Everest marathon 28th November

Everything was frozen in the morning but despite this we both had a good night's sleep.  After breakfast we set off for Gorak Shep ( the start of the race 5100m) where we will be sleeping the night before the race. We have the chance to climb Kalar Pattar (5623m) after getting to Gorak Shep but we were not sure if we really felt like it.  The walk up to Gorak Shep was really rough with some pretty awful moraine to cross and will make for a pretty tough couple of miles of the race. It took a couple of hours to get up to Gorak Shep and we were both a little tired. However after a coffee we both set off for the top of Kalar Pattar with Menai unsure if she would get to the top. We both plugged on to the top. I took about 1 1/2 hours to get to the top where it was very windy and a bit precipitous.  I took the obligatory photos including a couple with Nima and then headed down. After about 15 minutes I met Menai so went back up to the top with her.  We had a gentle descent and then had lunch before heading back to Lobuche. We got back at about 3.45, so quite a long day. 

Everest marathon 27th November

An early cold start and a medical demonstration of what to do in case of an emergency. Basically if someone is hurt you have to stop and help if you have to stop for a long time your time will be adjusted. We then set off up the valley retracing my run the morning before. I took Menai a long time to warm up and she found the climb up to Dungla difficult. We had a tea break at Dugla before taking on the toughclimb up to the terminal moraine of the Khumbu glacier. At the top there were some sobering memorials to those who have died on Everest- there were lines of memorials going into the distance.  We then had a steady climb up to Lobuche for an hour. On the way we saw a huge eagle and a rescue helicopter on a mission up to Lobuche. After a good lunch a few of us headed to the moraine wall to look at the glacier which was pretty ugly, covered in moraine, pitted with lakes and deep crevasses. At we went along the ridge of the moraine we saw more of the western ridge of Everest, Lho La into Tibet but the scene was dominated by the beautiful Pumori to the west of Everest.

Everest marathon 26th November

It was really very cold in the morning until the sun rose over Ama Dhablam. As it was a rest day timings were quite relaxed. In the morning we headed up the ridge above the camp at 9.30. At the top of the ridge Menai continued with the main group whilst I decided to follow the top ridge path to Dungla which is a refreshment post on the race day. I then ran down the race route back to Pheriche. The route is stony, wet and muddy but on race day it will probably be icy! After lunch we had a lie down as we were a bit tired before heading off down the valley to make sure we knew the best route from Pheriche on race day. In the evening we had a bit of a sing song and dance with the sherpas and porters.  Surprisingly we both slept very well despite the cold and dogs barking.  The campsite was pretty awful really with yak dung all over the place and smoke from numerous yak dung burning fires.

Everest marathon 25th November

uAs we were still on the race route we had to make sure we knew the route today. The first thing we noticed after about 30 minutes walk through lovely woods was that a big girder bridge had been destroyed in the earthquake. We had to cross the river by a smaller bridge and then climb up the other side of the river. This will be a tricky descent on race day.  The rest of the route to Pangboche was a comfortable traverse. In Pangboche, which is a refreshment stop, three of us decided to go with Nima to look at the monastery in the upper village. It was a nice walk via a mass of mani stones to the village which was very different to the lower village with little farmsteads spread amongst the fields. Inevitably the monastery was closed so we headed back down to the race route to walk for another hour to the lunch stop. On the way we passed the BBC crew with Mira Rai. After lunch we only had a shortish one hour walk to our night stop in Pheriche. On the way we had to be careful to make sure we identified the right route because of yet another washed out bridge. Pheriche is a bit of a one horse town and a bit grim placed in the middle of a wide valley. It was cold when the the sun disappeared at 3.30 but the lodge was warm even if the toilet facilities were primitive.
We had a great night's sleep getting up at 7.30 the next morning.

