Everest and Tashi Laptsa Pass

We start the trip on arrival at Kathmandu with an airport pick-up service. Transfer to the hotel.

After breakfast, the tour/trek guide of Mac Treks and Tours Nepal will give a briefing on the trip. A complete equipment check will be done and missing items can be bought or rented in the town. After finishing the preparation for the trek, We begin the sightseeing tour with our visit to Pashupatinath temple, considered one of the holiest sites dedicated to Lord Shiva. This temple holds great importance as a place of worship to the Hindus. It forms a major part of the people on a day-to-day basis. Here you can watch devotes offering prayers and watch the activities that are undertaken in the temple premises including the cremation of dead bodies. We will continue and make our way to Boudhanath Stupa; a place of worship for the Buddhists, the shrine is one of great importance to the Buddhist religion. Here we visit monasteries and watch the monks in prayer.

Early in the morning, we fly from Kathmandu to Lukla (2827m). The flight offers a spectacular view of the Himalayas as we fly parallel to the Himalayan giants bordering Nepal and Tibetan China. After landing we will meet with our porters for the trek. We will have time to explore the village before starting the trail. The trek starts with a descent towards the Dudh Koshi River where we join the main trail to Namche Bazaar. The walking is easy and we will soon reach our lodge at Phakding. 4-5 hours trek.

We will ascend slowly on the route to Everest Base Camp. Advancing slowly will ensure acclimatization. We shall tread slowly from Phakding crossing the river to walk through tracts of blue pine and rhododendron forest that is very spectacular in the spring months when the flowers are in bloom. We will cross the Dudh Koshi at Benkar and enjoy great views of the snow peaks of Kusum Kangaru and Thamserku. After Monjo, the trek will be a little strenuous as it will involve more walking with a steep ascent to Namche Bazaar. From here, it is a short walk to the entrance of the National Park where our permits are checked before we descend quite steeply to Jorsale. The trek continues upstream on a flat terrain to the confluence of the Bhote Koshi and Dudh Koshi rivers. After crossing a large suspension bridge high above the river we climb steeply to the village of Namche Bazaar 3440m. A slow and steady pace is recommended on this section of the climb and we are encouraged to make the most of the fantastic photographic opportunities as the peaks of Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, Ama Dablam, and Taweche come into view. The effects of high altitude will slow down your pace a little, thus we encourage you to advance slowly. In Namche, we move into our lodge amid the village and the rest of the afternoon is free to bargain for artifacts or embrace the spectacular scenery. 6-7 Hours.

We will spend a day in Namche Bazaar resting and allowing our bodies to become acclimatized to the altitude of 3,450m. In the morning, there is the option of walking up to the Everest View Hotel 3,900m, returning to Namche for lunch.

From Namche, the well-worn Everest trail contours around the side of the valley high above the Dudh Koshi. As we follow the path, we will get our first really good views of the great peaks of the Khumbu: Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, and Ama Dablam. Passing by several villages and numerous tea shops, we will cross the Dudh Koshi River and make a steep climb to Tengboche (3867m), home of an impressive monastery. We have plenty of time to look around Tengboche and in a relaxing lodge. 5-6 hours trek.

In the morning we will visit the monastery before descending through a forest of birch, fir, juniper, and rhododendron. The walking today is uphill yet done very slowly to adjust to the altitude thus pace yourself slowly. After crossing the Imja River the trail heads to the village of Pangboche, backed by the peak of Ama Dablam, where we will have lunch. Later our trail climbs through open alpine hillsides before we re-cross the Imja River and old glacial remains to our lodge in Dingboche 4410m. 6-7 hours trek.

Dingboche is located in a patchwork of small fields enclosed by stone walls protecting the crops. An ascent of the hill behind our lodge will showcase great views of the fifth-highest mountain in the world, Makalu, which is not visible from the valley floor. A walk up the valley towards Chukkung is worthwhile. The views are fantastic in this valley; to the north is Lhotse, Island Peak in the center of the valley, and the crimped ice walls of unnamed peaks that line the valley's southern end form a hauntingly beautiful sight. This is just a 3 hours trek so we spend the afternoon leisurely.

We start the trip early this day with a packed lunch. Interestingly this section of the trek does not have any lodges in between. After 4-5 hours hike we reach the top of the pass and descend down to Lobuje crossing a glacier. The views of the mountains and glaciers around us makes this day a remarkable one. Total hiking is approx 7-8 hours this day. We stay at Lobuje for our overnight stay.

After breakfast, we follow the broad valley running parallel to the Khumbu glacier. The trail ascends only gradually to the moraines of the Changri Nup Glacier but from here we make a series of small ascents and descents over a rocky trail lined with cairns that leads eventually to Gorak Shep 5200m. After lunch, we will set off uphill to Kalapatthar at 5545 meters to experience a comprehensive sunset view from this amazing point. It will probably take a good hour and a half to reach the summit from Gorak Shep, although lower viewpoints will provide views almost as good. Pumori, Nuptse, Changtse, Ama Dablam, Taweche, Kantega and Everest. As we will be descending in fading light, do take a head-torch for this excursion. 6-7 hours trek.

