Mount Qomolangma known to us as Mount Everest

This sign is planted at 16,600 feet. The summit of Mount Everest, the highest place on earth, is over 29,000 feet and actually still growing!

I was still cold enough to not be so smiling. I had on a thermal shirt, wool sweater, Red Sox Hoodie, a neck warmer, my heavy weight rain jacket, my B Hoodie hood and jacket hood.

After breakfast we took our packs out to the van and noticed the windows were iced over. That’s actually when we realized that we had no heater in the van which made it colder inside than out. But there was nothing to be done other than get in and drive with the side window opened a bit for the driver to see. It’s about 5 miles from the hotel to where you get the base camp bus. If we’d had all day, it would have been nice to walk from the bus parking area to the actual spot where we took that photo. Instead we got into the freezing cold bus and drove there, about 2 miles or so.

Even here there were bits of something for these yaks to eat. I was tempted to walk up closer, but smart enough not to.

Randal with his biggest smile of the entire adventure.

Randal was pretty cold and still having breathing issues so after these few smiling photos he walked around for a bit and then watched as David and Ronnie and I walked up to the top of that small hill behind Randal’s head. Lobsang said to go slowly and I did. I had to stop a few times when I felt myself getting a bit light-headed. But it was definitely worth it.

All of the water on the left is snow and ice melt from the glaciers.

The view at the top.

I was warmer here than I had been since we arrived at EBC because the sun was so bright!

I might have liked to have gotten closer; but not any higher!

Stone soul houses! I didn’t build one here; just by the lake.

An exuberant David holds up his “Lhasa” hat. He and Ronnie had bought the hats in Lhasa so they would look like the locals. Not a chance.

Everest reflected in the pool of water

We all took about a zillion photos from every angle.

And then, all too soon, it was time to go. We had a long, all day drive to the border town of Zhangmu where we would stay overnight and then cross into Nepal the next day.

Ru

DoraMac