Everest marathon 24th November

I thought that it had rained in the night as I had heard what i thought was the sound of rain on the tent.  It was actually the wind in the prayer flags above our tent. It was a beautiful morning but as we were  in the shadow of Thamserku we were in the shade and it was pretty cold.  Menai had to attend a marshall meeting and i wrote up the journal as I waited.  Luckily the sun came up out and warmed things up. We had a long walk down from Kyangjuma down to the river and as this was the race route we knew that we would have to climb up the slope on race day. Apparently this is the hardest part of the route coming at about 15 miles into the race.  From now on we will be paying careful attention to the route.  After the river we had a long 75 minute climb to Tengboche (3867m) where there is a monastery and on race day there will be an aid station. We picked at an uninspiring packed lunch but did buy coffee and cake which made up for the packed lunch. We wanted to look around the  monastery but had to wait about 40 minutes for it to be opened. There were no monks in the monastery so the look round was a little boring. There were lovely views from Tengboche up the valley towards Everest, down towards Namche and up the Gokyo valley. We headed down to our camp site at Debouche (3757m)  which had a lovely lodge and views. We all seemed to be really hungry so appreciated the veggie momos.  We both had a great night's sleep.

Everest marathon 23rd November

Our last morning in Macherno and after breakfast some of the team decided to run part of the route for the day. I decided to run the approximately 6k to Dole and meet Menai for a coffee there.  It was a pleasant run but the uphills needed quite a bit of effort.  I managed to get a little lost coming into Dole and came a cropper trying to rectify the error.  There was not too much lasting damage and the worst thing was a cut to the little finger on my right hand.  After a bit Menai came storming in having run the downhills in her boots. We then decided that after lunch we would go back down to Namche to buy her some decent running shoes. After our coffee in Dole we walked down to Phortse Tenga for a lovely early picnic lunch. At 11.50 we set off on the long trek to Namche via the big hill up to Mong La. Interestingly the climb took us the same time as the decent took us 5 days ago! This must be a sign of our improving fitness and acclimatisation.  We plodded onto Namche getting the at 2.45 and bought the shoes, had a coffee and apple pie, bought a few odds and ends before heading back to Kyangjuma. We got back into camp having covered about 25k for the day. The camp site was lovely with a really warm lodge to eat in.  We both had a wonderful warm shower - my first for 10 days. A great night's sleep at this lower altitude.  

The Everest Marathon - runners

There are about 40 non-Nepali runners in the Everest Marathon and they come from all sorts of different running backgrounds. At the top end there are top class athletes who have competed at the very highest level.  For example, one runner has come 13th in UTMB and another who is sponsored by Brooks. We have runners who have run over 90 marathons and some who are more walkers. it will be interesting to see how the different people do.

Everest marathon 22nd November

A rest day today with Bed tea after 7. I got up early and did the washing in freezing water to make sure we could get it dry during the day. Most of is was dry apart from the socks. After breakfast and a bit of personal administration Heather, Menai and I set off up the Machermo valley for a little walk. We still puffed on the uphill even though we have been at this altitude or higher for 4 days. It was very peaceful and we stopped at a rock where we had a  good view of Everest. On the rock there were the remains of a dead bird and nearby there were foot prints we did not recognise.  We took photos and the Sherpas of course said it was a Yeti but the rescue centre doctors thought it was a fox. We got back in time for lunch and the afternoon was spent washing and sorting out our stuff for a possibly early morning start. Menai want for a shower and I went to the river. I did manage to wash my hair using the solar camping shower we had brought with us. This evening I have to give a talk about the Gurkhas - twice.

Everest marathon 21st November

Bed tea at 5.45 and then breakfast to be on the road to Gokyo by 7am.  The route took us up the Dhud Khosi river along the lateral moraine until we had a stiff climb into the Gokyo valley and it's famous lakes.  We went   past three beautiful lakes which had ducks on with spectacular views all around.  I got to Gokyo (4730m)  in 1.45 hours with Menai coming in 30 minutes later. We had a coffee Gokyo before setting off for the 5370m Gokyo Ri.  This was a tough climb at altitude that took me 1 hour 15 to get to the top with Menai 30 minutes later. The views were spectacular being able to see Choy Oyu, Everest, Nuptse and Makalu all over 8000m.  we spent quite a bit of time on the top eating our packed lunch and taking pictures. It was quite a long slog back down to the village but we were rewarded by some coffee and chocolate. After about 30 minutes rest we set off back to Machermo getting back for 4pm. We had a strange meal of pasta, rice and potato cake for supper and then quite early bed. We both slept really well.

