One way ticket through the Himalayas
One way ticket through the Himalayas
Sir Edmund Hillary called the Tashi Lapcha Pass one of the most difficult and dangerous in
Himalayas, but these "details" seemed somehow unrealistic in distant Moscow and,
apparently related to the lack of technical equipment of the 50s - time
conquering Everest. In the meantime, the choice was made, and on a cold April evening, boarding on the Moscow-Doha-Kathmandu flight was already beginning and the countdown began, inexorably approaching the moment of truth ...Here my backpack slowly floated along the conveyor, leaving behind all doubts.
The roar of the turbines of a modern Airbus quickly became familiar and soon dawn over
clouds reminded of the imminent meeting with the mountains. Flew fast
tedious hours of flight and now the plane dives into a dust cloud - ahead of Kathmandu. A few steps down the ladder you are immediately enveloped in a damp veil of some smells, fumes, it seems that this air can be cut into slices ...
Short visa formalities and you need to have time before the airport closes to get a ticket to Lukla on Yeti Airlines.
Do you want both ways? - No, only one...
There are tickets for the first morning flight at 6.15 and there are a few hours left to sleep in
Kathmandu. This pleases, because in the morning coolness it is easier to cross this crazy city, where, like nowhere else in the world, the smell of life is so clearly felt ...
Checking into the hotel coincided with another power outage in the city and the shower can be taken by the light of a flashlight. Sleep!
Early morning in Kathmandu is the most beautiful period. Mountains shine in the sky, the air is clean and
transparent. Soldiers open a large barn lock on the local airport building
airlines, check-in and boarding begins immediately. A group of animatedly gesticulating Italians crammed into a small Yeti plane. At times it seems that with their cries they drown out the noise of the engines.
The young lady co-pilot, with concentration reads the Instruction for flying the aircraft, alternately turns on and off the instruments on the front panel.
Let's fly! Landing in Lukla is like landing on the deck of an aircraft carrier.
The length of the strip is less than 300 m, except that at the end of the strip there is a steep mountain slope
In such a situation, the pilot is required to do everything accurately and immediately! The plane passes over the pass itself and begins its landing approach.
The Italian in the front seat turned away from the porthole and closed his eyes ...Here is a push, braking and we are in place.
While the morning coolness still helps the rise - go ahead! This time the plans of the first day are modest - to pass the checkpoint in Monjo and get up for the night. Need acclimatization, without which there is nothing higher to do.
In Phadding, the sun begins to fry, it becomes more difficult to walk. After dinner, I happily fall asleep in a roadside inn. It remains an hour of climbing to Monjo, where the checkpoint is already close...
After sleep, the sun left the gorge, the remaining hour of the journey to Monjo was easy and the sharp climb to the checkpoint was not so tiring. An altitude of about 3000 m began to remind of itself with a lack of oxygen. Here, in a dusty book, an entry is made about entering the Sagarmatha National Park, on the way back, your entry is simply crossed off the list. There is a serious climb ahead in Namche - the main village of the Sherpa Country in Solo Khumbu. In the last village of Jorsale, before taking off, I get up for the night in the Nirvana loggia. It is better to leave the rise in the morning. The legs are starting to get used to walking on the rocky path, but it will take weeks to breathe, which this journey simply doesn't have.
Getting up in Namche in the morning is like flying through the frosty air. The air is clean and transparent, mountains rise from all sides. Sounds, because of the distance, are not audible.
By lunchtime, the first houses of Namche appeared, it is already 3400 m. An overnight stay is needed here for acclimatization.
In the narrow streets of Namche there is a lively trade in climbing equipment. Now there are about 25 expeditions of climbers from different countries on Everest who are eager to conquer the summit in the remaining month before the start of the monsoon period. The weather this season is worse. The mountains have been covered with haze since lunch, and this is a sign that there is snow or fog at the top.
