Baruntse Expedition with Mera Peak Climbing  - 36 Days

On arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu and formal completion of your custom and immigration processes, one of our representatives from Himalayan Glacier will be there to greet you at the arrival exit and escort you to your pre-determined hotel. You may relax in your hotel room for the rest of the time or you may stroll around the streets of Thamel. In the evening, there will be a welcome dinner hosted at an excellent Nepali restaurant where you can enjoy the authentic Nepalese cuisine along with a cultural program. Overnight in Kathmandu.

After breakfast in our hotel, we may wander around nearby areas and do some shopping for our adventurous trip the following day. In the afternoon, we will visit HGT office for a pre-trip discussion and meet our trekking guide as well as other participants. You will also be briefed on the nature of expedition, equipment and team composition. Later, we will go back to our hotel and have a peaceful sleep. Overnight in Kathmandu.

We fly to Lukla early in the morning and get an interesting flying experience. After breakfast we begin our trek to Paiya. The trail passes through a jungle down to Shurke village. We move further ahead and stop at Pakhapani for lunch. We continue our trek after lunch and pass through several villages, jungles and hills before reaching Paiya. From here we can see a number of peaks including Knogde Ri, Khatang, Tang Ragi Tu and others. Overnight in Paiya.

We start trekking after breakfast. We soon reach a wooden bridge which might be a little slippery. We tread through the bridge carefully to cross the Kari La pass. We continue our trek and stop only for lunch at a village. Next, continue our trek through rhododendron and bamboo forests in a narrow mountain trail. On our trek today we also get great views of the Dudhkoshi River valley and Dudh Kund Himal, before reaching the farming and trading village of Pangkongama for a good night’s rest.

We descend on a rock-strewn path leading to a rhododendron forest. We come across a lot of Mani walls throughout the trail. We also pass through beautiful hills, ridges, and teahouses before stopping for lunch. Here, we can admire the mesmerizing views of the south face of Mera Peak and Naulekh Peak. The trail zigzags through forested areas and then descends steeply. We walk past pine and rhododendron forests to reach Nigmsa (Shibuche). Overnight in Nigmsa (Shibuche).

After breakfast, we begin our trek through a narrow and steep mountain trail. We also pass through lush forests before reaching a stream. We walk straight ahead, through a rhododendron forest. Then we descend through a bamboo forest before passing a cave by the side of Chetrakhola. Overnight camping at Chhetra Khola.

We begin our trek after breakfast and reach a fine vantage point. From here we admire the beautiful surrounding with views of Mera Peak and Hinku Valley. Next, we trek through bamboo and pine forests in a narrow trail with Mera Peak looming nearby. On our way we are likely to come across wild animals including sloths, jungle cats and others. We continue our trek on a ridge then ascend all the way to Kothe. Overnight in Kothe.

We begin our trek on a trail alongside the Hinku Khola. We trek for some time before stopping for lunch at Gondishung which is the summer herders’ settlement in the west bank of the Hinku Drangka. We also pass a 200-year-old Lungsumgba Gomba where we can see writings on a rock on the way to Mera Peak. A short walk from the Gompa will take us to Thagnag which is a summer grazing area. Overnight camping in Thagnag.

We can either rest for the whole day or take part in a short distance hike to Charpate Himal Glacier. After breakfast we hike for around 3 hours to the glacier. The Charpate Himal Glacier is regarded as holy by the Sherpas of Nepal. From here we can admire excellent views of the north face of Mera Peak. It only takes us about an hour to descend to our camp in Thangnang. Overnight at Thangnang.

Today, we head towards Mera Base Camp at Khare. We follow the lateral moraine of Dig Glacier to Dig Kharka, which offers spectacular views of Charpate Himal. The trail climbs through moraines and to the snout of the Hinku Nup and Shar Glaciers and then climbs more steeply to our camping spot at Khare. The up-close views of the north face of Mera Peak from Khare is astonishing. Overnight in Khare.

Today we rest and prepare for the next day’s climb. After breakfast we get ready with all our climbing gear and practice ice climbing just above Khare. We move further ahead and enjoy good views of Mera La which is en route to the peak. After practicing ice climbing for a couple of hours, we walk down to our camp and rest for the rest of the day. Overnight in Khare.

We walk through a rock-strewn area for about two hours. The trail that leads up to Mera High Camp can be hazardous if it has recently snowed as there are a number of crevasses here. We walk up to the top of the rock band which is marked by a large cairn. We set up our high camp at a location which grants great views of the sunrise and sunset along with the Himalayan vista. Overnight at Mera High Camp.

We wake up around 2 in the morning for breakfast. It’s going to be very cold in the beginning but soon we warm up as we continue up the glacier and onto a peculiar ridge. The first rays of the sun hit the big peaks in an amazing red glow. The route is still non-technical as we slowly climb higher into the ever-thinning air. The slope steepens for a section behind the ridge and the summit comes back into view. At the foot of the final steep summit cone, we may attach to a fixed rope depending on the conditions. The summit is only a few meters away. From the summit, we take in amazing views of the mighty Himalayas including Mt. Everest (8,848m), Cho-Oyu (8,210m), Lhotse (8,516m), Makalu (8,463m), Kangchenjunga (8,586m), Nuptse (7,855m), Chamlang (7,319m), Baruntse (7 ,129m) and others. Later, we trek to Kongma Dingma to spend the night.

