Tag Archive for: Nepal

The team departing from Deboche with views of Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse and Ama Dablam (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Under beautiful, clear-blue Himalayan skies, our Madison Mountaineering teams continued their trek further up the Khumbu Valley with a stop in Pangboche for a blessing at the monastery. This is a special experience for many – these cultural experiences along with trekking and climbing in the Himalaya make for a truly engaging combination. Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Pheriche:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Everest base camp (5364m/17,598ft) trek, Island Peak (6189m/20,305ft) and Lobuche East (6119m/20,075ft) climbs – today is October 26.

Today we trekked from Deboche (3820m/12,532ft) to Pheriche (4371m/14,340ft). Along the way we stopped for a blessing at the monastery in Pangboche (3985m/13,074ft). That’s always a nice ceremony – a nice way to mark a milestone in our trip as we get closer to Everest base camp. In Pangboche, we also parted ways with the Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft) team. They’re going to spend the night in Pangboche tonight, and then move up to Ama Dablam base camp (4600m/15,100ft) tomorrow.

But now, the Everest base camp trekking team is here in Pheriche – we’re just relaxing before dinner. For most of the day we had excellent weather yet again with crystal clear skies, and great views of Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft) and Nuptse (7861m/25,791ft) ahead of us. We’ll be in touch tomorrow!

Garrett and our Everest Base Camp crew: Max, Alex, Kirk and Nick (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Garrett and our Everest Base Camp crew: Max, Alex, Kirk and Nick (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekker, Max visiting the monastery in Pangboche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekker, Max visiting the monastery in Pangboche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

EBC trekker, Max and climber, Thomas trekking above Deboche with Garrett (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

EBC trekker, Max and climber, Thomas trekking above Deboche with Garrett (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Visiting the Pangboche Monastery (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Visiting the Pangboche Monastery (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Our Everest Base Camp trekking team approaching Shomare with Lhotse in the background (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Our Everest Base Camp trekking team approaching Shomare with Lhotse in the background (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

A yak on the trek towards Pheriche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

A yak on the trek towards Pheriche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

EBC trekkers, Max and Nick trekking toward Pheriche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

EBC trekkers, Max and Nick trekking toward Pheriche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Trekking guide, Aaditya Nachhiring approaching Pheriche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Trekking guide, Aaditya Nachhiring approaching Pheriche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

Visiting the Tengboche Monastery (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

The team is back on the trail after an acclimatization day and some rest in Namche Bazaar! Under beautiful, clear-blue skies, the team set forth further up the Khumbu Valley, stopping at the famous Tengboche Monastery on the way to Deboche. After touring the monastery and fueling up on coffee and pastries, the team continued on before reaching their next stop in Deboche. Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from the Himalaya:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the Madison Mountaineering expeditions in Nepal – today is Wednesday, October 25.

Today we hiked from Namche Bazaar (3440m/11,290ft) to Deboche (3820m/12,532ft). We had another beautiful, sunny day! The weather on this trip has just been excellent. Along the way from Namche, we stopped at Tengboche Monastery, toured the monastery where the monks were practicing a dance for an upcoming ceremony. We enjoyed some great coffees and pastries at the bakery there at the monastery. Then we descended here to Deboche!

We’re just wrapping up dinner and looking forward to tomorrow when we will hike up to Pangboche (3985m/13,074ft) and participate in a blessing there, and then continue on to Pheriche (4371m/14,340ft) for the night. We’ll be in touch tomorrow!

Excellent views of Kangtega (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Excellent views of Kangtega (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Nick and Kristen relaxing after lunch at Phungki Thenga (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Nick and Kristen relaxing after lunch at Phungki Thenga (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Climber, Tom, spinning prayer wheels at Tengboche Monastery (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Climber, Tom, spinning prayer wheels at Tengboche Monastery (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Dawa Tenji (left) and Aditya Rai (right), members of our excellent local staff, taking a break on the way to Tengboche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Dawa Tenji (left) and Aditya Rai (right), members of our excellent local staff, taking a break on the way to Tengboche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Ama Dablam climber, Anna, chatting with friends on the way to Deboche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Ama Dablam climber, Anna, chatting with friends on the way to Deboche (Photo by Terray Sylvester)


