambhunath Temple, Boudhanath Stupa and Pasupatinath Temple. Overnight at hotel, breakfast included.

Early morning transfer to the airport for Lukla flight. The flight to Lukla is a lifetime experience in itself. The airfield is at high evaluation and the difference between the two ends of the runway is about an exceptional 60 meters only. Trek to Phakding with an arresting, green landscape with the view of Kusum Kangraru. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We follow the Dudh Koshi, ascending through Himalayan pine and cedar forests, to the celebrated village of Namche Bazaar. The village of Namche is a historic trading post where Nepalese and Tibetan traders exchange salt, dried meat and textiles.

Besides being a splendid destination to shop for traditional crafts, Namche remains the central trading post in the Khumbu that attracts Himalayan and lowland merchants.

You will spend two days at Namche for acclimatization, visit local markets and spend time with your team. On the hike we capture our first glimpses of Everest and neighboring peaks. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

This day is especially sectioned for acclimatization. We will hike to Syangboche Airport (3700m), supposed to be the highest airport in the world, then continue climbing to Everest View Hotel for great panoramic views of the Everest, Lhotse, Amadablam, Tawache etc. On the way back, we visit Sherpa Culture Museum and Everest Photo Gallery. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

The trails easy in the begging up to Kyangjuma & climb steeply out of the valley through rhododendron forests, which give way to fragrant stands of juniper and large conifers as the elevation increases. This trek is especially beautiful in spring when the rhododendrons are blooming. The trails pass many Kharkas, summer settlements used when Sherpas bring herds of yaks to graze in these high pastures.

The route passes through the settlement s of Tongba (3950m) and Gyele (3960m) to Dole where there’re few hotels. The views of Khumbila and Tawache (6542m) are incredible throughout the day!! Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Trail climbs to Lambara at (4220m) and Luza at (4360m). The tails is steep in most places as it climbs through brush junipers. There’re Kharkas whenever there is a flat spot and the slightest hint of water.

The trails continue to climb along the side of the valley, high above the river, crossing sandy spurs to Machhermo at (4410m). Here was in Machhermo in 1974 that Yeti killed three yaks and attached a Sherpa woman. This is the most credit yeti incident ever reported. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

We climbs a ridge for an excellent view both down the valley to Kantega and up towards Cho-Oyu (8201m). Beyond the ridge the valley widens as the trail passes through Pangka at (4390m) then descends to the riverbank before beginning of climb on to the terminal moraine of the Ngozumpa Glacier. It’s a steep climb up the moraine, switch backing alongside the stream to the first small Lake at (4650m), where a family of green Brainy ducks resides. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Early wake up and climb up to the Gokyo-Ri, for panoramic view of Mahalangur Himalayan range, it takes approximately 2hrs climb to the top of the peak, providing a panoramic view of Cho-Oyu, Gyachung Kang, Everest, Lhotse, Makalu, Cholatse and Tawache & a great looking of Ngozumpa glacier a largest glacier in Nepal. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Trekking to the foot of Cho La pass. Overnight at Guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Today is a long trek starting before sunrise at 4/5 am to reach the pass by 9-10 am otherwise weather conditions will greatly affect our journey. We cross over at an altitude of 5300 meters we could be exposed to strong winds if crossing too late.

We start to climb steeply that is regularly used and easy to follow. However, the problem may arise due to the altitude and snow. It often causes terrible problems to cross the pass if it is covered by snow. As you reach the top, you are rewarded by the magnificent views, and then we descend to the Dzongla at noon. Overnight at Guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Today, we will take easy and short trekking route as we had big and hard trekking day yesterday. Overnight at Guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

After a short climb through meadows, look down at the Khumbu glacier. Straight ahead is Kalapattar – the best vantage point to view the entire south face of Mt. Everest and the surrounding peaks. After a couple of hours we will get to Gorekshep, and continue our journey to the Everest base camp.

There is not much elevation gain, but there are a lot of ups and downs and, combined with altitude, this can be an exhausting trek – but the journey is worth it. After approximately 3 hrs of hiking, you will arrive at the base camp and enjoy a magnificent view of the Khumbu glacier and icefall, where the Everest expeditions begin. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

The day starts with a hike up to Kalapattar (5545m), an excellent viewpoint to observe the Mount. Everest and innumerable spectacular mountains views. Then trek back to Gorekshep for hot breakfast and trek descend to Dingboche (4410m). Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

From Dingboche we make a leisurely start following the Imja Valley with great views of Ama Dablam dominating the skyline and follow the moraines that flow from Lhotse (8501meters) towards the sand flats at Pareshaya Gyab. We will reach in the mid-afternoon. Will be tented camp for next two days and you will be having camp food cooked by our professional cook. Overnight at tented camp, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Pre-Climb Training: After lunch, our guides will provide training on peak climbing techniques and using climbing gears such as ice axe, climbing boot and crampons, harness, ascender, etc and on how to go up and down using ropes. Although it is not mandatory to have prior training experience for Island Peak Climbing, we believe that some training experience will boost up your confidence and climbing skills, thus increasing the chances of scaling the summit as well as to fully enjoy the experience.

Island Peak Ascent (6,189m), we begin our climb early in the morning, generally around 1 AM. In the beginning, we climb the rock gully. This is not difficult but there are several short rock steps to climb before we emerge on the right side of the gully. The route then follows a ridgeline, which leads to an exhilarating and exposed traverse onto the snout of the summit glacier.

We need to rope up for the glacier as it contains several crevasses. The guides will fix a rope wherever necessary. A steep snow slope leads us onto the summit ridge. After enjoying the summit views, and taking pictures, we descend all the way to Dingboche for overnight. Overnight guesthouse/tent, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

There is no such guarantee that we can get quite a favorable weather on our planned day for the summit (day 16), so this day is used as a contingency in case if we are unable to summit the Island Peak on day 16 due to bad weather condition or some other reasons.

If weather gets exceptionally unfavorable we wisely have to postpone the program of summiting the peak. Sometimes somebody in the group may get some problems in acclimatizing well enough to make the ascent; the day can be used in that condition too. If the trip goes smoothly, we do not need this spare day. Overnight at tented camp or guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Leaving the mountains behind us our descent takes us through various towns of Orsho, Somare and Pangboche, Tengboche then Pungki Thanka and complete steep to Kyangjuma, and easier trail to Namche. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

The trek continues along the Dudh Kosi River to the small mountain airstrip at Lukla, where you will catch your return flight to Kathmandu. Overnight at guesthouse, breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

30-minutes amazing scenic fly back to Kathmandu. Overnight at hotel, breakfast included.

Spend the day in Kathmandu, to rest or to explore, as per your inclination. Overnight at hotel, breakfast included.

Approximately 3 hours before the scheduled flight, a representative from the Nepal Hiking Team will take you to the airport.