Climb Island Peak with Berg Adventures – Trip Itinerary

The first 15 days of your Island Peak adventure are the same as our Everest Base Camp trek. The trek to Namche, Thame, Tengboche and Pheriche and up the Khumbu glacier to Base Camp is an excellent introduction to the culture of the Sherpa people and Everest climbing history. It is also a great way to acclimatize for making an Island Peak summit ascent to 19,700 feet (6000 meters).

Day 1 & 2 – North American departure (most trekkers fly via LA – Bangkok – Kathmandu)

Day 3 – Arrive in Kathmandu. We will meet you at the airport and take you to your hotel, the Yak and Yeti or another of Kathmandu's 5-star hotels. There will be a briefing in the afternoon, welcome dinner in the early evening.

Day 4 – Kathmandu: Our first day in this famous city will be spent touring major temples and sites. Each tour is different and is led by an accomplished and scholarly city guide. We normally schedule a workshop or seminar about art, history or religion as well. Kathmandu is a rich cultural destination. Your introduction will only skim the surface, but it will be a unique and fascinating beginning.

Day 5 – The flight to Lukla. This spectacular mountain landing strip is the gateway for expeditions, trekkers and Sherpa people to the Everest Region. You will be transported from Kathmandu to a bright and colorful scene in clear mountain air. It will feel good to stretch your legs, stiff from days of travel, as we walk downhill to the village of Phakding, along the bank of the Dudh Kosi River. Times have been good in the area recently and the trail is full of new Buddhist art, prayer flags and small monasteries. We sleep tonight with sounds of the roaring glacial water of the Dudh Kosi in the background.

Day 6 – Today we hike along the Dudh Kosi, entering Sagarmartha National Park just after lunch. In the afternoon we climb the notorious "Namche Hill", our first real taste of "ukalo", the Nepalese word for "uphill." With some luck our first view of Everest will be on the way up the hill. Mid afternoon we enter Namche Bazaar. Namche is small, scenic beyond belief, and surprisingly cosmopolitan. A mixture of Tibetan traders, tourists from around the world, expedition climbers, proud Sherpas, monks, Nepalese civil servants, dust, mud, colorful costumes and yaks.

Day 7 – Today is the first Namche day. Namche will be our home base for this trip. We will return here at the end of the trek and together we spend four nights in Namche. We stay indoors in a classic Sherpa style lodge, one that has been a center of many of our expeditions since 1987. Before breakfast we usually take a 10-minute walk to the National Park overlook just above our lodge. The views of Everest, Ama Dablam and Lhotse are exciting and promise much about the adventures ahead.

Day 8 – We trek out to Thame (12,500ft / 3810m). This walk takes us away from the main corridor of travel towards Everest Base Camp. At the same time it takes us toward the home of many of the most accomplished Sherpa Everest Climbers. Tenzing Norgay is from Thame. Ang Rita with his 10 Everest Summits and Apa Sherpa with his 14 Everest Summits, both call Thame home. We will stay in family lodges of good Sherpa friends.

Day 9 – In the morning we hike to a ridge above town to visit the Thame Monastery. Perched high above the village, looking north toward Cho Oyu and the Nangpa La, this classic Himalayan monastery is home to a Rinpoche, or reincarnate Lama. In the afternoon we walk to Khunde, with a stop at the small but impressive hydropower project on the Bhote Kosi river.

Day 10 – Today we hike from Khunde to Tengboche. Only in the Khumbu could one visit two major mountain monasteries with Rinpoches in residence in three days. At Tengboche we will gaze up valley toward the plume blowing off Sargamartha, (Everest). Sometimes we make a quiet visit to the discreet memorials for some of the members of the 1963 American Everest Expedition in the forest nearby.

Day 11 – A classic hiking day of the Khumbu. Ama Dablam still rises above us and we watch its shape change as we walk up the valley and see it from a different perspective. We pass through Pangboche, another home of many famous and accomplished Sherpa mountaineers. Our goal for the day is Pheriche, (14,000 ft / 4265m) home of the Himalayan Rescue Association clinic. Pheriche is in the shadow of Everest Base Camp. Yak trains returning from Base Camp make their first overnight stop here.