Everest marathon 20th November

Today was a rest day so a later start but very cold until the sun came over the hill at 7.30. We did a bit of washing and then set off for a walk up the nearby hill. A larger group had gone ahead earlier so we followed them up. Once on the ridge we had a lovely grassy path up to a cliff. Along the path there were lots of prayer flags and cairns.  The cliffs were at 4600m but some of us pushed on up to a better view at 4800m. We were with some of the younger runners and they decided to run down.  I jogged down until I caught up with Menai. We had a great lunch with home made spring rolls. in the afternoon we went up to the Machermo Rescue centre for a talk and to met the volunteer doctors. We were back in time for tea and a fantastic buffalo burger. It was an early night because we had a 5.45am start the next morning. Menai had a decent night even if she woke with a puffy face but I had a bad night I think.

Everest marathon 19th November

We woke up early this morning to make sure we were ready to get off in time. The sad news we heard before breakfast was that Mark had to be evacuated with HAPE (High Altitude Pulmonary Oedema) We had pancakes and an omelette for breakfast before setting off for the lovely route to Machermo.  It started with a stiff climb out of the Dole valley with some spectacular views back towards Ama Dablam and Kantenga.  After about an hour the route levelled out for about an hour before a tea stop at Luza. We had coffee and chocolate as a nice treat.  The final leg to Machermo was not as hard as originally thought but did include a bit of a climb which at over 4000m was a little tough.  However we arrived into Machermo at 11:30 and managed to get the laundry done in record time.  As it turned out this was a good move because we managed to get things dried out before the sun went over the mountains and things froze within minutes. I had a shave and hair wash in warm water before venturing to the river for an all over wash in the river which was very cold. Menai more sensibly paid 600 rupees for a hot shower. We had a warm evening in the lodge and passed time reading, doing a quiz, hearing about the Antarctic marathon, eating and of course,  drinking tea.

Everest marathon 18th November

It was an early cold start with "bed tea" and getting the bags ready before breakfast.  We both felt a bit groggy probably due to the cold night and lack of sleep. Breakfast of porridge, egg, toast and peanut butter set us up for a trip to the monastery to see the Yeti skull. The only problem was that the Lama was nowhere to be seen. We waited in the sun for a few minutes before heading down to the path to Mong La- without seeing the Yeti skull! We were led by Sherpas who made sure we did not get lost and another Sherpa brought up the tail. It was quite crowded and quiet a climb up to the pass. Apparently this was the birthplace of Lama Serge Dorje who brought bhuddism to the Khumbu valley. We had a nice relaxing cup of tea in a tea house at Mong La before making a steep decent down to Phortse Tenga where we had a lovely picnic lunch in a meadow by the river.  After lunch we had a hard hard climb of about 400 metres to our camp at Dole. This took about 90 minutes through a rhododendron  forest and past frozen waterfalls. Quite a few people suffered on the way including Mark who we walked with in the morning. The campsite was cold and felt colder than the night before but at least the stove in the lodge was alight to keep us warm. We had pasta for supper that was a nice change from dhal bhat.  We felt really tired so headed for bed in our tent by 8.15. The night was not as cold as we had feared and we both slept reasonably.

Our group.

Everest marathon 17th November

We had to get up quite early to get packed and down to breakfast. Menai was feeling much better this morning. The morning was a recce run of about 10k along the marathon route to Thamo. Some people ran it and others walked. I ran and was quite pleased with how it went and seem to be quite acclimatised to this altitude.  Mind you running 10k in 80 minutes is not going to break any records.  Menai walked it and was in good form making her feel confident about possibly walking the race in two weeks. There is a huge variation in ability for the race with some really good runners here. The route was really nice taking us through woods and villages that were a lot less touristy than the Namche area. On getting back to Namche I was able to have a shower before retreating to the Everest Bakery for some lunch. I met up with a "full of beans Menai" there before we all set off for our next camp in Khumjung. This was a 3 hour walk along the marathon route on good tracks some of it was being maintained by locals as we walked.  Our kit bags and tents were carried to our camp site on yaks which arrived about the same time as us in the evening. It clouded over so we only had limited views and it got a lot colder. There was a final one hour climb up to Khumjung that I had to do twice because I left my water bottle in a tea house.  On arrival in Khumjung we were allocated tents and then it was time to settle in before tea and biscuits in a lodge near the tent. We had dhal bhat  and chicken for supper followed by games of cards and pick up sticks. It was a cold night with frost on the inside of the tent. We both had to get up during the night to go to the loo but we both slept on and off.