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

Climbers, Anna and Thomas crossing the Hillary Suspension Bridge (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

The Madison Mountaineering fall, 2023 Himalayan expedition teams have reached the heart of the Khumbu Valley: Namche Bazaar! The team enjoyed excellent weather from Phakding while trekking along the Dudh Koshi River, across suspension bridges, and with a few breaks along the way before emerging into Namche, which is a major hub in the Khumbu Valley. Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from the Himalaya:

Hello! This is Terray calling in from Namche Bazaar (3440m/11,290ft), Nepal – it’s October 23rd. Today our teams here in Nepal hiked from Phakding (2610m/8,562ft) to Namche Bazaar. We had beautiful weather along the way and got our first view of Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft) as we climbed the hill to Namche!

We had just a great time! (We) stopped in Monjo (2835m/9,301ft) and had a nice cup of tea in the sun, then we had a great lunch in Jorsalle (2740m/8989ft) and climbed up the hill to Namche across the famous Ed Hillary suspension bridge.

So, we just wrapped up dinner and we’re going to bed. Tomorrow we’re looking forward to a hike up to the Everest View Hotel where we’ll get a great view of Everest as well as Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft), which is the objective for some of our climbers here in Nepal.

We’ll be in touch tomorrow!

The team preparing to depart from Pahakding (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

The team preparing to depart from Phakding (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekkers, Kirk and Nick at the entrance to Sagarmatha National Park (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekkers, Kirk and Nick at the entrance to Sagarmatha National Park (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Madison Mountaineering expedition team members Kristen, Kim and Max approaching Namche Bazaar (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Madison Mountaineering expedition team members Kristen, Kim and Max approaching Namche Bazaar (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Enjoying lunch in Jorsalle (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Enjoying lunch in Jorsalle (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Sunny weather in the Khumbu Valley (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Sunny weather in the Khumbu Valley (Photo by Terray Sylvester)


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

Madison Mountaineering fall Nepal expedition members starting their trek up the Khumbu Valley (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Today was another magnificent day in Nepal with our Madison Mountaineering teams leaving the lowlands and stepping foot onto the trail! The team had perfect flying conditions with views all around of beautiful country and the high peaks of the Himalaya. With their first day of trekking under their belts, the team continues further up the valley tomorrow to Namche Bazaar. Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from the Khumbu:

Hello! This is Terray calling in for the Madison Mountaineering expeditions in Nepal – it’s Sunday, October 22nd. Today our teams here in Nepal flew from Ramechhap (1218m/3,999ft) to Lukla (2860m/9,383ft). We had excellent weather for our flights, not a cloud in the sky! So, we had great views of Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft), and other beautiful peaks as we flew to Lukla. We touched down, had a late breakfast, and then enjoyed a leisurely walk to Phakding (2610m/8,562ft). We had just great weather, really pleasant temperatures for the entire walk down to Phakding!

So, we’re just about ready for dinner here. It’s a peaceful evening on the banks of the Dudh Koshi River. The plan tomorrow is to wake up nice and early, and then hike to Namche Bazaar (3440m/11,290ft) – the heart of the Khumbu Valley! We expect another great tomorrow, the forecast is excellent.

So the teams with us right now are our Everest Base Camp (5364m/17,598ft) trekkers, our base camp trekkers who will also climb Island Peak (6189m/20,305ft) and Lobuche East (6119m/20,075ft), and then our Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft) climbers as well. So, all is well here and we’ll be in touch tomorrow!

Touching down in Lukla!(Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Touching down in Lukla! (Photo by Terray Sylvester)

Ama Dablam climber Anna trekking to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Ama Dablam climber, Anna trekking to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Trekking from Lukla to Phakding on a peaceful evening in the Khumbu Valley (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Trekking from Lukla to Phakding on a peaceful evening in the Khumbu Valley (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekker, Kirk spinning prayer wheels en route to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)

Everest Base Camp trekker, Kirk spinning prayer wheels en route to Phakding (photo by Terray Sylvester)


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

The team touring Pashupatinath Temple in Kathmandu (photo: Terray Sylvester)

