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Help The Poppleton Trust raise essential funds for their community centre while taking on a challenge of a lifetime. Trek for 12 days in Nepal on this incredible adventure to Everest Base Camp.
This tough 12-day trek allows you to walk in the footsteps of some of the world’s most respected mountaineers and offers you an insight into the culture of the Sherpa people all while being surrounded by a breath-taking landscape of massive snow-capped peaks.
NB. Bookings on this trip are now subject to availability and may be subject to flight surcharges.
A Challenging to Extreme Trek. This is a tough 12-day trek to Nepal’s Everest Base Camp, including an optional (but highly recommended) summit of Kala Pattar. You will be trekking for 12 consecutive days over rough terrain, you will be exposed to higher altitudes each day, (average 4000m and up to a maximum of 5554m) and you will stay overnight in basic tea houses. Each day’s trek is between 5 and 8 hours (variable depending on group pace) and you will cover approximately 10-15km per day.
You will be accompanied throughout the trek by English-speaking local Sherpa guides who have an excellent knowledge of hiking in the region and may have even summited Everest itself. The guides are first aid trained and will support you throughout your journey, sharing their experience and wisdom with you. You will also be supported by a team of assistant guides and a Different Travel UK tour manager. Your luggage is carried by a team of local porters.
The terrain will vary throughout the 12 days but in general you will trek up and down hills constantly throughout the day as the terrain is relentlessly undulating. Some days you may have a full day trekking uphill, followed by the next day trekking downhill all day. It is essential that your training includes plenty of hill walking and trekking up gradients over consecutive days in order to condition your muscles to this type of exertion. Underfoot the conditions will be dry, rocky and very dusty (bring a ‘Buff’ www.buffwear.co.uk to cover your face to prevent ‘Khumbu cough’). There are numerous river crossings which utilise very high suspension bridges.
October is one of the best times to trek in the Everest region and generally offers dry days with clear skies to enjoy incredible views of the mountains. Daytime temperatures can reach 20°C during the first few days, dropping to 0°C at night, then daytime temperatures drop to 5-15°C as you progress, with sub-zero night time temperatures (-10°C or lower). It tends to get dark at around 6pm.
Please note: the conditions above are historically accurate but climate change can lead to uncharacteristic conditions which are out of our control. The guides will assess the situation and make decisions to ensure the best enjoyment and safety of the group
During the trek the food is plentiful and delicious although the teahouses tend to offer similar menus so be prepared for a menu which is repeated. Generally you will be met with variations of rice, potato and noodle dishes, and soups. A typical breakfast will include a choice between eggs, omelette, toast, cereal, porridge. Lunch will typically include: dal bhat (steamed rice with a lentil soup), pasta, noodles, vegetables, rice, soup, momos (dumplings), whilst a typical dinner will include soup, dal bhat, vegetables, pasta, noodles, rice, potato dishes. There will also be plenty of snacks and drinks available to purchase at each tea house (prices vary) or at local cafés and bakeries (particularly in Namche). In tourist areas of Kathmandu you will find a wide range of restaurants catering for international and high-quality Nepalese food.
You will stay at a hotel in Kathmandu with en-suite facilities before and after the trek and tea houses (locally owned lodges) with shared bathroom facilities during the trek. The tea houses are comfortable but basic and feature a main lounge-dining area which is heated with a central yak-dung burning stove which makes it a very cosy environment. You will take your breakfast and evening meals in this room and will probably play cards and get to know each other here each evening too. Battery charging facilities, soft drinks, hot drinks, snacks and souvenirs are available to purchase at many tea houses along the way. The bedrooms usually have two or three single beds per room which have mattresses and occasionally pillows and blankets. You will need to bring your own sleeping bag.
The hotels have en-suite facilities with flushing toilets and hot showers. The shower and toilet facilities at the tea houses during the trek will vary. Most now have gas-powered hot water showers, payable locally (approx. 400-750 rupees). Showers become increasingly expensive the closer you get to base camp. Toilet facilities are basic. In the early stages of the trail there will be Western and Asian squat toilets which flush. Further along the trail there are fewer flushing toilets and instead large water vats with buckets are provided for flushing. Toilet paper should always be placed in the bin, not flushed. If you need to use the toilet during the trek day you must find a private area off the trail. You must never leave used toilet paper on the ground; this must be packed up into a nappy bag or sanitary disposal bag, pop it in your daypack and dispose of it properly at the tea house (please bring your own nappy sacks with you). You should bring one to two rolls of toilet paper for your own use but more can be purchased along the way if you run out. You are advised to bring a small pack of baby wipes and use natural or biodegradable soap/shampoo. You will need to bring your own towel. A highly absorbent but lightweight and fast drying trek towel is recommended.
An ideal candidate for the trek would be someone who enjoys trekking and being out of their comfort zone, is interested in different cultures and is willing to train for the challenge. The minimum age is 18, although 16-17 year olds may register if accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
You are strongly advised to train to a good fitness level before departure to ensure fast recovery from each day’s walk. The distances covered may not be great but you must be prepared for, and be capable of, trekking for many hours a day on steep, rough terrain while carrying a daypack of around 6-8kg in weight. If you attempt to complete the trek without training, it will be unnecessarily challenging and will hinder your experience, and the experience of your teammates.
This trek is graded challenging to extreme because you will be trekking for 12 consecutive days over rough terrain, you will be exposed to higher altitudes each day, (average 4000m and up to a maximum of 5554m) and you will stay overnight in basic tea houses. Each day’s trek is between 5 and 8 hours (variable depending on group pace) and you will cover approximately 10-15km per day. The trek is an endurance challenge so you are strongly advised to build up to a good fitness level before departure to ensure fast recovery from each day’s exertion. Do not underestimate the training required for this trip. Being away from home comforts and family for an extended period of time is often a challenge for participants although access to communications on the trail is very good overall.
If you’ve a question about this challenge that you can’t find the answer to within the given information then complete this quick form and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
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