Mera Peak Cybercast

Namaste,

We drank our usual coffee-masala tea mix (essentially a dirty chai) and waited for the sun to reach us, then headed out for our next destination up valley! A beautiful walk with peaks on both sides, we stopped for lunch at a teahouse, and also got to visit a small gompa that was originally a meditation cave for a buddhist master and is now a place of prayer. By late afternoon we reached Thangnak, our new home for the next 2 nights. We are now sleeping at 14000ft and really getting more into our acclimation. Everyone did well  getting here and is enjoying themselves!

Thanks for following along,

-team Dark Side of the Momo

Hello!

Today we had a relaxed breakfast, fit crampons to boots, and then spent the rest of the morning doing a fixed line practice with ascenders, arm wraps, and rappelling. After lunch we then went for a walk through the misty forest before heading back for a snack and tea time. Hot showers and card games took up the rest of the day, and the team is good spirits, relaxed, and enjoying the tea and food every few hours schedule. Tomorrow we leave Kothe, time for a change of scenery!

Team Dark side of the Momo

Hello!

Today after a leisurely breakfast waiting for the sun to hit us in the valley here, we went for a nice hike up valley and got some stunning views of the surrounding peaks. Everyone is moving well and enjoying the relaxed pace! We made our ascender setups in the early afternoon and then had free time, which for some of us meant playing cards and learning some new games; specifically a Nepalese game Dumbal and then Hearts.

Thanks for following along!

-team Dark side of the Momo

Namaste!

Today we got up and after breakfast went to the very busy heli pad of lukla and got 3 helicopters to drop us and all of our gear off in Kothe! It was a short but beautiful flight and a fun way to get to the start of our trekking while avoiding going over a high pass this early in our acclimation. Here we met our other 2 Sherpa guides, Pemba and Nudi.

We had a relaxing morning drinking tea and then a delicious lunch before heading down valley for a short hike to help with acclimatizing. Beautiful Rhododendron trees and blue river views, as well as our first views of our objective. Back at the lodge we did a session of learning/reviewing climbing knots before more down time and card games. Team is having fun and excited to be in our next location!

-Ari and team

Namaste!

The team got up early this morning and took our flight into the mountains, landing at the famous lukla airport. We walked around town, went for an acclimation hike, and then got to visit the local monastery! Here we were able to do a puja and get blessing for our climb, which is a special Nepal experience. Some afternoon free time and a delicious dinner, where we voted on a team name: Dark Side of the Momo [Led Zepplin inspired from a shirt in Kathmandu.

We will keep you updated, thanks for following along!

-Team dark side of the momo

Ari