The Madison Mountaineering expedition teams started today with a city tour of Kathmandu, visiting some of the cities most important and sacred sites – a nice way to stretch the legs after all of the travel the last few days. Some of the best parts of a Himalayan expedition are these cultural experiences along the way! Following their city tour, vans were loaded with duffel bags of gear and the team hit the road en route to Ramechhap airport where they will go wheels up and fly to Lukla where the trek up the Khumbu Valley begins. Guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Nepal:

Hello! This is Terray calling in from Nepal, it is Saturday, October 21st. Today our Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft) climbers and our Everest Base Camp (5364m/17,598ft) trekkers did their city tour around Kathmandu (1400m/4,600ft). We visited Pashupatinath, the most important Hindu temple in Kathmandu and also Boudhanath Stupa, the most important Buddhist site in the city. Both of those are UNESCO World Heritage sites.

After lunch, we drove out of the Kathmandu Valley and along the banks of the Sunkoshi River to the little village of Mulkot (493m/1,617ft). Tomorrow morning we’ll wake up early and we’ll drive over to Ramechhap (1218m/3,999ft) airport, and then fly up to Lukla (2860m/9,383ft) to begin our trek in the Khumbu Valley!

So, all is well here in Nepal and we’ll be in touch tomorrow.

A colorful statue of the Hindu god, Ganesh (photo: Terray Sylvester)

A colorful statue of the Hindu god, Ganesh (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Monkeys in Kathmandu (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Monkeys in Kathmandu (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Touring one of Kathmandu’s numerous UNESCO World Heritage sites (photo: Terray Sylvester)

Touring one of Kathmandu’s numerous UNESCO World Heritage sites (photo: Terray Sylvester)


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

Welcome dinner in Kathmandu to kickoff the expedition!

The fall, 2023 Madison Mountaineering Himalayan expeditions are underway in Kathmandu! We are filled with gratitude to be back in Nepal with new and old friends, and great adventures ahead. This season we look forward to treks to Everest Base Camp, and climbs of Ama Dablam, Lobuche East and Island Peak! With gear checks, orientation and a welcome dinner complete, city tours and an exciting flight to Lukla are all that separate the team and the start of the trek up the beautiful Khumbu Valley! Expedition guide, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Kathmandu:

Hello! This is Terray calling in from Kathmandu (1400m/4,600ft) – it’s Friday, October 20th.

Today we kicked off three of our itineraries here in Nepal! We launched our Everest Base Camp (5364m/17,598ft) trek for the year – we have two teams of trekkers heading up to base camp at the foot of the highest peak on the planet. One of those teams will also climb Island Peak (6189m/20,350ft) and Lobuche East (6119m/20,075ft) before returning to Kathmandu. We also launched our fall Ama Dablam (6812m/22,349ft) climb.

It was a beautiful day here in Kathmandu, really nice weather! We met for orientations and gear checks here at the Yak and Yeti hotel, and then we went out for a big team dinner out at Mezze near the former royal palace. Now we’re just getting ready to go to bed. Tomorrow we’re looking forward to our city tour here in Kathmandu, and then we will start the journey up to the Khumbu Valley!

So, all is well and we’ll be in touch tomorrow.


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

On May 25th at approximately 10:25 AM local time, our team of Lhotse climbers successfully reached the summit of the world’s fourth highest peak and are returning to Camp 2! We are extremely proud of the team and this tremendous accomplishment. With that, we are pleased to present the 2023 Madison Mountaineering Lhotse summiteers list:

# NAME COUNTRY
1 Garrett Madison United States
2 Debbie Bulten Canada
3 Danah Al Ali United Arab Emirates
4 Javier “Cacho” Beiza Argentina
5 Peter Horsman Netherlands
6 Lakpa Sherpa Nepal
7 Aang Phurba Sherpa Nepal
8 Dawa Tenji Sherpa Nepal

In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

Photo pulled from the Madison Mountaineering archive (Photo: Terray Sylvester)

We are thrilled to announce that the 2023 Madison Mountaineering Mount Everest expedition team has successfully reached the summit of the tallest mountain on Earth, and safely returned to their tents at Camp 4! The team all reached the top between 10:30 AM and 12:00 PM NPT (local time) and enjoyed a magnificent summit day complete with sunshine, little wind, great route conditions, and the route (mostly) to themselves.

