Days 2 to 5 – The Ascent to Lukla

Day 2 – The Beginning of the Odyssey

4:30 AM – We got up and went out to find a taxi (the one we had reserved never showed up). By 5:05 AM, we were already in Chabahil, waiting for the Jeep to depart, when a "Tata" appeared with six people inside. Though it seemed impossible, we managed to squeeze into the noble vehicle, and with its nine passengers on board, it began the journey through the mountain roads.

We crossed cliffs and single-lane roads with traffic coming from both directions, all to the rhythm of a Nepali music CD that repeated every hour. I remember seeing a crashed vehicle on one of the cliffs and thinking: "You're in the dance, so you have to dance. If it happens, it happens. MAKTUB."

10.5 hours later, including a lunch stop, we arrived at our destination. It was 4 PM, so we decided to explore the town in search of a good place to stay. We found a nice one—with WiFi, even.

Dinner: fried rice—delicious.

Day 3 - Salleri to Rigmu, 18km

6:30 AM – We woke up to rain. We packed our bags and went downstairs for breakfast. The preparation was sooo slow that we didn’t start walking until 7:45. We quickly learned that we had to adapt to the mountain pace—patience is key.

The hike was amazing; we kept a very good pace, sometimes walking under the rain. We stopped for lunch at noon and then continued until we reached our destination, Rigmu. There, we stayed at a nice Sherpa lodge, paying just 100 rupees (1 USD) for the bed and another 200 rupees (2 USD) for a hot shower.

18 km covered in 7 hours (including a 1.5-hour lunch break).

Day 4 - Rigmu to Bupsa, 21km

By around 6 AM, we were all awake. At 6:50, we had breakfast—the famous "Tibetan bread." It’s similar to a torta frita or fritos, as we call them in my beloved Córdoba.

At 7:45, we started the hike. A lot of downhill—really tough, especially on the knees. The altitude was 1,595 meters above sea level. At one point, we lost the trail. I’m not sure if my phone’s map failed or if I got distracted, but our original route ended up being a few kilometers longer.

We stopped for lunch at 1 PM near Jingbu. At 3 PM, we resumed the hike, and a brutal uphill climb began—endless stairs. The altitude showed 1,200 meters, meaning we had descended about 400 meters. We lost the trail again. When I checked the map, it showed we were off the planned route, on a different path. We decided to cut through the bush to reconnect with the original trail, which we eventually did—after a steep climb.

At 5:30 PM, we arrived in Bupsa just as the sun was setting. This made us realize that we might need to allow more buffer time for unexpected detours. Getting lost at night could be dangerous, as mountain temperatures drop significantly without sunlight.

We stayed overnight at a place where we only had to pay for meals. It was the first time we shared accommodations with other travelers—two girls from Switzerland.

21 km covered in 9.5 hours (including 2 hours of rest).