Global Adventure - Trek Nepal’s Famed Khumbu on the Everest Three Passes Loop

Itinerary Highlights:   

The Khumbu region of Nepal, the traditional home of the Sherpa people and the location of many of the world’s highest peaks, is a life-list destination for many trekkers who love a physical challenge and stark, glacier-carved, high-mountain terrain while being immersed in colorful local culture and hospitality that may be very different from their own.  This 24-day adventure begins with our arrival at Kathmandu's Tribhuvan International Airport on Sunday October 12, 2025, with our arrival afternoon and a full additional day exploring the noisy, colorful capital of Kathmandu and its several nearby UNESCO Heritage historic and religious sites. 

Then, on Tuesday October 14 we depart for an 85-mile, wee-hours drive to Ramechhap Airport in the town of Manthali[1] for our short flight deep into the Himalaya, to land at Lukla’s (in)famous Tenzing-Hillary airport at 9,100 feet and walk a short way to our first Sherpa-hosted guest-house for the night.  Over the next 17 days (18 total trekking days including the Lukla flight day) we will wind our gradual way up through forest, along and across deep river gorges and through busy Nepali towns, out into the increasingly stark glacier-carved spaces and small remote villages of the high Himalaya. 

Our trekking plan is built to allow for slow and steady acclimatization:  we’ll keep our daily distances and elevation gains modest, with days where we stay at the same location for two nights and explore higher by day.  Our first high pass, Kangma La at 18,190 ft (“La” is Nepali for ‘Pass’), will be reached on trekking-day 9 (if weather and participant condition are favorable for a safe crossing for everyone[2]).  On trekking-day 10 we’ll reach our highest guest house at Gorakshep (altitude 17,040 ft) where we’ll spend two nights.  We’ll have that afternoon and the next day to for optional hikes out of Gorakshep up to Kala Patthar – the best Everest viewpoint, at 18,450 ft – and out to Everest Basecamp along and around the jumbled blocks of the Khumbu Glacier at 17,454 ft (though there won’t be an actual ‘basecamp’ there this time of year).  Participants can sit out these hikes if they need the rest.

On trekking-day 12 we’ll head out from Gorakshep heading south and then west.   After a night in the tiny village of Dzongla at 15,900 ft under the dramatic peak of Cholatse (21,129 ft) with its accompanying glacier and lake, we’ll head first gradually then steeply, zigzagging up to the headwall of the valley, to cross a long snowfield to 17,600-foot Cho La.  This is a stunning location with views across to Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, Pumori and Ama Dablam. 

 The backside of Cho La is very steep scree, and our ‘trail’ a narrow eroding boot path angling back and forth through the rocks.  A long ramble over and around multiple moraine ‘hills’ takes us to the steep-sided defile holding the village of Dragnag at 15,000 ft, smoke from guest-house cooking fires filling the valley.  But the night and meals here are very welcome after the pass crossing, and soon after we start out the next morning we have the chance to cross the Ngozumpa Glacier that flows all the way down from the peaks at the Tibetan border.  This is a well-trodden non-technical crossing winding between glacier-melt ponds and ice chunks thrown up by the slow movement of the glacier.  On the other side of the glacier is the storybook town of Gokyo at 15,600 feet, on the shore of the middle of three lakes and the viewpoint-hill of Gokyo Ri on the other side (a chance for an afternoon ramble) and Cho Oyo seemingly close enough to touch beyond it.

From Gokyo we wind around the middle lake and tackle another steep winding climb to a pass with our porters' brightly colored packs far ahead.  This pass, Renjo La at 17,600 ft, offers an even more dramatic view (our last one) of Everest and the Himalayan giants around it. 

From Renjo La we descend for nights at Lunghden (a purpose-built trekkers village) and Thame (where we can visit Apa Sherpa’s house, a storied mountaineer who summited Everest 21 times!) before continuing down for trekking-nights 17 and 18 at Namche and Lukla.  Weather permitting, we will catch a flight from Lukla back to Manthali on the morning of October 31, and from there, 5 hours back to Kathmandu, our comfy hotel (Showers!  Laundry!) and a farewell dinner and cultural show with dancing and music.   We’ve built in two extra days on November 1 and 2 to stay in Lukla and/or to arrive later in Kathmandu in case of weather delays, and we’ll be transferred to the Kathmandu airport on November 3 to catch our (long!) flights back to Seattle.