Everest marathon 15th November

We both woke up a bit groggy this morning with a bit of a headache and queasiness. After breakfast I felt better but Menai was a bit under the weather as we set out for a gentle walk up to the Everest View Hotel. We were accompanied by some Sherpas one of whom, Nima, I had a long Nepali conversation with on the way up. He was lovely. We had great views of Ama Dablam, Lhotse and Everest. We had a nice cup of coffee in the sun with Nima and the others before coming down.  It was on this part that I discovered that my Hoka's were a bit lethal on the sandy gravel resulting in my slipping three times. Others suffered the same too. I walked with the young 20 year old Sherpa, Dawa who had been involved in two disasters on Everest in his short time in the business. After getting back to Namche we went back to the Everest Bakery for lunch. We wrote three postcards using Touchnote and met some nice American tourists from California. I went on the hunt for some grippier shoes and found some in one of the great shops here that seem to sell everything, some fake and some real.  We had dal bhat in the evening and a reasonably early night. Menai slept much better but my sleep was not so good.

Everest marathon 14th November

An early start this morning with breakfast at 7am and off by 7.45. I woke early anyway and went out for a very cold shave and hair wash outside. Menai had a bad night and woke with a headache but took a Fast Melt and it went away,followed by a good breakfast of porridge, eggs, toast and coffee.  The morning was nice taking us along the river Dhud Khosi through small villages.  There was a bit of evidence of earthquake damage on the way but not too much. We met quite a few Trekkers coming toward us and one set of runners. We had a couple of nice tea stops and some nice conversations with others in the group on the way. A nice sociable way of travelling really. At about 12 we got to the crossing of the Dhud Khosi on a high suspension bridge before a sharp 400m climb to Namche Bazaar. En route I managed to get a first glimpse of Everest though the clouds. We got to Namche at about 2pm to be directed to our rooms in the Sherpaland lodge with en suite shower and toilet.  As our kit bags had not arrived we decided to have a quick wash and get some lunch in the Everest Bakery and what a nice lunch it was. Apple pie, coffee and soup complete with Internet.  After a break in the bakery we went shopping for hats to keep us warm as Namche was very cold too and then back to the lodge to wash, do some laundry and change. We went down to the lodge restaurant for food and a really good talk about Mountain Sickness from one of the group doctors, Eamon. Eamon had worked for two years in  the Khumbu working in a high altitude clinic. It was really interesting. We then joined the others for a quiz that by some miracle, we won.

Everest Marathon 13th November 2015

A really early start with a wake up call at 3.30 am and breakfast at 4am to leave the hotel by 5am. We arrived at the airport by about 5.30 to join the queue for security checking in with our bags exactly weighed at 10kg for the kit bag and 5k for the day sack. We then had a long wait because the 6.30 flight was delayed because of a lack of visibility at the Kathmandu airport. We eventually go off at 8.30 in a whirlwind of activity and 18 of us piled onto a small twin propeller plane. The 27 minute flight was a bit bumpy but great views to the west of Dhaulagiri, Annapurna, Manasulu and the Ganesh Himal.  We also spotted a cloudy Everest to the east.  We had a quick land and disembark from the plane to go to the Namaste Lodge garden in Lukla (2800m) for tea and to wait for the rest of the group to arrive in the sun.

After getting a packed lunch we had the leisurely walk to Phakding in the 400m valley below. A lovely walk with prayer wheels, prayer stones and nice tidy villages with vegetable gardens. En route we had two tea stops and met up with the others to have a rest.  In the sun it was warm but as soon as we went into the shade or it clouded over we were cold, very cold. On arrival on arrival at the lodge there was a youth meeting for a festival going on that included dancing, music and various young people doing turns.  Phakding was a cold night in the lodge but some nice food. I had a decent sleep but Menai was a wake quite a bit.