Congratulations to the team and and a heartfelt thank you goes out to our rockstar Sherpa team and support staff! This incredible feat would not be possible without them.

Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with today’s dispatch as he tries to find the words for a truly special day on Mount Everest:

Hello! This is Garrett calling in from the South Col (7900m/25,919ft) for the Madison Mountaineering Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft) expedition team. We had a great summit today on Mount Everest! Best summit day ever that I can remember.

We started about 2:00 AM after a brief snowstorm here on the South Col, made our way up the triangular face to the balcony, up to the south summit, and up to the top of the world – summit of Mount Everest, about 9:30 – 10:00 AM. It was a glorious day! The best conditions and best route conditions that I can remember, perfect weather. It was warm, hardly any wind, hardly any other climbers on the mountain. We spent about two hours total, some of us, after summit just basking in the views, warmth and enjoying being at the top of Mount Everest. So, we had eight clients, four guides and 15 Nepal Sherpas get to the top today, including Aang Phurba Sherpa. And now, we’re all back safe in Camp 4 (7900m/25,919ft)!

Our plan is to go to bed, we just had some dinner. Some of us are going to wake up in a few hours, and head off to climb Lhotse – a neighboring peak of Mount Everest, the fourth highest mountain in the world.

So, the perfect summit day! (I) can’t believe how lucky we were, it was so nice up there. So lucky in so many ways! It was a glorious day and glad we’re all back safe.

Tomorrow some of us will go to Lhotse, the rest of us down to Camp 2 (6500m/21,325ft), and the following day down to base camp (5364m/17,598ft). All is well here on Everest! Check in soon.


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

Photo pulled from the Madison Mountaineering archive (Photo: Terray Sylvester)

The 2023 Madison Mountaineering Everest expedition team is primed and ready to make their summit push on the world’s highest peak! In just a few short hours, the team will emerge from their tents, dawn their packs, and leave the South Col in the direction of Mount Everest’s summit ridge which will take them to the summit. Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this dispatch from the South Col:

Hello! This is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft) expedition team. Today is May 23rd and we are up here at Camp 4 (7900m/25,919ft) on the South Col. We got up here yesterday afternoon and had a good nights sleep, a restful day recovering and preparing for our summit attempt tonight. So the weather looks great, probably the best day of the season coming up, fingers crossed.

The team is ready and our plan is to wake up in a few hours time and head out around midnight to make our summit attempt on Mount Everest! So we are doing our last minute preparations here, finishing our dinner, filling our water bottles, we’ll sleep for 2 hours before we get up and go.

Wish us luck! We’ll check in tomorrow.


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram:

Photo pulled from the Madison Mountaineering archive (Photo: Terray Sylvester)

The 2023 Madison Mountaineering team is safely settled into their tents at Camp 4 (C4) on the South Col, between the summits of both Everest and Lhotse. This being their high camp, they plan to take a rest day tomorrow so that they are ready to go when it becomes time to make their summit push! Weather permitting, the team aims to begin their summit push tomorrow night. Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with today’s dispatch from C4:

Hello! This is Garrett calling in for the Madison Mountaineering Everest (8848m/29,032ft) and Lhotse (8516m/27,940ft) expedition. Today is May 22nd, and we are up at Camp 4 (7900m/25,919ft) on Mount Everest, also known as the South Col here at 26,000 feet or just under 8,000 meters.

We’re doing great! We had a good climb up from Camp 3 (7230m/23,720ft) today – it was a long day. We started at about 6:30 and got up here at about 3:30 in the afternoon. We’ve had dinner and filled up some hot water bottles, changed our oxygen cylinders, and we are getting ready for bed now. Our plan is to have a restful night, rest day tomorrow, and then leave tomorrow night for the summit. So, aiming for May 24th! The weather looks great, snowing right now – it’s been snowing this afternoon, but the wind is supposed to be calm on May 24th and 25th. We’re looking forward to a nice day up here tomorrow to recover, enjoy some good views, and get all prepped and ready for our summit climb tomorrow night!

All is well here at the South Col on Mount Everest!


In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:

Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:

  • Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions.  Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.

Instagram: