“I had to take care of some last minute prep in Kathmandu starting with the immigration department. Nepal Ambassador Sridhar Khatri provided me a visa but it was limited to 30 days and I needed a few more weeks. I completed last minute shopping and bought a pair of 8000 meter down pants for the summit day. There are likely only 3 places you can actually try on these pants - Seattle - Boulder - Kathmandu - they are essentially like a puffy down jacket (for your legs)- most wear a one piece summit suit but I prefer to have the layers in case I overheat and I can strip off the jacket or pants.”
“We had lunch overlooking the famous Boudhanath Stupa that dates back to 500 AD, then we had dinner with the 14 Peaks expedition group that’s on the same schedule as Len and Chhiring - Climbers from USA, Iran, Equador, Ukraine, Mexico, Uruguay, Kazakhstan, England and Nepal, a fun and lively group of about 20 people and a lot of new friendships in the works.”
“I boarded the helicopter flight into Lukla this morning from Kathmandu with all the gear for the trek to Everest Base Camp. Adventure soon to begin. Swiss helicopter Pilot gave me the front row seat and it did not disappoint. The Lukla runway is short (about 300 meters - steep uphill landing). On a plane it’s a nail biter. The planes that come in are flying supplies into Lukla but no passenger flights. There are no roads past Lukla to get to Everest Base camp. I was happy to be ready to START soon.”
Landing into Lukla
“I arrived in Phakding at 3:00 pm Friday with my guide Chhiring and fellow climbers Jose and Lincoln. We trekked 5 miles and arrived at the hotel and were welcomed with hot tea, hot showers and a hot meal. The porter in the photo below is carrying 150 lbs of supplies on his back! Unreal strength - moving uphill at 8,500 feet above sea level. I am happy to report that we are about 1/3 of the way toward our goal to raise $1 Million for Hopecam! I am so proud of the Hopecam team.
Today we climbed for Owen from San Antonio TX who is battling cancer at Methodist Children’s Hospital. Thanks to Alliance Equities Corp and my good friend Dave Dyer for supporting us today.”
YAK’s called a DZO
Stay tuned for more updates from Len!
Len is honoring Hopecam Child Owen today. Read more about Owen here!
Len’s Message to Hopecam Child Owen.
Thank you to the following Sponsor for Len’s Journey from Lukla to Phakding!
View all of Hopecam’s Mt. Everest Sponsors here: Sponsors
BECOME A SPONSOR TODAY! Contact brett@hopecam.org
Len’s daughter Viena has provided him jokes to read along his journey,
My Message to Owen