During the first part of the trek when we are acclimatizing to increasing altitude, we will have a maximum of 4 straight (and short) trail days in a row, with one full ‘off day’ and multiple afternoons with optional activities and hikes and the option to rest.  Once we reach our highest guest house at Gorakshep, we’ll have an optional afternoon and a full day exploring with the opportunity to stay back and rest.  From Gorakshep we will have 7 straight days of hiking, but these are mostly short days with afternoons to rest.   

Overall logistics support on this adventure is provided by Arun Treks, a long-time local trekking and climbing outfitter who has supported several past Mountaineers Global Adventures.   Transportation will be in vans with professional drivers.  Supporting us on the trail will be a Sirdar (head guide) and a team of 3-4 assistant guides – all english-speaking and most who are experienced Everest summiteers -  as well as a team of porters who will carry our overnight gear.  Because meals are provided during the trek at the guest houses and porters are carrying our overnight gear, we are able to carry just daypacks, though we do need to provide our own sleeping bag, pillow cover, water treatment, personal medications and 10 essentials (we are limited to just 10kg of gear to give to the porters).[3]  Throughout the trip there are multiple opportunities to exit in case of altitude illness, other illness or injury, either on a horse or – in a serious enough case – a helicopter, with an English speaking assistant guide or porter accompanying the ill or injured person.  There are several small medical clinics along the route, small hospitals in Namche and Lukla, and a large hospital in Kathmandu.   Mobile service will not be available along most of the route, but our sirdar will be in communication with the ArunTreks operations manager throughout the trip and together they will provide reliable logistics and emergency support throughout the trip.

[1] The decision has been made by the Nepali government for all tourist flights into Lukla to depart from the airport in Manthali rather than from Kathmandu because (1) good-weather windows in Lukla can be short, and the much shorter flight from Manthali means more flights can get in, and (2) the Kathmandu airport has become so crowded that flights are very frequently delayed.

[2] If weather or participant condition doesn’t support a safe crossing of Kangma La, the group will follow the traditional trekking route directly from Dingboche to Lobuche.

[3] The outfitter provides ground transport, Lukla flights, bookings for Kathmandu hotels and entry tickets to historical sites, our lead and assistant guides and porters, and all bookings for guesthouse stays and meals; as well as logistics and emergency support and communications.

Time of Year:    With the monsoon season over for the year and winter on the horizon, October ushers in fall, the most popular trekking season in the Khumbu with spectacular blue-sky mountain views and vibrant autumn colors as well as lots of wildflowers.

Weather:  The average daytime maximum temperature during October ranges from ~80^oF in Kathmandu, 70 ^oF in Lukla, 55 ^oF in Lobuche and 40 ^oF in Gorakshep.  Average nightly lows during October range from 60 ^oF in Kathmandu, to 27 ^oF in Lukla, and ~20 ^oF in Lobuche and Gorakshep (VERY COLD!)   On the upside, it is very dry in October, with only 2 days on average of overcast in the month and less than 0.1 inches of rain.

Lodging:    Our nights in Kathmandu will be in a nice 3-star hotel, in shared two-bed rooms with private bath and breakfast included, a convenient walk from the central square and prominent sights of the old city.  Along our trek we will stay in Sherpa-owned guest houses, normally in very spartan 2-bed rooms usually with a shared bathroom down the hall.  Bedding is basic and the walls and windows are thin so these rooms are seldom any warmer than the outside – participants will want to bring a WARM sleeping bag, as well as a pillow cover.  In the better and lower-elevation guest houses there may be a hot shower for a fee, but this becomes more like a bowl of hot water for washing in the higher guest houses.  There is daytime electricity at all the guesthouses but this is solar powered so will generally be turned off at night.  The large bustling common rooms are bright and heated so most guests congregate here and this is where meals are served.  Heat may be from burning patties of yak dung, however (since there are very few trees high in the Khumbu) and this can get smoky!  In recent years most guest houses have set up wifi, but it may be very slow, sporadic and expensive.  To read more about the guest houses on the Everest trek, see this link.

Food:   One welcome dinner and one farewell dinner will be provided in Kathmandu by our outfitter, and all breakfasts are included with our hotel.  All lunches and up to 4 other dinners in Kathmandu are on our own.  Breakfasts, dinners and a packed lunch will be provided each day during our trek by the guest houses.  Food is basic, though filling – and somewhat repetitive (heavy to eggs and potatoes as well as dal bhat, a classic Nepalese lentil curry with rice) since all of the items must be brought up by pack animal from the towns below - since there is no chance for refrigeration along the way, it’s generally recommended to avoid meat because of the chance of spoilage.  It should be possible to accommodate vegetarian and gluten free diets, but protein options could be limited for vegans.

Leader’s Experience:   Cheryl Talbert (cascadehiker12@gmail.com) has led many Mountaineers hikes and several Mountaineers and private backpacks, treks and cultural trips around the U.S. west and worldwide, as well as 40 Global Adventures including successful high-altitude treks in Nepal, Bhutan, Sikkim, Peru and Kyrgyzstan.  She completed the Everest Two-Passes Trek as a co-leader in 2012.

Participant Requirements:   Must be a current Mountaineers member with an up-to-date waiver on file. This is a challenging trek that includes some very rugged boulder terrain and poorly formed trails, very cold temperatures and exposure to very high altitudes (>17,000 feet) for several days in a row.  Though we will have multiple exit options during the route, exit to a road and back to a medical facility will be difficult and time consuming, and rural medical facilities are limited. Therefore, participants will be screened by way of a detailed application and follow-up discussions to demonstrate:

• recent experience with strenuous mountain trekking and the gear and experience to pack properly for very cold and changeable mountain conditions.
• experience at high altitudes (>12000 feet) with no past altitude illness symptoms
• no medical conditions that could be exacerbated by severe cold, GI illness or altitude (people with such conditions may be allowed to participate with a doctor’s written verification that the condition is well controlled). The application will elaborate on the medical conditions of concern.
• the maturity and judgment to recognize and be forthright about illness or injury symptoms before they become significant problems (as evaluated based on application responses, conversations with past Mountaineers leaders and other respected colleagues, the leader’s past direct experience with the person, and the leader’s impression from in-depth conversations with the person. 
• a positive attitude and the ability to get along well with groups for extended periods under demanding conditions with few amenities for multiple days at a time (evaluated through the same process as in the previous bullet).

Each participant will be required to hold emergency medical treatment and emergency evacuation insurance sufficient to get them home in case of an illness or injury during the trek, as well as Cancellation/Interruption For Any Reason coverage to allow them to recover a majority of their trip expenses to facilitate them leaving the trek if they feel unable to safely continue under the conditions.   (Insurance will be at your own expense.)  Details on travel insurance, what to get and how to get it will be communicated by the leader as soon as you join the roster, but be aware that Cancel For Any Reason insurance requires that you insure all non-refundable expenses and that you purchase the insurance within 14 days of your trip deposit.

The Mountaineers require that anyone participating in a high-altitude trek must participate in training^[1] on safe travel at altitude and on safe decision making in outdoor adventure.  Participants will be encouraged to read and follow the latest guidelines of the Wilderness Medical Society in terms of medications recommended for prevention and treatment of severe altitude illness, in consultation with their doctor.