I'm off to get my gear. Among the huge amount of ice equipment in a small shop I find a shabby Russian ice ax made at a Leningrad shipyard. THIS WILL GO! By the same principle, I choose gas equipment and other necessary things in these ruins. After lunch, Italians familiar from the flight rise in Namche, the noise increases. Against the backdrop of the ice peaks sparkling over Namche, the sale of warm jackets, puffs and other insulation is especially brisk.
A familiar Sherpa owner of the Khumbu Lodge hotel happily reports that now Russian expeditions to Pumori and Everest and their leader Victor recently went down to look for a masseuse in Namche. Yeah, in these parts, it will probably be easier for him to find Bigfoot ...
In the morning, saying goodbye, the owner of the hotel will quietly say "Be careful! ".
The road to Thama is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful in the world. There are waterfalls, and forests, and mountain slopes covered with flowering rhododendrons...But the backpack has become heavier because of the equipment, and it is possible to get to Tham only after lunch. Altitude 3800 m. Lungs grab rarefied air at every step, a dry lump in the throat, I want to drink ....
In the nearest loggia of Thama, a stop for tea, the stone courtyard of the hotel is strewn with drying equipment, ice hammers, plastic boots with ultra-modern crampons...
The owner, having heard about the Tashi Lapcha pass, shows me two Japanese - they only went to Pacharmo from the Tashi Lapcha pass. Sitting at the table for tea, the Japanese slowly reads, translating into English, a description written in hieroglyphs. The ascent took 5 days and the most difficult thing was the ice under the pass with a steepness of 85 degrees! And here is a photo of the ice wall on which they used a fixed rope. Looks convincing...
After lunch, a short ascent to the ancient Buddhist monastery above Thame. The place for the monastery seemed to be chosen by nature itself. As if everything froze in these walls above eternal peace.
What's better? Money or knowledge? is one of the questions that Buddhists think about:
You can buy medicine but you can't buy health
You can buy women but you can't buy love
You can buy respect, but you can't buy the comfort of a home...
The monastery seems empty, the monk on duty opens the main temple, which contains the image of the Buddha, the Potala and other sacred relics. From the observation deck of the monastery, you can see the entire gorge towards Namche, they seem like tiny sparkles of the roof of Thame. The most beautiful bird in the world, the royal pheasant, sat on the roof, disturbing this harmony with its restless cooing...
The next morning again crossing Thame-Namche-Thame. Acclimatization is difficult, but 6 hours of walking along the trail is easier to bear. The task of the next day is to go 4300 m higher up the gorge from Thame to Tengpo. A gentle ascent passes through a beautiful gorge and by lunchtime the only Tengpo loggia is shown, where you can order rice and tea. The pass above Tengpo is densely covered with clouds. Upon returning to Thama, I ask the hostess of the hotel about the guide from the locals. In conditions of poor visibility, navigating in the mountains becomes much more difficult!
Well, guide, so guide ...After all, Thame is the birthplace of the conqueror of Everest Sherpa Tenzing Norgay. Where else, if not in Thama, to look for a guide? Before his house, you only need to cross the stream and find a passage in the labyrinth of stone walls. The hostess is actively involved in this hike for a guide, at the crossing over the stream we meet the wife of Kami Sherpa Rita (Kami was 15 times on Everest, but this season his client from South Korea felt ill in one of the lower camps at an altitude of 6000 m, you need It was urgent to go down and the ascent did not work out).
Two women are quietly talking about something for a long time by the stream, I only understand the words of Tasha Lapcha ....
I liked the guide right away - I felt the real experience of climbing. The most difficult question turned out to be how many porters are needed to carry equipment, a tent, etc.
Kami porters are needed so as not to return alone through the pass, and, probably, the issue of employment among the Sherpas is far from superfluous. Preparations before leaving took a little time: a cursory inspection of equipment, counting gas cylinders, Kami throws a rope into his backpack - we'll meet tomorrow afternoon in Tengpo! Tomorrow forward and upward...
