Everest Base Camp Trek – Day 6
Date: 17 November 2017
Walked to: Dingboche
Distance: 3 miles
Altitude: Sleeping at 4,400m (walked to 4,750m)

Today – going up much of Nangkartshang Peak – was pretty much the shortest walk I’ve ever done. I haven’t even hit my 10,000 steps for the day. But those three miles took three hours, such is the snails pace that you need to walk at when you’re already almost at the height of Mont Blanc (the highest mountain in the alps) and you need to get over 1,000m higher. In normal circumstances the slow shuffles up the hillside would kill me – but in this case, it’s the slow-mo that should stop me from getting ill, so I’m all for it. Plus that while breathing thing gets harder if you try to go any faster!

We’re staying at the same tea house in Dingboche as last night, except there are a lot more people here today than yesterday. Some of whom are very loud (I’m sure it’s a coincidence that they are American). With all the free time that’s been afforded by finishing the day’s walk by 11.30am, I took the opportunity to have my first shower in three days. And after the warm water running out after two minutes and having to wash my hair in ice cold mountain water, it’s also going to be my last one for at least four days. It was all a bit traumatic and there was a bit of swearing, and it’s too cold to sweat here anyway, so there.

Good thing it’s so bloody beautiful, isn’t it?