Yesterday, Canadian Leo Power crossed the finish line of the Tenzing–Hillary Everest Marathon. Despite the thin air, rough terrain, changing temperatures and steep trails, Leo completed the high altitude race in 8 hours 23 minutes, 29 seconds. Congratulations to Leo!

The race is held on the anniversary of the first summit of Everest by Tenzing and Hillary on May 29, 1953. It is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s highest marathon beginning at Everest Base Camp 17,500ft/5,333m and ending 26.2 miles / 42 km later in Namche 11,319ft/3450m. Don’t let the elevations fool you, this race is far from a downhill road race. Instead it is an up and down, winding trail on rocky, mountainous terrain. It’s so challenging in fact, that it was named one of the World’s 10 Insanely Hard Marathons: http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-over-the-top-marathons.php

And Leo wasn’t the only successful Berg Adventures runner: Crossing the finish line with him was Berg Adventures talented cook, Jheta Rai.

Read more about Leo’s spectacular journey in his poetic dispatches here: http://www.bergadventures.com/v3_cyber/2011/2011-05-13-everest-base-camp/main.php

Whether you’re a marathon hopeful or not, you can learn more about trekking to Everest Base Camp here: http://www.bergadventures.com/v3_trips/asia/everest-basecamp-description.php

Anyone who followed the dispatches for our 2011 Spring Everest Base Camp Trek knows that eleven year old Mathes was a true superstar on the trail. Mathes joined her grandfather (“PaPou”) and Berg Adventures veteran, Woodie Vaughan, for this special and unforgettable trek through Nepal’s Khumbu Valley. It is no secret that Woodie has been planning this trip since his granddaughter was less than a year old and one of her sayings as a little girl was, “I’m going to Kathmandu with my PaPou.” While many worried that she would face difficulties acclimatizing and coping with the challenges of trekking for more than two weeks, Mathes proved that age means nothing when you’ve got the right attitude. She acclimatized with ease, stayed incredibly healthy and didn’t complain once. It was such a joy having Mathes on our trek and it was a pleasure to see Mathes and her grandfather bonding in a way neither of them will ever forget.

Before we left Khumjung, Mathes visited with a Tibetan refugee monk who is studying at the monestary above Khunde.

If you would like to read about the trek from an eleven year old’s perspective, you can find Mathes’ lovely account here on her school blog: http://wordpress.lovett.org/mathes/2011/04/19/getting-ready/.

You can also read our dispatches complete with many great photos here: http://www.bergadventures.com/v3_cyber/2011/2011-04-23-everest-base-camp/main.php.

If you’re interested in trekking to base camp with us, please visit our Everest Base Camp homepage here: http://www.bergadventures.com/v3_trips/asia/everest-basecamp-description.php.