It is a core philosophy that Mountaineers take care of each other.  As part of this ethic, we strongly encourage all participants before the trip to be up to date on the  relevant vaccinations and boosters required for your age group for respiratory viruses including Covid-19, and to take precautions before the trip including avoiding indoor crowds and gatherings the week prior to the trip that carry a risk of bringing illness to the group, and masking during all transport to Nepal.  During the trip we ask every participant to

• proactively communicate any symptoms of covid or respiratory illness to your trip leader as soon as they appear; mask when with others in the group; and work with the leader to isolate as much as possible
• carry 4 self-tests and test yourself proactively if you begin to experience any symptoms that could indicate a covid infection
• isolate in the case of any positive test or if you exhibit any contagious respiratory virus symptoms, until fever is gone without medication and contagious symptoms have declined significantly.
• See our latest Global Adventures Respiratory Illness/Covid Prevention Policy at this link.

Finally, everyone on the trip will need to have a passport valid for at least 90 days after our departure from Nepal, as well as a Nepal Visa, at their own expense.  To obtain a Nepal visa go to https://nepaliport.immigration.gov.np/entry-visa-processing.

NOTE:  Your leader makes most of the arrangements and provides logistics support during the trip, but is NOT a tour guide!  As a Mountaineers group we will operate as interdependent, capable travelers making our way together and helping one another succeed and be safe.  

NOTE:  Please review the leader’s trip objectives, expectations and style at this link before applying.   By registering for the trip, the participant understands and accepts these fundamentals and agrees to support them during the trip.

[1] The training could consist of a seminar or a summary of the latest literature from the Wilderness Medical Society in altitude illness prevention, symptoms and treatment, and a quiz for comprehension.

Trip Price Detail:    $3800, including all nights during the program at the Kathmandu Hotel with breakfasts; welcome and farewell dinners  in town:  guest-house stays and all meals on the trail; all ground transport including airport transfers;  guides and porters for the day tours near Kathmandu and for the trek;  flights to and from Lukla; costs for lodging and food on the two backup days for weather if they are required; and all entrance fees to Sagarmatha National Park and the UNESCO sites near Kathmandu.   Expenses NOT included (~$2550-2800) are international flights (~$1900), 3 lunches and up to 4 dinners in town ($150-200) before or after the trek including arrival and departure days, any drinks other than water or tea at our included dinners including the guest houses (up to $60-100 depending on the drink), extra snacks at the guest houses (up to $60) any personal items, Cancel for Any Reason travel insurance ($300-500), and the cost of a Nepal Tourist Visa ($50 for 30 days visa). 

Registration Instructions:   The first step is for any interested person to submit the trip application at the button below.  Spots on the roster will begin to be awarded beginning March 30, 2025, and will be based on qualifications and references and not on the date of application.  Payment of the 50% deposit is required to get a spot on the roster, and roster spots cannot be held without payment of the deposit.  Once registered, we ask that you also submit the Trip Agreement and the Liability Release forms, also at the buttons below.   (The Supplemental Information form will be requested a few weeks before our departure.)

APPLICATION

TRIP AGREEMENT

RELEASE

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION

Cancellation Policy:    If you cancel your trip more than 60 days prior to departure, or if we are able to secure someone to take your place on the roster, you will be entitled to a refund of your deposit less a $100 administration fee.  If you cancel between 46 to 60 days prior to departure, you are entitled to a refund of your payment up to that time less $1500. If you cancel your trip between 31 to 45 days prior to departure, you are entitled to a refund of your payment up to that time less $2000. If you cancel your trip less than 30 days time, you are not entitled to a refund unless we can secure someone to take your place on the roster (in which case you will receive a full refund less a $100 administration fee).  You are directly responsible for any fees and terms of the airlines that you book your flight tickets with.

Participants are asked to fly into Kathmandu airport to arrive no later than Sunday October 12th, 2025, and will be encouraged to arrive at a similar time to simplify airport transfers into town (some flights require 2 days so departure could be as early as October 10).  At the end of the trip, we will be transferred to the Kathmandu airport to depart no earlier than Monday November 3rd, 2025, again encouraged to depart at similar times to simplify transfers (departure time guidance will be coordinated later).   The international flight options into and out of Kathmandu (which are at the participants’ own expense) connect through a number of cities including Istanbul, Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai and Doha, and require a minimum of 20+ hours each way.  The flights to and from Lukla airport are included in the trip price.