The morning pleased with the dazzling sun, over Thame the snowy peak of Gyeongde shone. All the household members of the hotel gathered in a small courtyard. Snapshot for memory and climb again through the monastery in Tengpo. In front of Tengpo, the mountain river spills into many branches, quietly flowing through a wide valley. Emerald grass, pensive yaks and dazzling snowy peaks sparkle above all this idyll.
While the traditional rice was being prepared, Robert from Seattle climbed into the loggia, and before sunset, a Canadian "lumberjack" descended from the side of the pass (for some reason, I mentally associated this guy from Toronto with this profession). At sunset, all the surrounding peaks opened from the clouds, and under the grunts of the gathered yaks, photography of the surroundings began. It quickly grew dark, and the travelers gathered for supper in the only loggia dining room. A dim light bulb, recharged during the day by a solar panel, cast slanting shadows over the evening meal.
Kami, with his only porter, immediately went to the kitchen to discuss the latest news with the hospitable hostess, and the North American guys, each turning to their own corner, began their dinner. Robert happily announced that this was his first dalbat ...Well, there is a first time for everything, even this strange dish that the Sherpas love so much.
The "lumberjack" from Toronto was describing in a hoarse voice his ascent to the ice wall under the pass - from this point the pass is already visible. You can't go without ice equipment!
In the morning, an early breakfast before leaving at about 6 am gathered all the inhabitants of the hotel. Everyone leaves when ready. The Sherpas go uphill easily, and soon the morning tea appears on my back under the backpack. After two hours of ascent, the vegetation ended, it became more difficult to walk along the scree. It suddenly snowed. Here I notice how Robert turns down, waves his hand and wishes success in the further ascent to the pass. Soon the Sherpas stop under an overhanging rock. This is a standard high-altitude camp site and there will be a stop for tea. The rock reliably protects the gas burner from snow, and the Sherpas prepare Milk Tea from packages of instant coffee and powdered milk.
Nearby, a frustrated Japanese man sits in a lotus position, who could not pass the ice wall to the pass with his guide from Kathmandu and is returning back. The Sherpas shrug their shoulders in surprise, not understanding what the problem was.
After a short rest, we again continue to climb up. The snow has intensified and is already covering the rocks. Sherpas are eager to hang a rope on steep ice today, and I can hardly dissuade this activity, since in the morning the rope will turn into an icicle and it will become many times more difficult to climb it. Finally, a high-altitude yellow Sherpa tent is deployed under the rock and cooking begins in it. The tent is huge, from the set of the next Everest expedition, it looks like there are six people. There is where to put the bowler hat and stretch your legs ....You immediately understand how important the volume of the tent is in bad weather. The tent quickly becomes covered with a layer of snow and becomes like an Eskimo igloo.
It gets dark quickly, and after a strenuous rise, you imperceptibly fall into a dream.
My awakening took place under the morning prayer of the Sherpas "Om mani padme hum ... ". The glacier is still in the shade, and the slope of Parchamo above the pass is already flooded with dazzling light.
Time is precious, until I get to the ice wall, the Sherpas are already working on the ice. Kami asks to pass the cats up to him, it looks like there is ice on the rocks after a snowfall. Here the rope is fixed and I have to push through the inner corner filled with ice with a backpack. Another three meters of ultimate stress and the terrain becomes easier. Suddenly it starts to snow. Soon I climb up to Kami, who is sitting on a large rock with a fixed rope. Further up to the pass there is a climb of two hundred meters in the snow. The last meters to the pass are difficult. Here are the multi-colored flags stretched against the background of black rocks. Pass!
During bad weather, you don’t want to linger on the pass, hurry down, while there is at least some visibility! After a slight climb towards Parchamo, a snow shovel stalk is visible on the ridge. We begin the descent to the full rope. Below the ice ends and in the snow you can find a foothold. We are descending somewhere along the endless snowy slope ...Somewhere behind us in the snowy whirlwinds tens of meters of rope are dragging, which there is simply no strength to wind up yet. The snowstorm subsides a bit and our further path along the glacier becomes visible. There are ice bridges along which Sherpas carefully cross the cracks. I hear the words Drolambau glacier. Somewhere ahead is a rocky drop to the lower glacier, which must be found. The descent through the icefall is too dangerous.
