Life is better in hiking boots
DAY -4
10 October 2022 Monday, Phaplu to Kharikola (2,137m) to Paiya (2,937m)
The Off Road journey from Phaplu to Kharikola and first hiking day of 12 km to Paiya until dark with total ascent of 1,328 meters.
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| Off-road journey to Kharikola |
We woke up at 3.00 a.m., got our duffel bags packed and waited at the lobby. Grab a hot coffee and sharp at 4.00 a.m. we start our off-road journey to Kharikola. Great, we have made some progress today.
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| Short break after 3 hours journey |
I wanted to take the opportunity to sleep on the way to Kharikola but yet the road was really terrible. Yeah it is off-road right! However, the stunning scenery of the mountain view is really worth it. Around 10.30 a.m, after 6 hours on the road we finally arrived at the place called Kharikola. While waiting for our porters to arrive, we had our hot coffee and prepared ourselves for the hiking adventure. We learned that our porters are coming from Lukla in just half a day to Kharikola and take 2 days to climb up back to Lukla.
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| The lower point before claim to another hills |
At 12 noon we started our hiking journey to Surkey village. Around 2 pm we took a short break at Bupsa Guest House for lunch and continued our journey to Paiya village. Sometimes it rains here and there but we suit up with rain-coat.
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| Kharikola |
The trail was quite challenging, especially where some places got landslides and we needed to cross it. It was really scary falling down, I was freezed at a certain point at the landslide area. I was shivering not because of the cold weather but too scared of falling down because the landslide at the cliff was nearly 80 degrees. Eventually I managed to get through that area and speed-up to our final destination of the day. The daylight had gone, we were walking in the dark for the next one hour until we reached Paiya. Today we hiked 12 km for 6 hours and 1,300 m elevation.
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| Porters |
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| Rainy and Foggy |
We stayed at Trekker Lodge and Restaurant for the night. We had our Egg Fried Rice for dinner and a briefing for tomorrow's plan to Phakding. We took an early night off after waking up early this morning, a long off-road journey and hiking for 6.5 hours. In Paiya village, there is no mobile line and data which means no Internet. Good night!
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| Take a break |
DAY -5
11 October 2022 Tuesday, Paiya to Surkey (2,535m) to Phakding (2,610m)
The second day we hiked 17 km for 8.5 hours with a total ascent of 1,666 meters and we were back to the main routes.
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| Trekker Lodge, Paiya |
Our second day hiking started with a wet day. After nice hot coffee and Tibetan bread, we prepared ourselves for a wet day hiking. I guess the Monsoon is not over yet. The world's weather is unpredictable like last time and the monsoon should end by mid September. Anyway we have a mission to achieve - “patah sayap bertongkat paruh”, we need to face it. No turning back. We continue our journey to Phakding - based on the original plan, we should arrive at Phakding on day-2. but we are at day-5 already. Anyway, our main objective is to reach Everest BC, then we think how to go home. There are few options in mind, but it is not the time to think about it.
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| Stunning views |
I can’t really remember how many suspension bridges I had to cross today. From Paiya we are hiking down to Surkey until we cross the river to the side of the mountains - there is a small helipad here. The stunning views along the trail beside the cliff and mountains are really amazing. Not to mention the number of waterfalls along the trails make for perfect scenery. After Surkey village, we started our climbing to Phakding - quite a high climb but we took it easy while enjoying the amazing view down the cliff. One part of me still feels nervous when I remembered crossing a landslide yesterday. Some naughty thoughts about what will happen if you fall down at the cliff with a few hundred meters drop. I really walked away from the cliff especially when the donkey or yak passed through. You do not want to be kicked away from their path, right?
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We took a break for lunch around 12 noon at Khumbila Guest House, Chaurikharka village. They offered a great Dhal Bhat, I think the best Dhal Bhat for the entire journey. Really wet day today, having hot coffee really helps to boost our spirits.
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| Phakding |
We passed through the junction between Phakding and Lukla, and we can see that the Lukla areas are still foggy. We believed we made a wise decision to drive to Kharikola and start hiking from there, if not, we are still waiting and god knows how much further. After a very long day hiking around 17 km and 8.5 hours, we finally arrived at Phakding around 4.30 pm. We stayed at Trekkers Lodge & Restaurant. We had dinner - Egg Fried Rice with Sambal (Thanks Faiz) and a short briefing for tomorrow's plan.
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| Bakery & Coffee shop |
Then we decided to have nice bread and coffee at the Bakery nearby. The best part is they provided free wifi and power charging services. After 5 days without having a “real coffee”, this is the best place for “lepaking”. We chatted about our journey - the struggle and all the interesting things for the past 5 days of the expedition.
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| Trekker Lounge, Phakding |
Most importantly we are back to the main trail to Everest BC. Good night.
