Nepal Day 05 - Namche Exploration Day

5.75 miles, 3015’ climbing

Our room was fairly chilly overnight. We got up around 6am and prepared for our acclimitization hike, then we went down to breakfast in the warm, busy dining room. Some groups are headed up the valleys towards different destinations like Gokyo or Everest Base Camp. Others, like us, are taking a hike to acclimatize. There were a lot of people on the steep stone staircase that is the road out of town. Near the top of Namche where the trail forked, we had a great view back to Namche. Many people headed towards Tengboche, the direction of treks to Everest base camp. For those of us on a day hike, narrow steps continued up the steep hill.

Finally we arrived at the Syangboche plateau and the airport where we watched a helicopter drop off a large load that was dangling by a rope beneath it. A person on the ground released the load, and the helicopter flew off down valley without ever landing. These are most likely expedition supplies for mountaineering trips that are gearing up at this time of year.

We continued up hill to eventually reach a view point where we could see Mount Everest, Ama Dablam, and a few of the other big peaks. Clouds were already blowing in as we continued past the helicopters that take clients to the Everest View luxury hotel. We sat on the terrace and had a cup of tea. The Tengboche monastery was visible on a distant ridge.

After the downhill walk to upper Namche, we stopped for lunch in a guesthouse, dining with great views of village below us. Then we visited a small museum which had a section on Sherpa history that included a lot of artifacts that are becoming uncommon as life modernizes here. They had lots of photos, some dating back to the early 1900s, of the Sherpa people and culture. The pictures of Namche Bazaar went as far back as the 1960s. Sarah could see the changes since her prior visit in 2007. The other section was dedicated to Sherpa mountaineering history with lots of profiles of mountaineers and old equipment.  The Sherpa display was made more interesting as we were going through the museum with our guide Bire who worked on Everest in support of an expedition in 2015.  He had stories of the Khumbu icefall, crossing crevasses on ladders stretched over them and even falling 25 feet into one.  He spent two weeks at Basecamp 2 and was there for the big earthquake in 2015 that took many lives and destroyed buildings and infrastructure far from the mountain.

We walked around to the monastery, but it was closed, so we took the opportunity to get showers back at the hotel. There was only one shower with hot water and a prior occupant had used it all up, but at least it was not frigid.

Nepal Day 04 - Phakding to Namche Bazaar

7.5 miles, 3964’ climbing

After a cozy night, we woke early, well ahead of our alarms. Before light we heard some distant bells, perhaps from the monastery. Birds were singing as it became light and we packed up, putting our duffel bags outside before heading in to breakfast (toast, scrambled eggs, coffee, and potatoes with onions). The food has been  good so far.

For a few hours we hiked uphill along the river. The trails were more crowded today with all the trekkers headed to Namche Bazaar. The trails were also steep and dusty with lots of passing mules and dzopkyas. We passed in and out of villages filled with lodges, restaurants and small stores — we even saw Red Bull for sale amongst sundries! There were a few more blooming rhododendron and magnolia trees along with blossoming peach and apple trees. The trail and buildings were adjacent to huge boulders painted and engraved with Tibetan script.

We stopped for lunch in a small, busy restaurant. After lunch, there were no more houses or lodges until we reached Namche Bazaar a few hours later. A lot of the trail was made of steep stone staircases. We crossed a few suspension bridges, including an exciting one where we jogged across the last third because a string of mules had started across towards us, not waiting for us to make it across. Most were unpacked, so we were less likely to get slammed by a sack of rice or gas canister, but we had to wave and push a few away on the narrow bridge before we were across.

As we reached Namche, our guide, Bire, held back so we could round the corner and see the full village by ourselves. Namche Bazaar is large and beautiful with a deep valley at the low end and a bowl opposite. Lodges and houses and stores and restaurants line the roads up the sides of the bowl, painted colorfully. As we entered town through a gate, there was a plaza with a stupa on one side with the characteristic eyes painted near the top. On the other side was a stream-fed fountain. Where the stream came down, a series of large, water driven prayer wheels were spinning.

We are staying at the large and charming Bodhi lodge. We had some lemon tea and relaxed before walking around some of the lower streets in town. There are some very nice outdoor stores here, nicer than in Tucson. Definitely you could outfit yourself for an expedition here. There are smaller shops and stalls as well. We will be here for two nights to acclimate before trekking higher. Our current elevation is 11,197’.

 

Nepal Day 03 - Lukla to Phakding

 7.6 miles, 1722’ climbing

We woke to our alarms at 4am to prepare for our 4:45 airport pickup. We met Bire in the hotel lobby, and took a taxi to the airport where we were scheduled for the first flight of the day on Tara Air. Our hotel had packed us a light breakfast. 

