Day one of trekking

Our day starts with a 4:30 wake up call. All the luggage that we are not taking with us on the trek is handed over to the hotel desk for safe keeping. They give us two boxed breakfasts (2 boiled eggs, cold toast, a bit of jam, juice box and an apple.) Our Peak Freaks organizer in Nepal—Kiran—picks us up in a taxi and we're off to the airport. Out of the eight flights that we have during this vacation, the next one to Lukla is one of the ones that we have been nervous about.

As we are driving to the airport, we evidence of the "road widening project" that Krisha had told use about yesterday. It looks like the government has taken a HUGE knife and cut a direct line through all buildings at each side of the road...shops, houses, apartment buildings... The rubble was left at the road sides and we saw truck pulling up to reuse some of the building material. it was weird to look at the buildings (especially the apartment buildings) and see half rooms, open for all to see inside. It was like an earthquake had hit.

Landing at Lukla Airport

At the airport, Kiran handled all our baggage check ins and whisked us through security. We waited patiently while the weather reports came in to see if the flight would be a go or not. Finally we boarded a small bus that took us out to the plane. We were with a group of people travelling from the US. In the plane you sit one person on each side of the plane—a total of about 16 people total. There was one stewardess who handed out caramels to everyone before take-off, then we didn't see her again. There was no checking to see that your luggage was stowed, no checking of seat belts and the cockpit, which had a curtain separating the cabin and the pilots, was open the whole flight so we could see the instrument panel and a view out the front of the plane.

The flight itself was uneventful, although there was a lot of cloud cover/fog and the plane seemed to fly disturbingly close to the mountains.We sat on the left side at the front of the plane so we had a great view of both the mountains and the front of the plane. After about 20 minutes we landed. The landing itself was a bit rough but nothing unusual. Everyone in the plane was either taking pictures or video. One out of the plane there was very little time for pictures on the tarmac as the security folks keep you moving.

Our Sherpa - Karma

We had been instructed to find the "Sherpa Cafe" where our guide and sherpa would be waiting for us. It was surprising easy to find ans once inside the cafe our guide, Karma, found us. We handed over a packet of documents and money (our trekking forms and $ for meals along the trail.) We had tea, did a bit of pack adjustments and we were off.

A good part of this day was downhill (which means coming back its going to be uphill!!) The trek itself was mainly uneventful but with amazing scenery. We are seeing A LOT of donkeys and yaks on the trail. In fact trying to avoid stepping in yak or donkey poop is now a normal part of walking. Sherpas laden down with huge loads is another common site. We've seen them hauling not only gear for trekkers and shop supplies, but bundles of 2x4's and granite boulders.

We had lunch at a small teahouse next to monastery. A small puppy wandered in and  fell asleep under Rick's chair. It started to follow us when we left and several trekkers stopped to pet it and try to coax it back to the teahouse where we thought it may live. Finally Karma, tracked down the owner who scooped it up and ran off.

On today's trek we crossed a total of 4 suspension bridges (again nothing like we suspected). Yes they are high and some are above roaring rivers but they all (so far) have been made with thick steel cables and are very sturdy.

We ended our day at 2400m elevation at the Riverview Lodge, a small lodge at the side of  loud, rushing river. We are feeling good about the days ahead.