Just read ‘Into Thin Air’, some of ‘Into the Silence’ and am now embarking upon ‘The Climb’, all about Everest/the Himalayas, and want to start planning for a trek in the next couple of years.

Assuming non-guided, 2-4 weeks, maybe taking in a ‘small’ peak, what are my choices?

Have read up on the Annapurna circuit a little, I’m sure it would be fantastic but like to think I could do something a little less crowded, Has anyone any stories from the Great Himalaya Trail?

Ta!

It might be “organised” and all that but Exodus are now doing a trip to the South Col!!

Might interest you a couple of us are planning a trip to Cho Oyu (ranked 6ht)in 2015, and a few climbs in the alps over the next few years including a Mont Blanc winter climb

Annapurna is regaurded as the hardest to get up and is incredibly hard just to get to the base !!!

Whilst your on it get No shortcuts to the top and K2 life and death on the savage mountain!

Yeah… those sound more like mountaineering expeditions to me!

Found this blog which looks amazing, certainly the sort of stuff I’d be keen on although I note they had guides and sherpas so perhaps a bit more serious than I had planned…

http://patagoniandreams.com/

Lots of options on the Great Himalaya Trail by the looks of it.

The great Himalaya looks good but i need to experience the challenge of getting up an 8,000m peak. call it my midlife crisis!!

We’re all learning rather late on but anyone is welcome to join us only one of us has any real mountain experience!but we all have a lot of enthusiasm and determination.

maybe come out to the alps with us see how you like it! My first real climb will be this winter.

FWIW, my Mrs reckoned that the description of getting to Base Camp in Krakuaers book had a lot of, err, artistic license….

I went on the expedition Everest ride at disney world last week. Joe Simpson my arse!

I still rate the Annapurna circuit as one of the toughest treks Ive done…

Artistic license how Druidh? The bit that sticks in mind is the bottleneck in one village due to late melting snows, pretty vile sounding…

shism14, fair play to you all! I’m making plans based on the next two years in Canada hiking and biking, so I’ll not be visiting the Alps any time soon!

Brack, it was a friend talking about the Annapurna circuit that got me thinking, I would just want to avoid the new roads which are apparently being built alongside a lot of the trail.

A few years ago the region around Gokyo Lake wasn’t too popular, not sure now. Still get good views of Everest.

I’ve never been one for looking up at peaks, prefering to plan at looking down from summits.
It’s maybe a bit limiting in outlook, given my limited ability and resources, but so be it.
If Nepal, then look at the Trekking Peaks of Nepal guide/book (trekking being a bit misleading, they are mountaineering peaks for mortals). Also, plenty of reasonably easy Alps mountaineering with fantastic situations and views.

She just reckoned he over-dramatised the whole thing. Still – he’s an author writing a novel, not a guide book, so I guess you sort of expect that.

The books by Ed Vistraus are well worth a read, just tells it how it is as opposed to trying to write a novel

Its a fair point B.A.Nana, would be sacrilege to go to all that effort and not climb something I guess…

I note that the Annapurna base camp is an option when doing the Annapurna Circuit, I read Annapurna as well recently, could be fun! Other option is trying to retrace Eric Newby’s footsteps through the Hindu Kush, but he REALLY didn’t sound like he had fun… 😆

Or do something here in the UK…

I would suggest the Garhwal which is India for a first Himalaya trip. I read somewhere you could sign up with the Indian Army for one of their mountain skills courses , in the Himalaya, with their troops – quite tough as you live as an Indian squaddie but quite cheap.

Wife and I did a big Trek round Khumbu (Everest region)and loved it. We did bits of tea house treking with no other Europeans around, busy bits and a few nights camping on our own.

Strenghts of the area were the people who were really welcoming and of course the scenery

We started by flying into Tumlingtar. We then treked for 3 days to get onto the main Everest trail just below Lukla. We didn’t really see big mountains on this bit but we did 3 passes over 11,000 ft. We didn’t meet any English speakers for 3 days, lucky my wife brought a phrase book. We had one night camping and other nights were just in private houses. Although we did see a few larger lodges being built.

We also loved the busier trails around Namche and Tengboche. I liked the sense of a world with no roads. Namche was fun with places for coffee and eating out. We then went up the Chukung valley. This is home to Island peak which is a very popluar treking peak. I don’t know whether you need permission for this, a friend did it and sai it was brilliant. But we really enjoyed wandering around and went up to high point on Chukung Ri, about 5,500m. We then treked round to an uninhabited valley and camped under Ama Dablam.

Next we headed up the Gokyo valley. That was the only place that felt really busy. Like everyone else we went up Gohyo Ri, which has great view of Everest.

Unlike everyone else we went further up the valley and camped at Choyo base camp. Freezing but lonely and amazing.

We planed to walk all the way out on the classic route but I got a cold and couldn’t shift it. Classic altittude. We hung round in namche but then admitted defeat and flew from Lukla by helicopter.

All in all brilliant. I have done some Alpine Peaks and on that trip we had been rock climbing to HVS in Autralia and USA. But in Nepal I was happy to trek. A pass with crampons would have been nice. I got scared high in the Himlalayas as a teenager and so was very happy not to be going up Peaks.

Here are some photos. Scanned slides so dodgy in places. But bring it all back to me and give a feel for what its like

yaks treking.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Typical Trail above Namche

sherpa house, small high.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Last house as we headed up a deserted valley

tengboche light side.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Tengboche

Sue by rocky stream.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Sue near Gorak Shep (I think)

yaks up high.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Yaks at a similiar point

tenboche 1mask.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Tenboche again, I think

america0046.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Friendly welcome. Although by this point Sue could speak Nepali and was called sister by all the women we stayed with

Nepal.jpg by John Clinch, on Flickr

Cho Oyo base camp. Well accordign to our navigation

Sue and I on Gokyo Ri. Everest behind, I think

Everest and the Nuptse Lhotse Ridge by John Clinch, on Flickr

Everest behind the Nuptse Lhotse ridge, taken from the edge of Namche. The face we are looking at is 2 vertical miles tall

That looks like an amazing trip amptill!

What time of year did you go?

Pre monsoon. I think March early April 1994

Not particularly related to trekking 13fm, but CNN has just published its Top Travel Destinations for 2013

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/01/travel/top-destinations-2013/index.html

Nepal is by far the best place I’ve ever been. The scenery is outstanding as you’d expect, but it’s the people who live there who provide the greatest memories.

ampthill, that looks like exactly the sort of trip I was thinking about, I’ll certainly be plagarising some of your ideas if this becomes a reality!

Druidh, I watched most of Cameron McNeish’s show about the SNT, I think I’ve done most of it in some shape or form, but will have plenty of time to pick off the bits I like. Didn’t see much else in particular on that feature that grabbed me, although my mate is just returning from the Andes after three weeks out there, I’ll be interested to hear what he has to say about it!

Just get in touch if i can help. I understand that these things may or may not work out. But you have to start with a dream

I think this is tthe update of the book we used to help plan the trek

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Trekking-Everest-Region-Trailblazer-McGuinness/dp/1873756992/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357237504&sr=8-1