It was still dark as we took a bus out to our plane, a twin otter that seated about 18 people. When the propellers started and the engine revved, the plane felt small and a little old. Our flight to Lukla took only about half an hour, starting directly into the rising sun. We had views of some snow packed mountains on the left, and forested hills dotted with houses on the right. We came over one pass quite low, then quickly landed on the short, uphill runway at Lukla. There was only parking for 4 small planes, and we disembarked quickly. Passengers flying back to Kathmandu were already loading as we gathered our bags, and we saw our airplane take off a few minutes later. We met our porter, Deepak.

After a tea break, we headed out of Lukla on the rocky path. Clouds looked like rain, but it never materialized. The cold morning grew warm in the sun. We passed prayer wheels, mani walls, and many local homes and lodges. Bire told us that the mani stones which are carved with Tibetan script are hundreds of years old. We stopped to spin a large prayer wheel in a small building. Bire told us we should spin it 1, 3, or five times for good luck. Our route followed the whitish blue Dudh Khosi River, fed by glaciers.

Bire told us that he lives in a village below Lukla. It is a Sherpa village and his wife is Sherpa though he is Tamang, so he speaks the Sherpa language very well in addition to Tamang, Nepali, Tibetan, English, and many more. 

After a lunch of egg fried rice, we continued our walk to Phakding. When mules or dzokos (cow-yak hybrids) passed, we stood aside on the uphill side of the pass. We crossed a couple of suspension bridges and reached our lodge, Hotel Star Lodge. Our room is comfortable and even has an attached bathroom. We chuckled about the bathroom having a window open to the bedroom, potentially useful for passing through snacks or extra toilet paper. We had a break to settle in, then took a short hike to the Pema Chholing monastery. It wasn’t far, but it was steep and a dusty rough path due to so many mules passing along it. The interior paintings were vibrant and large figures maybe made of paper mache were as well.  We spent a while looking around and Bire told some about the figures in the paintings before returning to our lodge for tea and a rest before dinner.

We played cards and had tea in the common / dining room after dinner. A wood burning stove made it a little warmer than outside, but we can still see our breath.  It will be a lot colder at higher elevations. There were a lot of lodges and fewer trekkers than we expected. Mountaineering expeditions are ramping up at this time of year. We saw helicopters with loads dangling beneath them in addition to all the mules and dzokos (yak-cow hybrids) carrying loads up to expedition base camps.

Best lodge name we saw today: Hotel Beer Garden Lodge. We also saw a Holiday Inn, clearly not affiliated with the North American chain.

Nepal Day 2 - Kathmandu

 It was an effort to stay in bed until morning, but we did our best to conquer jet lag. 

It was another day of UNESCO world heritage sites. After another good hotel breakfast, we took a taxi to Pashupatinath, a significant Hindu site on the Bagmati River dedicated to Shiva. Besides many stupas and temples, there are sites for Hindu cremations along the river banks. A number of cremations were in progress, and many visitors were in the temple (not open to foreigners). Some cattle, dogs, and monkeys wandered about.  People were picnicking on one side of the river near a number of astrologers waiting for customers. A number of sadhus in bright red and yellow clothes, dreadlocks, and makeup, called out to us as we went past.

After exploring the temples, we decided to walk to Boudhanath, the most important Tibetan Buddhist site in Nepal. We made a navigational mistake which added a couple miles to our walk, partly through small streets and partly along busy roads. We were glad to find a couple of pedestrian overpasses over the busiest roads.

After arriving to the Boudhanath stupa, we had lunch on the 3rd floor terrace of the Roadhouse cafe with a view of the stupa with its many flapping prayer flags. The square was full of Buddhist devotees. After lunch we explored the area, then took a taxi back to our hotel as a rain shower started. There was noticeably more traffic than we had experienced on our earlier taxi ride.

After some down time, we went out to buy some clean tshirts to wear (also a souvenir), and we found a shop, Juju, with local designs we liked. We took a break to rehydrate, then returned to our hotel for a trek briefing and to meet our trekking guide, Bire, and office trek coordinator, Raj. Both seemed great. Our porter will meet us in Lukla. Raj said that a lot of Europeans are cancelling their treks because their flights were through the Middle East, and the recent war meant their flights are cancelled. Sad. We head to the airport at 4:45am tomorrow, scheduled for the first flight of the day at 6am. We hope for clear skies!

After our briefing, we had veggie pasta at Forest & Plate, a 3rd floor restaurant. An odd looking cat took a shine to Ed and sat by him. We returned to our hotel to separate carry-on luggage from that which goes in our checked bag, weighing everything with a scale borrowed from the front desk. A few items and some laundry will be left behind. We are excited to start our trek.

Nepal Day 01 - Kathmandu

 After nearly 48 hours of travel and a chaotic, midnight-ish arrival in Kathmandu, we were ready to see some sights, but first a little sleep was in order.  It’s a 12 hour and 45 minute time difference from home, and after our long travel we were tired enough to sleep until morning in Kathmandu. Getting used to the local time here and keeping active during daylight hours was part of our plan to overcome jet lag.

After breakfast and a shower at our lovely hotel, Hotel Thamel House, we walked out into the hectic streets of Thamel, the primary tourist district of Kathmandu. Our first task was to get Nepali rupees. Not all the ATMs we tried were working, but finally we had what we needed. 