We will advance early to trek along the glacier to Everest Base Camp(5364m), which takes around 3 hours. If you are trekking in the popular climbing period of March to May you will almost certainly encounter yaks and porters supplying food and equipment to expeditions here. From Base Camp, we do not get views of Everest but we will be able to see the notorious Everest Ice Fall which is regarded as the hardest and most dangerous section of the mountain. We return to Gorak Shep for an early lunch before re-tracing our steps to Lobuche. From Lobuje the trek to Dzongla is approx 3 hours. Be prepared for a strenuous day.

Ascending Cho La Pass at 5420 meters sounds exciting and the rocky and steep trail might test our fitness level, but the promise of breathtaking views makes it all worth it. Gazing upon snow-capped peaks like Taboche, Cholatse, Baruntse, and Thamserku, and catching sight of Cho La Lake and Mt. Amadamblam from the pass would be awe-inspiring. Descending to Thangnak sounds like a well-deserved reward after conquering the pass. The serene atmosphere and perhaps a glimpse of local wildlife could make this leg of the journey truly rejuvenating. And what could be a better way to end such an adventurous day than to spend the night in Thangnak, surrounded by the mountains. It's moments like these that make every step of the journey worthwhile.

After the challenging hiking day yesterday, today is a short 3-4 hour hike from Thangnak to Gokyo. We continue our trekking journey with the views of majestic mountains all around us. After a while, we reach Longponga and continue towards Gokyo Valley. On the way, we cross Ngozumpa Glacier, which is the longest glacier in Nepal with a length of 36 km. We, then hike on a sandy shifting trail and cross the second Gokyo lake. From here, we reach the beautiful Gokyo village after a short hike. Gokyo has become a kind of Himalayan resort without the crowd – at least in terms of the comfortable lodges with sunrooms, unbeatable views, excellent food, and warm stoves. We spend a relaxing night at Gokyo.

You wake up early in the morning and hike to Gokyo Ri. Located just above the Gokyo village, you walk on a steep trail to reach Gokyo Ri 5357m. Upon reaching here, you will see excellent views of the tallest peaks in the world, including Mt. Cho Oyo, Gyachung Kang, Mt. Everest, Mt. Lhotse, Cholatse, Taweche, and Mt. Makalu in the east. It is truly a blessing in anyone’s eye. Later, we trek back to Gokyo village. We have another option for today’s excursion. The second option is a five-hour hike to Gokyo's fifth lake, which brings us right up against Cho-Oyu, the sixth-highest mountain in the world, bordering Tibet. From here, we will also get some breathtaking views of Cho-Oyu, Changtse, and Mount Everest. At the end of the day, we come back to Gokyo village for a delicious Himalayan dinner and a good night’s sleep.

The final high pass of the Everest Three Passes Trek is finally here. Today, we cross Renjo La Pass at an altitude of 5345 meters and descend to Lunde for the night’s stay. After breakfast at Gokyo, we begin the hike on a gradually ascending trail to Renjo La Pass. This is one of the toughest stages of our trek, but upon reaching the top, we'll be rewarded with breathtaking 360-degree views of Mt. Cho-Oyu and other high mountains. You get to see another excellent Himalayan landscape view today. Further, the trail winds down a stone staircase and then scrambles over loose scree to reach the south bank of a small lake, Angladumba Tsho. From here, we walk through a narrow valley clogged with giant boulders and reach Lunde 4380m.

From Lunde, the trail slowly descends to Thame. On the way, you can see spectacular views of Thamserku, Kusum Kanguru, Kantega, etc. Overlooking Thame is its famous Gompa situated amidst some fields on a hill to the west. Established some 325 years ago, the Gompa has three big images of Chenresig (Avalokiteswara), Guru Rimpoche, and Buddha Sakyamuni. The colorful Mani Rimdu festival featuring colorful mask dances is held in this Gompa in May. You can take a detour of the Gompa on the way to Thame, where we spend today's night.

From Thame, the trail gradually climbs to Thyangbo following the river. The hike for this day is approx 3-4 hours only. We are preparing all our gear for the coming Tashi Laptsa Pass today. Overnight in Thyangbo.

This is a tough day climbing almost 850m of straight ascent. The overnight in Tashilaptsa High Camp will be chilling so we try to reach there by sunlight and prepare our camp.

Another strenuous day begins with an early start. It takes around 2 hours to reach the top of the pass and the way down is difficult due to rocks and ice. The rope should be fixed on this day to avoid accidents. Once you reach the base of the pass on the other side, it is a comparatively easy walk down to the Glacier Camp. We stay overnight in a shelter that is the reward for trekkers in this middle-of-nowhere terrain.

We trek around 4 hours to reach the lake Tsho Rolpa, the most popular lake in Nepal at an elevation of 4540m. After spending some time here and having lunch, we walk approximately 4 hours to the village of Na. Tiny lodges with warm rooms and delicious meals welcome us here.

We start late after breakfast today. The trek to Beding is approx 4 hours. We stay in the guesthouse here, do some laundry, and visit the villages.

This is a long day trekking approx 8-9 hours. The trail mostly follows the river downhill. We reach Simigaon, the Buddhist settlement of Tamang, and the Sherpa people.

This is the last day of our trek. We start early after breakfast and reach the roadside town of ChetChet where our vehicle awaits us to transfer us to Kathmandu. The drive to Kathmandu is approx 8 hours.

This is a free day in Kathmandu to do the necessary things like shopping, having a massage, or enjoying the meals in the restaurants in Thamel.

Depending on your flight time, we transfer you to the airport for your departure back home.