There is no guarantee that we will have favorable weather on our planned day for the summit. Therefore, this day is set aside as a contingency in case we are unable to summit the Mera as planned due to bad weather or any other unanticipated reason. However, if the trip goes smoothly, we do not need this spare day. Instead, we can use this day to walk back to Seto Pokhari.

As we are ascending steadily near Seto Pokhari or White Lake, we see the first lake among a series of lakes that occupy the upper Hongu Basin. On today’s trek we experience the beautiful mountain wilderness of the Hongu Valley. On our right is Chamlang (7321m) with hanging glaciers on its South-West and North-West faces.

We begin our trek after breakfast. Our trail crosses a wide and grassy valley scattered with small boulders. The valley gets increasingly barren as we climb higher. We pass Peak 41 and Hunku Peak and proceed to the base camp of Mt Baruntse. Overnight camping at Baruntse Base camp.

An Advanced Base Camp will be set up at an altitude of 6,000m near a glacier at the foot of the South East Ridge. We need to allow enough time for additional acclimatization and for load carrying to stock Baruntse Advance Base Camp (BABC) and Camp 1. Camp 1 is at a height of 6,450m on the South-East Ridge proper. Above Camp 1, we climb snow slopes of 45°and the route becomes more demanding. Fixed line would be placed on the ascent to Camp 1, below the West / East Col. The route above C2 requires some fixing which would be done by our Sherpa guides. From Camp 2, we climb to the summit. We also descend on the same route and spend overnight at Camp 1 and Baruntse Advanced Base Camp. Overnight in camp.

Provided everything goes as planned, our plan would be as follows:

Rest and Acclimatization at Base Camp

• Cary Loads to BABC, return to Base Camp
• Rest Day
• Climb to temporary BABC (5800m)
• Climb to West Col, Sleep at Camp 1 (6135m)
• Climb to Camp 2 (6400m)
• Summit Attempt (7220m) return to Camp 1
• Spare Summit Day
• Return to Base Camp

We take the much needed day off today. We can spend the whole day resting, cleaning and drying all our climbing equipment. Moreover, it is important for us to understand that Himalayan Glacier practices a 0 carbon footprint policy in order to preserve the Himalayan eco-system. Therefore, we collect all our garbage and hand it over to the Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee at Namche. Overnight camping at Baruntse Base Camp.

We hike along the rugged moraine towards Imja Valley. Along the way, we get panoramic views of the high Himalayan peaks including Lhotse and Everest toward on the north-west. After reaching Amphu Labcha base camp we set up our tents. Overnight camping at to Amphu Labcha Base Camp.

We get up very early morning for the climb. The climb involves steep sections on rock and ice. We cross the Amphu Labcha pass (5845 m) which is one of the highest passes in Nepal. It’s better to tackle the pass early in the morning when the snow is stable. We use climbing ropes wherever necessary. The last sections of the climb to Amphu Labcha winds up in snow shelves. On the other side, a steep descent awaits us on fixed lines leading down to the moraine. Overnight camping at Amphu Labcha Base Camp (North).

We walk downhill along the moraine to arrive at Chukung which is the starting point for the journey to Island Peak. The wilderness of the remote Hinku Valley gives in to the civilization of Khumbu Region. The Imja Khola joins the Dudh Koshi River a little above the Pangoche village. There is a famous gompa at Pangboche believed to have been the oldest in the Khumbu region. Overnight in Pangboche.

We begin today’s trek with a descent. Our trail leaves the alpine desert and enters the pine forests. The path leads to a steep uphill climb into Tengboche. We visit the Tengboche Monastery which is a popular monastery of the Khumbu region. A steep descent will lead us back to the Dudh Kosi River. Our final journey today is a steep climb on a hill and into Namche Bazaar. Overnight in Namche Bazaar.

A long steady downhill path from Namche leads us to an impressive bridge called the Hillary Suspension Bridge high above the river. The trail afterwards is mostly an easy walk except for a few short uphill climbs. We cross the Bhote- Koshi River three times. The lower valley looks significantly greener after a month long journey. Overnight in Lukla.

The flight time to Kathmandu is normally scheduled in the morning  because Lukla suffers a lot of wind in the afternoon. A Himalayan Glacier representative will pick us up from the airport and drop us off at our hotel. We can spend the rest of the afternoon at our  leisure. In the evening, we enjoy a farewell dinner hosted by Himalayan Glacier to celebrate our successful trip to the mountains. Overnight in Kathmandu.

This day is also set aside as a contingency should any flight delays occur. We get to spend the whole day relaxing. We can also do some souvenir shopping or if there is a particular place we wish to visit, we can also do that today. If things go as planned, we can fly home today instead of the next day. Overnight in Kathmandu.

Our Baruntse Expedition with Mera Peak Climbing trip comes to an end today. There is not much to do other than to check our belongings one last time. A Himalayan Glacier representative will pick us from the hotel and drop us off at the airport approximately three hours before the scheduled flight.