I’ve seen a few packing lists on the net, but what I want to know is how many of each thing folk take. I can happily live in one shirt the whole time, but will my companions still speak to me? Sounds a bit of a dumb question, but how many changes of clothes do I need?

Pack merino stuff and never change, that’s what I did

Sounds a good plan 🙂 I love merino !!

Merino seconded, several pairs of boxer shorts – or whatever you’re going to wear, wash one, dry one, have spare or two handy, ditto socks. Everyone pongs once you’re a day or two past Lukla anyway, so nobody really notices. I walked in from Jiri a few years ago and the folk getting off the planes at Lukla smelled like the perfume counter at Selfridges – doesn’t last though. And a down jacket if you don’t have one already.

Kendal Mint Cake?

Camera and lots and lots and lots of batteries and cards.

several pairs of boxer shorts – or whatever you’re going to wear

Dolce e Gabbana thong

camera and lots and lots and lots of batteries and cards.

What are the battery charging opportunities? I have 4 batteries …

You can charge batteries at pretty much every teahouse, lodge and internet cafe along the way, can’t remember how much they charge but it’s not very much.

Cans of Carling, it’s the English way. Make sure you leave them scattered around.

a bloody big bin bag and have a clean up

Best advice I would give you is to remember to drink loads (water, not booze 🙂 ). You don’t get particularly thirsty but you do evaporate much more than you realise. You have to force yourself to drink loads, even when you don’t feel like it. It will help with the headaches and acclimatisation. It will also help you stay ‘regular’ if you get my drift. Nothing worse than not being able to ‘go’ for a few days.
Don’t forget the headache tabs as well…
And squirty hand soap (type that doesn’t need water).
Never stop washing your hands…

“Never stop washing your hands..”

That’s Carling for you.

Bog roll.. 😉
and more bog roll.

Fur lined codpiece just in case you get weathered in 8)

Stuff you can give away to the porters at the end because they are quite poor and often not well dressed. Especially boots tho they have small feet.

What are the battery charging opportunities? I have 4 batteries …

Remember that battery life can drop to almost nothing in extreme cold. Try and keep spares somewhere next to your body.

Immodium??

teahouse, lodge and internet cafe along the way

Sounds extreme man! 😉

There are actually a few places to get clean on the way so there’s no excuse to be completely minging. A drop in usual hygiene standards is to be expected though. Namche is a fine place ot get a good shower etc before you go further into the trek where there is little electricity and the temperature drops. YOu’ll prob stay there a couple of nights to acclimatise anyway.

There are many places to recharge your camera batteries. They probably won’t last so long cos of teh low temperatures but you’ll only need to recharge once or twice.

Sigg or similar metal water bottle. Best thing is to get boiled water en route so a Sigg is great rather than using bottled water. Additionally a Camelback bladder and river water with sterilising tabs is good. You’ll run out of suitable streams the higher you go though and depending on time of year they may be frozen.

A trekking pole is a must. You don’t need to spend a fortune on a Leki titanium one though, a simple wooden one will do and you’ll find these in Lukla.

There are shops selling everything you’ll need and more in Thamel (Kathmandu) so don’t go spending a fortune here on stuff you don’t have. The prices are very low (most stuff is knock-off) but the quality is very reasonable. Take a good look at zips, stitching etc but you can generally expect any of the stuff to last the trek with no probs. Take good trekking shoes – don’t save money here. However don’t over-do it either, I generally use lightweight hill running shoes / heavy duty trainers. No need for full on leather ones.

Sunglasses, sun cream, hat with brim, lip balm, skin moisturiser. All a must unless you want to come back all weather beaten.

Emergency foil blanket. LED head torch. Sleeping bag. Layers of clothes are better than big bulky items. Couple of buffs (it can get v dusty walking behind others – use one as a dust mask and one to keep sun off your head / neck).

A book to read on acclimatisation days or journal if you’re into that sort of thing.

US dollars

WIFI is available in many cafes in Namche, Lukla and even Tengboche so by all means take a ipod touch, iphone or similar.

Diamox. Know how to use it and understand all the risks with altitude sickness.

Wet-wipes / disinfectent spray. The higher you go, the more and more ill folk you’ll meet. Everyone seems to have a cough or the runs up past Lobuche.

Agree with merino comment. Add some other layers and a thick fleece and you’ll be fine.

Be careful of advice such as Johnny Panic’s advising sore head tabs. That’s a surefire way of succuming to cerebral odema. Not nice. Take diamox if you need it but then decend until you are full recovered and acclimatised. His other advice is sound but do be careful about the altitude. Folk die every year.

When are you going? We went in October which was relatively mild (about -6 was the lowest) but if you are going in February / March it will be getting pretty darn chilly!

The tea houses are clean but basic – the dining room will be heated (big stove) but the bedrooms are not and being that most of the internal walls were thin plywood they don’t retain the heat very well. So, a decent sleeping bag is essential, possibly with a fleece liner to boost it’s temperature rating.

For clothes a good layering system will be best (several thinner layers) and natural materials like merino wool will keep you warm and dry (from the sweat). You may be able to wash clothes on the way but I wouldn’t count on it – if it’s not sunny you won’t be able to get them dry in a hurry (another reason for thin, performance layers). Budget for wearing clothing items for 3-4 days and you’ll be ok – another plus for merino / natural fibres will be that they don’t smell as much when they are dirty. We also found that Lush do a solid deodorant that is antibacterial which worked great and lasted ages (whilst taking up very little space).

As mentioned by someone else, make sure you drink plenty of water and also eat well – the higher you go the less your appetite may be.. lots of snacks on the way (can be bought as you go) and decent meals are recommended! We took one of these water filtration systems which worked very well – pure, clean tasting water rather than ‘chemically enhanced’! Managed to pick one up off eBay for a lot less than the price shown there though. Dehydration seemed to be one of the main causes of our headaches, especially first thing in the mornings.

Finally, I think my biggest tip would be to just take your time and enjoy it! It’ll be hard work at times but the reward is some truly spectacular scenery!

When are you going? We went in October which was relatively mild (about -6 was the lowest) but if you are going in February / March it will be getting pretty darn chilly!

Technically it’ll be warming up, it being spring and all. November/December get cold. Anyway…

… the other thing I found really useful was one of those water bottles with a built-in filter. Look like bike bottles, work as self-contained filtration devices. Means you can just top up from any village stand-pipe on the trail and supplement hot drinks from tea houses. Quick, simple, light, relatively inexpensive.

To be honest, you can rely on boiled water/hot drinks from tea houses, and there are loads of them on the Everest trail, but it’s handy having the option and staying hydrated is a very good idea.

I don’t think anyone’s mentioned guidebooks – the Trailblazer series is very good, comprehensive info, easy to use maps and directions, realistic acclimatisation schedules.