machermo

At breakfast the porridge tasted strange but eatable. It had nuts and seeds in it and when I commented to Lakpa that it was an unusual recipe he laughed and said they had accidentally poured muesli into the pot. Oh well, it tasted ok. Several of the party now had colds and a couple had upset stomachs so we were a sorry bunch as we started the day’s walk, and even sorrier when we discovered the trail was a steep climb for the first three quarters of an hour.

The sky was blue and there were tremendous views as we passed through Lhabarma and Luza, where we stopped for tea. As always I had a small pot of black tea which would provide about four mugs and today I decided to buy a Snickers which cost 150 Nrs, about £1.35p.

We walked high above a steep valley through scrub, and then over a high bleak ridge in cloud until, after about four hours walking, we looked down on the cluster of lodges that made up Machermo. Our lodge was smart and looked fairly new, positioned under a steep hill. We were going to have a rest day here to acclimatise and we were pleased to see that our rooms were large and the toilet on the same block. After our 'welcome tea' we went to our rooms, unpacked our bags and then returned to the common room and stove as soon as possible.

Instructions for the confused

Machermo 'Posh' Lodge

Glacier from Machermo ridge

The other way along Machermo ridge

Once warmed through I decided to go for a walk to the top of the ridge and put my down jacket on, the mist and cloud had brought sub zero temperatures. Carole didn’t feel very well so I went off by myself and slowly zigzagged up the ridge to about 4600m. It was good to be completely alone for a change. Once on the top I stood gasping for breath amongst colourful prayer flags and looking down the other side was awestruck by the sight of the Gokyo glacier, the Ngozumpo glacier, the largest in Nepal. Every now and then a stone would roll or a groan could be heard as the glacier moved imperceptibly down the valley. This appeared to be the end of the glacier and it stretched back along the valley as far as the eye could see. I took a couple of photos but it was too cold to stand for long and I returned to the lodge and ordered dinner.

The food here was good and I had French fries and vegeburger, not a very traditional Nepali dish but just what I wanted. There was a large trapdoor in the floor of the dining room and at one point the owner opened it and dropped down, reappearing with potatoes and carrots. No fridge needed for their cold store.

I was cold in my sleeping bag despite wearing a fleece and woolly hat.