ISLAND PEAK (6189m)

Day 01 – Arrival in Kathmandu

Fly to Kathmandu and transfer to Hotel. Day spent relaxing.

Day 02 – Fly to Lukla (2850m) & Trek to Phakding (2652m)

A dramatic flight across Mountain country with view of Himalayan giants takes us to Lukla. The landing at Lukla itself is a remarkable one. We exit from the Airport to meet with our Trek crew. We trek for around 2 1/2 hrs up the Dudh Kosi Valley on a good trail to our campsite at Phakding. It is a river side camp.

Day 03 – Trek to Namche Bazaar (3450m)

We continue up the Dud Kosi Valley on the west bank and cross high suspension bridges to enter the Sagarmatha National Park at Jorsale. The trail is steep till Namche Bazaar with its very colorful Saturday market. You get first views of Mt. Everest on the trial. This is the Sherpa Heartland.

Day 04 – Rest day in Namche Bazaar

The Sherpa Heartland is a colorful town bustling with small shops, food joints and Himalayas as backdrop, adding to the ambience. A good place to rest, acclimatize and checkout sunrise/sunset on the Himalayan Giants – Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse and Ama Dablam. You can also visit the Everest museum which will give you a good insight into the lives and tradition of the Sherpas.

Day 05 – Trek to Tengboche (3867m)

We stick to the contouring trail along the Dudh Kosi River. With very good views of the peaks in Khumbu including Ama Dablam and Everest we descend to the suspension bridge at the village settlement of Phunki Tanga. We cross this and climb steeply to Tengboche which has a monastery – the biggest in Khumbu. This houses a 20-foot statue of Buddha and beautiful Thangkas.

Day 06 – Trek to Pheriche (4252m)

The day has a steep descent passing through a forest, crossing Imja Khola and a steady ascent to the village of Pangboche. The village has spectacular mountain views with scattered pine trees, mani walls and gompa as foreground, Ama Dablam (6856m) which is standing just opposite – adds the beauty. A steady walk of about 2 hrs from here, takes us to Pheriche.

Day 07 – Rest day in Pheriche

A day to rest and acclimatize and a chance to wander up the valley to look at Tshola Tsho lake, also the Cholatse’s and Tawache’s perpendicular walls. The climb up to the ridge overlooking Dingboche for the view up the Imja Valley and the incredible south face of Lhotse is another alternate that can be done.

Day 08 – Trek to Lobuche (4930m)

We continue up the wide valley beneath the impressive peaks of Cholatse and Tawache on the left. A right turn from here and a steep ascent towards takes us to the foot of the Khumbu Glacier. The tea house at Dughla is an ideal lunch spot, before taking a zigzag route up through the boulders of the glacier’s terminal moraine. The climb ends up at top which has hordes of stone cairns, which symbolize as the memorials to the numerous Sherpas who have perished during their climbs to Mt Everest. A gentle climb from here on alongside the glacier, leads to the group of houses at Lobuche.

Day 09 – Trek to Everest Base Camp (5357m) and descend to Gorak Shep (5184m)

The trail to Gorak Shep goes ahead through the lateral moraine of the Khumbu glacier. Climbing steeply up to the top through the torrent of Changri Glacier, we catch our first glimpse of Kala Patthar, a grey green knoll beneath Mt Pumori. As we reach Gorak Shep, we will find snow-capped mountains looming all around us including the top of the world – Mt Everest. After a brief lunch and rest, we take the trail to Everest Base Camp through the once vast Gorak Shep Lake. Overnight at lodge.

Day 10 – Trek to Kala Pathar (5500m) and descend to Lobuche (4900m)

We start early in the morning to catch the dramatic views from Kala Pathar and witness the first light of day caress the peaks of the mountains, particularly, Mt.Everest. However we need to be prepared for an early morning departure, amid pre-dawn darkness and cold temperatures (-10 to -15 deg C). Further, there is always the potential for chilly winds which are quite common. Overnight at lodge.

