Everest trek - Day 1 - Lukla to Benkar

2850m to 2720m (-130m)
9.0km - 5 hours

Before we knew it our 7:45am flight from Kathmandu dived for Lukla airport. Everyone strained their heads to look at the runway approaching at an odd angle through the open pilots door! The journey was mostly cloudy but we had occasional glimpses of Annapurna and Lhotse through the left hand windows. The landing was silky with a super-quick stop and fast turn into the parking area. Within minutes me, my sister (Helen) and her husband (Dave) were off the plane and being escorted by the Nepalese army to the baggage collection. At this point the plane was heading back to the runway for take-off - the turnaround time is rapid! 

Bags in hand we grabbed a little breakfast with a view of the planes coming in and out, surrounded by eager-to-help porters, then around 10am merrily began the trek. The trail heads down some rough steps for twenty minutes before bottoming out at Ghat, it was a little slippery from morning mists! Already there were lots of porters carrying everything from water to windows; I made a bad joke (true to form) stating "that must be a pane to carry!" - no-one laughed. The path then is relatively flat and easy going into Pakding where we stopped for some soup. I was told that Sherpas swear by garlic soup as a preventative for altitude sickness, so I started my course here, just to see if there was any effect (apart from repelling any other living thing). 

Spin the Mani wheels clockwise and walk left around the prayer poles and Mani stones then just out of Pakding you encounter your first big suspension bridge, covered in prayer flags. From then it's a nice little introduction to ups and downs as the path weaves through trees and over tiny waterfalls, along the valley edge and into the side-valleys. 

Most people push past Benkar but at 3pm we came across a very inviting lodge called simply "Benkar guest house" - they had a triple room for 150 Rupees each. The room was clean and comfortable, with blankets provided. I've been craving good cheese for the last 8 months and Helen and Dave presented me with a large (now sweaty) block of Harrods vintage cheddar from Heathrow airport - I devoured it in under 5 minutes. We ordered a daal bhat for dinner and sat outside the lodge, with the rain now falling. It was extremely quiet, there were only a few other people trekking past. 

First glimpse of something big

Dave and beginner prayer wheel