Day 12 – We awake to awesome mountain views in this cold valley. Towache Peak towers above the town. Kantega is sunlit and sparkles to the south. In the other direction we see Loboche Peak and Cho Oyu, at the border of Tibet. We return from early morning photographs to a warm lodge. Today is an acclimatization day. We will sleep a second night in Pheriche. We might attend the HRA altitude lecture, or hike up over the ridge to the village of Dingboche.

Day 13 – Today we walk up onto the Khumbu Glacier! The lateral moraine of this famous glacier is visible as we walk out of Pheriche. Distances are short now, but each step is measured and deliberate as we move higher in the thin air. We take a break for tea and a trekking style lunch at Tukla. In the early afternoon we climb the moraine past the Chortens that have been constructed for Sherpas lost in expeditions over the years. Cholotse Peak and Loboche Peak loom above. Our destination is Loboche at 15,800ft / 4815m. We stay at a lodge above Loboche.

Day 14 – Each day the distance we trek is shorter. But our walks are more measured and slow, in part due to thin air, in part due to the ice and ruble of the massive Khumbu Glacier and all the photographs we will be taking. We arrive at Gorak Shep, 16,800ft /5120m. This old yersa, or seasonal yak grazing area, has become the last outpost before Everest Base Camp. Pumori and Nuptse tower above us and in the afternoon we may hike up to Kala Patar to view the summit of Everest.

Day 15 – Today we visit Everest Base Camp (17,500 ft / 5333m). This is the day we get a small taste of what an Everest climber's life is like living at Base Camp and above for many weeks. You will feel the challenge as you hike up the glacial moraine towards Base Camp. It will not feel much like the movies when you get there. The challenges of living at altitude will be very tangible. Everest Base Camp is a famous but temporary habitat among the glacial boulders and ice of the upper Khumbu Glacier. The full mass of the Khumbu Icefall will not be viewed until you walk into Base Camp, but the creaks and groans of the glacier and the roar of avalanches from the slopes around will be heard during the entire day's hike. We return to our tents at Gorak Shep with memories that will last a lifetime.

Day 16 – Our Island Peak climbers will cross the wild Kongma La (pass) at 18,200ft, 5540m, between the Khumbu and Imja Glaciers. This seldom visited area offers a beautiful and remote experience. We will spend the night at a high lake near the pass.

Day 17 – Kongma La to Chhukung (15,600ft / 4750m). After spending the night at the highest elevation we have slept at yet on the trip, we will descend to the Imja Glacier valley and the Sherpa outpost community of Chhukung.

Day 18 – Chhukung to Island Peak Base Camp (16,700ft / 5090m). If we are feeling particularly fit, we can climb Chhkung Ri  (18,240ft / 5860 m) in the morning for further acclimatization and spectacular views of Makalu before we do the half day walk from the village to Island Peak Base Camp.

Day 19 – Rest and preparation day at Island Peak Base Camp. Today we will check and prepare our climbing gear and review rope techniques. Our camp is between Island Peak and the spectacular lateral moraine of the Imja Glacier. 

Day 20 – Move to High Camp (18,700ft / 5700m). By using a high camp we will not only shorten our summit day, we will have the rewarding experience of a high Himalayan bivouac. The route to High Camp involves easy scrambling over rock ledges and walking up steep grassy slopes. By ascending the first 2000 feet of our route to attain High Camp we will make our summit push more enjoyable.

Day 21 – Summit day.  From High Camp we will leave in the early morning and begin ascending low angle rock to the glacier above. After crossing short section of flat glacier we ascend a steep 100 meter section of snow. This leads to the spectacular summit ridge. Easy, but exposed, climbing leads us up and over several high points or false summits before we finally climb a steep face directly onto the summit of Island Peak. If we are luck enough to have clear weather the views on this route will be equal to any mountaineering route in the world.

Day 22 – Alternate summit day.

Day 23 – Island Peak Base Camp to Pangboche.  A party will await us at Ang Temba’s Lodge, the Highland Sherpa Resort in Pangboche.

Day 24 – Pangboche to Namche. The descent through the now familiar villages of the Khumbu is enjoyable and will go quickly after the weeks of trekking and climbing we have under our belts.

Day 25 – Namche to Lukla.

Day 26 – Lukla to Kathmandu.

Day 27 – Kathmandu or extra Lukla flight day.

Day 28 – Depart Kathmandu on International Flights.

Day 29 – Arrive in North America.