Day 9: Yak Kharka to High Camp
The morning started off with a heated relationship argument but once that was out of the way things settled down and we got hiking. We walked high above the river making our way higher and higher in elevation towards High Camp where we'd stay the night. So far we've all had very little effect to the altitude and have kept moving fairly quickley but today was a different story. The pace was about normal however we all could feel the beginning effects of going higher up. At lunch in Thorong Phedi Nic was mentioning she had a pretty bad headache so she went right onto Diamox, the altitude drug that balances out the body's pH levels to minimize the effects of altitude. In an hour or so things were feeling much better and the group decided to make the trek higher up one more hour to the circuit's High Camp, lodging at 4800 meters (15,744 feet) to spend the night. At a moment's notice if someone from the group were to show major signs of high altitude cerebral edema (HACE) or high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) we would pack up and hike back down to the village below and stay the night.
At the High Camp, I began to feel nauseated and had a wicked-bad headache, something that I hadn't experienced in a long time. Nic and I had an agreement that for this trip there were to be no 'tough guys' who would try to baby their symptoms if shown so I was up front in telling the group how felt and was honest in my emotions. Bill gave me some Diamox and we set a deadline as to how I was feeling and whether or not to stay or go. At 7pm that night I made the decision to stay at high camp as my symptoms were fading and I was feeling much better. I still don't know how bad I really was feeling but reading my journal excerpt from that night today it was clear that I wasn't feeling good and that I was showing signs of the HACE. None-the-less, the drugs worked very well and I got a well-rested night.
Day 10: Thorong-La Pass to Muktinath (Elevation at pass: 17, 764 feet)
What a day! I will remember this one for the rest of my life! We woke up at 4:30am practically dressed in our hiking gear from the night before as it was just too cold through the night to stay in normal sleeping gear. The temperature inside our rooms read -11 on Dave's barometer and we knew that it was going to get colder at the pass. A quick breakfast and check that all parties were feeling good enough for a 10 hour day and we were off. It took us 2 1/2 hours to make the 616 meter elevation gain to the pass. The trail was icy for part of the way and the wind really made for a cold face. We wore down jackets, gloves, hoods and scarfs to block as much of the wind as possible but it still sent chills down through our bones! Hiking to the pass was tough as there were a lot of false summits. This means that you continuously make it up to a clearing atop a hill and think that it's the end only to find more trail in front of you. None of the group members had looked online to see what the summit looks like so none of us had a clue what to expect.
We finally made it to the summit and were welcomed by a barrage of prayer flags and a plaque that congrtulated us on the accomplishment. The sun was shining, skies were totally clear, wind HOWLING and temperature was as close to rediculous as I've ever experienced (must have been -20 with the wind!). The feeling of making this pass was amazing and was made that much better because I was with the girl I love and some great friends to share the moment! Never had I ever thought of hiking this high so to check this one off my bucket list was a really cool thing. Lots of photos were taken (and are shared on my PICASA webpage) and around 9:30am we were ready to leave. Just at the moment another few hikers arrived and we welcomed them and cheered them on. Unfortunatly, one of the guys totally had some bad luck, slipped and twisted his leg on a sheet of ice. Right away Bill concluded that this guy showed signs of a spiral fracture of the fibula! Crap! A fractured leg on an icy summit pass where there's no chance of getting a helicopter to pick you up - AND an 1800 metre decent to the next village. On the brighter side, this guy couldn't have been luckier in the fact that he just fractured his leg in the presence of an ER doctor with other strong men around to help him down the mountain! The next few hours for me were grueling as I helped carry this guy partially down the trail. It was very icy in some sections and the grade of decent was unforgiving. I had on a pair of "Yak Trax" (strap on metal and rubber coils the to souls of shoes to give better traction in icy and snowy conditions) and had I not had them, my decent with this guy could have been much worse. Because of the blisters on my heels I was luckily carrying a roll of duct tape and with the tea hut beside us, there was enough wood to make a splint.
We were able to move our broken-leg friend Costa down nearly 600 vertical meters in just over 2 hours. By now it's around 12:30pm and sunny but all of us moving him were totally exhausted! Try moving someone down very technical terrain at altitude and let me know how you feel!
It was decided upon to send for help and leave Costa with warm sleeping gear, an emergency blanket, some food and water. Nic and Bill went to the village and set up help to come back up the mountain to rescue Costa. They did a great job doing this and were able to get the help we needed. As I arrived in the next village close to 4:30pm I was starving and ready to just lay flat out and go to bed. I got some food in me and recharged for the next hour before moving to Muktinath. Just as we all were leaving, we saw the Nepali Army running (yes, running!) up the trail towards us, then past us and up the trail towards the summit. In our brief conversation with them, they said they would get Costa and bring him down by stretcher. What a day! At dinner that night we all looked back on what had happened that day and knew that it would be a lasting experience for all us of.
Day 11: Muktinath to Kagbeni
We needed to do our 'rounds' in the village to make sure all of Bill's patients were alive and well. We checked in on Costa and heard that he and his mates got to the village around midnight, were very cold and very hungry but were alive and well. There was a Korean man, about 25 years old, that had a seriously bad case of neumonia that Bill had diagnosed the night before and thought he might not make it through the night - he was alive and had an increased breathing rate and was being sent to Jomsom's hospital and eventually home to recover. Then his last patient was a British woman who Bill gave Diamox to as the altitude was really affecting her on the hike. She was good and was smiling. So, with the medical rounds done and our belly's full from breakfast, the hike must go on - so on we went!
Kagbeni is one of those villages that we thought would be just another place to see and another place to rest our heads for the night but as we got closer and more into the 'guts' of the village, all of us were very surprised and excited to explore more of its streets. The streets were amazing, the buildings from a few hundred years ago and the people very humble and helpful. There were rock terraces on each property and cows just roaming the streets in the middle of the day. Women were roasting seeds on an open fire in the road and monks were chanting in their monestaries above the houses, all giving the village a truely unique experience. Out of all of the villages so far, Kagbeni has been my favourite.
"Tato" means "hot" and "Pani" means "water" = Hot Water = Natural Hot Springs!! Oh ya, that's right... we were going to stay the night at a spot that has a natural hot spring for anyone passing by and with the few people on the trail at the time, we knew that it wouldn't be busy at all. 