Snow is falling again, and the Sherpas are looking for a way to the Eagle's Nest - a rock, a place of an intermediate camp. To wait for a break in the bad weather, we stop for lunch under a huge rock.
It looks like a beach fungus, a leg of ice, and the size of a car. It becomes uneasy at the thought of how many tons a small support of ice has to hold. But it doesn’t sweep under it, you can cook dinner. Sherpas are promised "Russian food" - buckwheat porridge.
Suddenly, on the mountainside above us, the Sherpas notice tiny figures of people ...It looks like they are lost!
We start shouting for them to go down, the ascent to the pass goes much further. After 15 minutes of desperate screams, they begin their descent towards us. Russians! The guy and the girl are climbing the glacier for the third day, the food is over, there is no equipment, they have no idea where to go. Sherpas leave them the rest of the gas, share cakes and promise to take them through the pass on the way back. We advise you to sit and wait patiently under the "fungus" of the Sherpas.
A small respite adds strength, ahead of the descent.
The bad weather turned again, somewhere in the breaks of the clouds below you can see the plowed field of a huge glacier. Even before it you need to get on these sheep's foreheads, covered with snow. Sherpas fix the rope several times in difficult places. From the icefall, you can hear the roar of falling ice, some streams of water are falling, in general, the scenery corresponds to the place of action ...Finally, the relief becomes smoother, it seems that they have descended to the lower glacier! This glacier surpassed everything previously seen. Some kind of huge ice country. There is no path, all the stones are covered with snow. And, according to the Sherpas, the glacier is constantly on the move, its relief changes every year and it will not be possible to find the trail of the last year.
We have been walking along this lunar surface for 4 hours already, and the main landmark - the huge lake Tsho Rolpa is not yet visible. There is no path, you have to go, or rather, jump on huge stones frozen into the ice.
This mass of water hangs like a “sword of Damocles” over the entire Rovaling Gorge. If this natural dam collapses, then a huge wave of water will sweep away all the villages in the gorge.
The last descent on the ice and here is the first long-awaited grass. The trail after several steep drop-offs goes along a small gorge, separated by a moraine ridge from the lake. We reach the beginning of a small mountain river flowing from under a rock, we drink ice-cold water for a long time. The trail goes further along the river bank and soon leads to the spillway of Lake Tsho Rolpa. There is no further progress - everywhere seething streams of water. Sherpas are returning after an unsuccessful attempt to bypass the obstacle on the left bank. We begin the ascent to the lake dam - we will try to cross the artificial spillway that protects the lake from overflow. From above, the features of a hydraulic structure created to protect the valley are visible.
After the dam, the trail gets better, soon the gorge widens, you are already walking along a wide green valley, crossing small streams. Here in the distance you can see the roofs of the houses of the first village of Rovaling - Na. The last bridge in front of the village and on the porch of one of the houses I see Kami's red jacket. The village of Na has only a dozen and a half houses with a small gompa in the center.
Sherpas stop at their friend - a guide who accompanies the groups from Rowaling. This is where our paths diverge. Sherpas will leave at night again for the pass in Thama. Perhaps they will pick up two Russians who obviously cannot cope without their help ...
A festive dinner is being prepared - a traditional dalbat. The hostess blows coals in the stove through a special tube, not having time to fill the guests' cups with hot tea with milk. A group of porters from the French expedition arrives at the house.
15 young Sherpas quickly sort out spoons and plates of rice and also quickly disappear over the threshold. I fall asleep in an unusual place - on a bench, one of the most honorable places in the house.
At midnight, the hostess gets up, makes a fire and prepares food for our Sherpas before going out. By the light of headlamps, we say goodbye, and soon the Sherpas leave along the path up.
Good luck on the Tashi Lapcha pass and good weather!