We walked to Durbar Square, a UNESCO world heritage site in Kathmandu, doing our best to stay out of the way of the cars, motorcycles, and rickshaws which filled the street. Saturday was a holiday here but local people were still going to work and opening up their shops, some with goods laid out on the sidewalk. We caught glimpses of butchers with piles of raw meat, barbers trimming customers, lots of small snack and grocery stalls, restaurants, piles of flowers and fresh fruits laid out for sale, children on bikes, people walking everywhere, construction on new or remodeled buildings, and souvenir shops close to the tourist locales. There was music, car horns, shouted conversations. Every block or two we saw temples and shrines to Buddhist and Hindu deities. We caught whiffs of incense, smells of cooking, and sometime the odor of sewage wafting by.

At Durbar Square we paid our entrance fees and agreed to hire a licensed guide, Prakash, to show us the highlights, making sure to agree on a price in advance. Prakash led us around, telling us about different temples and deities. We were able to see the Kumari (living goddess) at the window of the building where she resides. The current Kumari is only 3 years old, and we were told how Kumaris are selected to be living goddesses to the Hindus although she herself is from a Buddhist family. She was dressed ornately and made up in lipstick and heavy eyeliner when she peeked out her window at us (which she does once a day), but she still looked like a curious toddler. 

As our tour continued we were soon losing track of all the gods and goddesses, their modes of transportation, and their many incarnations, but it was fascinating. The sculptures and architecture were beautiful. At the end of the tour, Prakash told us that the agreed upon price was for each of us, and we felt a little duped, but we paid and parted on good terms. 

We ended up walking all the way to the monkey temple, Suayambunath, also a UNESCO world heritage site, getting cokes along the way and crossing the river on a pedestrian bridge. The River where we crossed is dirty and low flowing and smells unpleasant, but the smell doesn’t carry far.  We had lunch in a charming little restaurant before we climbed the long staircase up the hill, past buddhas and stupas and Hindu gods, and under flapping prayer flags and tall green trees. There were monkeys everywhere, rhesus macaques, scampering around and over the temple complex. We made sure not to be holding any food. Sarah does not trust these monkeys at all. There were also a lot of dogs sleeping or meandering and barking. It seemed like a lot of families were there for the day, many in dressy clothing. Small events seemed to be taking place in a couple of locations with music playing. After walking all around the complex, we took a path back down to the busy road and caught a taxi to Thamel. We had walked around 6.5 miles not to mention all the stairs.

After relaxing a while at our hotel, we had dinner in the attached restaurant. We sampled different Newari dishes and watched a folk dance performance. Everything was lovely, but by 9pm the jet lag was catching up to us, and we turned in for the night.

Winter MTB 2025 / 2026

 Sharing some pictures and videos of mountain biking adventures this winter.  With an unusually warm winter we made multiple trips to McDowell Mountain park and Usury Mountain park both north of Phoenix as well as participated in a few bike races.  

Dawn to Dusk

Tucson 10er

24 Hours in the Old Pueblo.  

The races are endurance events spanning from 10 to 24 hours we ride as a team taking turns.  Sarah’s brother joined us for Dawn to Dusk,  Tucson 10er we did as a duo and 24 HOP included John and a couple of other friends.

Iceland Day 6

Friday, November 7, 2025

Hotel: Hotel Von, Reykjavik

We checked on the aurora every couple hours overnight. There was one glimpse thru the clouds, but otherwise the sky was too cloudy.

Having only a short drive back Reykjavik, we took it easy in the morning, starting with a late breakfast at the hotel. We stopped to see the Hveragerði geothermal park which had one small geyser. It was very cold in windy. We drove out to the Grotta lighthouse just past Reykjavik, walking out to the point past some sea birds. Then we parked in a garage near Hotel Von, had lunch, and spent some time looking in shops along Laugavegur and the rainbow street. We checked into our hotel early and spent the afternoon exploring the shops along Laugavegur and the rainbow street. 

At 9pm, we joined a small group for a northern lights watching tour. Our guide looked at the weather and cloud cover maps to figure out where we could go for a clear sky. We saw green swirls, zigzags, and patches. It was a much better approach than trying to find a clear, dark spot outside our hotels. The aurora shifted and faded in and out quickly. We returned to the hotel around 1am.

Day 7 — Postscript: We rose early to drive to the airport, return our car, and catch our flight home. There was a hitch when our 24 hour parking turned out to be closed until 7am. Our hotel clerk assured us there was time, and we had coffee and pastries while we waited. We could see some aurora on our drive to the airport when we passed thru dark areas, until dawn started brightening the sky which happens over a few hours at this time of year.

Overall we were very fortunate with the weather and were able to see the sights without any issues. Original forecasts predicted rain and below-freezing temperatures. It can be so windy that cars are blown off the road. we saw a lot of beautiful sights on the golden circle and south coast, and finally seeing a good view of the aurora was a great way to end the trip.