11/12/2025
Day 12 Everest base camp Journey
Ah… finally, the crampons are on.
Indiahikes had actually flown in crampons for the entire team — heli delivery.
I was exhausted before the day even began. I couldn’t sleep the previous night — the low oxygen, the strange dreams, and that deep mountain fatigue had all settled in.
We start the gradual but relentless climb towards Lobuche.
With the crampons strapped on, every single step felt heavier than the last. Your pace slows down, your legs work twice as hard, and you realise how much the mountains demand from you.
Helicopters kept appearing and disappearing above us — rescue missions, trekkers being flown down, supplies being dropped off.
And yet, in the middle of all that intensity, something beautiful happened. We ended up having a tiny snow fight. A few snowballs, a few bursts of laughter… a small, unexpected moment of childlike joy that cut through the heaviness of the day.
After lunch, the weather changed dramatically. Snow began to fall just as we approached Thukla Pass, surrounded by memorials of climbers who lost their lives on Everest.
And then, out of nowhere, a snowstorm hits. For a moment, I remember thinking, “There’s no shelter here… only the climb.” So we did exactly that — we kept climbing.
My roomie Hetal and me are last ro reach Lobuche. Manish Dhai stayed with us throughout. Headache had already started creeping in. It was one of the longest days of the trek.
But good news EBC is open for climb 😀😀 so we can climb now
But Lobuche made up for it in its own magical way. It looked like something straight out of a storybook — endless white, untouched snow everywhere.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much snow in my life. The night, however, was brutally cold. Freezing to the bone. I slept shivering, wrapped in every layer I had.
I told myself one thing:
“Brave it all, Venky… tomorrow is EBC.”