Day 11 – Trek to Dingboche (4350m)

Today we descend down passing through Duglha to Dingboche a summer village, where the houses are dotted about in the fields.

Day 12 – Trek to Chukhung (4750m)

Today, we have the magnificent views of the Island Peak, as we take a 2 hour easy walk, ascending gradually to Chukhung a small settlement.

Day 13 – Trek to Island Peak base camp (5150m)

Another easy day, a 3 hour walk crossing though the river and following the valley passes under the shadow of stunning south face of Lhotse. The day ends up at a base camp which is besides the Imja glacier, under the grassy slopes. This marks the start of the climb on Island Peak.

Day 14 – Trek to High Camp

A small ascend takes us to a high camp. Here we relax and make final preparations for our climb tomorrow.

Day 15 – Ascent of Island Peak (6173m)

Crossing the gully above the camp the trail ascends for about an hour to a narrow ridge, heading towards the glacier. Here it is time to rope-up and put on our crampons as the most interesting part of the climb begins with the glacier crossing. This leads to a steep snow slope that ends onto the summit ridge. The ridge being refreshingly airy and leads to the summit, which has stunning close-up views of the south face of Lhotse looming over us whilst in the other direction open up breathtaking mountain views. We trek down the same route to the base camp.

Day 16 – Spare day

A day allocated to any contingency due to weather etc.

Day 17 – Trek to Pangboche (3950m)

After descending along the trail to Chukhung, we stop for lunch at Dingboche. A couple of hours trek leads to the lovely village of Pangboche.

Day 18 – Trek to Namche (3450m)

We follow the river and cross it, the ascent from here takes us to Tengboche, while passing through the rhododendron and birch forest. We have a magnificent view of few of the great Himalayan Peaks like Thamserku, Nuptse ,Kwangde, Lhotse, Tawache Ama Dablam, Kantega and Everest. From Tengboche we make our descent and cross over the bridge over the Dudh Kosi at Phunki Tenga. Here, one can see prayer wheels driven by water. We then make our way back to Namche.

Day 19 – Buffer Day

Can be adjusted for another spare day in the mountain or breaking the trek journey.

Day 20 – Trek to Lukla (2800m)

On our final day’s trekking we follow the Dudh Kosi and come down to Lukla. We make the most of this last evening by having a farewell party with the support staff, the porters and the Sherpa Guides. We try some local drinks like chang and dance with sherpas and ponder upon the unforgettable trekking experience of past few days.

Day 21 – Fly to Kathmandu

We leave early for the flight back to Kathmandu

Day 22 – Depart Kathmandu

Our Nepalese support team will drop you to the airport for your flight from Kathmandu to home. (Or you can stay longer for short tours such as Tibet tours, rafting, game drive at National parks and mountain biking, etc).

LAND Price per person in SGD:   $ 3280

Tour Code: NPL-IP-22

Departure Date: 10 Apr-01 May 2016
Price is subjected to changes without prior notice
Airfare:
SIN-Kathmandu-SIN: From S$ 650 including taxes

LAND Price includes

• Internal Flights and all Land transport in the itinerary
• All transport in a non AC car as per the itinerary above
• 3-star Hotel in Kathmandu (Bed & Breakfast) on twin sharing basis
• A Trip Leader, assisted by a Nepalese Trek guide
• All climbing equipment
• One porter between two trekkers
• Food for porters and crew members
• All permits, Sherpa allowances
• Twin sharing room and tent on the trek/climb
• All meals on trek/climb (3 meals / 3 times Tea or Coffee)
• Briefing prior departure
• 15% discount for gears at X-Boundaries

Price excludes

• All airfare & taxes not mentioned
• Personal gears such as sleeping bag (budget on spending INR 3000 if renting equipment from Thamel, Nepal)
• Expenses of a personal nature like laundry, phone calls, alcohol, beverages, cigarettes, camera fee
• Travel Insurance
• Any costs arising out of unforeseen circumstances such as bad weather, landslides, road conditions and any other circumstances beyond our control.
• Tips
• Visa and Visa application fees