In 2011, an Embark group climbed Imja Tse, also known as Island Peak, a 20,305-foot Himalayan “trekking peak.” This doesn’t mean it’s a strict “walk-up,” but it is a challenging but safe summit that can be climbed in just five days. It has a reputation for attracting beginner and expert climbers alike.
Our very own Jim Ronning shot a 360-degree panorama from the summit of Island Peak, so here it is for inspiration. If you love trekking and climbing — if you want to visit Everest Base Camp and climb a Himalayan peak on the same trip — consider climbing Island Peak.
In 2011 Embark led a climb of Island Peak, or Imja Tse, in Nepal. Here, trip leader Jim Ronning narrates a spectacular photo display from the climb. This is what being in the Himalayas is all about.
Trek to the doorstep of the world’s highest mountain in what is arguably the highlight of any journey to Mt Everest. This 25 day outing will take us to the exotic and chaotic Kathmandu, and from there, on a strenuous and challenging exploration of Nepal’s magical Khumbu region, allowing for close-up views of dozens of Himalayan Giants as we ascend Island Peak, a 6189 meter peak just four miles S. of Mt. Everest.
Sleeping mainly in tea houses along the route, ease into the vibrant Sherpa culture, pose alongside friendly herds of yaks, breathe in the spring aromas of hedgerows and Rhododendrons bursting to life, and run your fingertips through the rush of glacial water as you approach that most illustrious of giants, Mt. Everest.
This outing will not only include a trek through the heart of the famed Khumbu region all the way to Everest Base Camp, but will also include a climb of Island Peak, known to the Sherpas as Imja Tse. At more than 20,300 ft. in elevation, Imja Tse provides unobstructed views of some of the world’s highest mountains, including Everest, Nuptse, Lohtse, the Lohtse Wall, and Makalu.
Costs, exclusive of your international airfare to Kathmandu, will range from $3755 to $3943 depending on party size, and will include all in-country meals and lodging, all trekking, access and climbing permits, and all guides, porters and equipment. Your application must be received by September 30, 2010, and a deposit of $500.00 will be required upon acceptance.
The New York Times has a thorough and stunning account of trekking the world-famous Annapurna Circuit, Last Footfall in Nepal, as well as an update on the plans to build a road in place of it by 2012. This harsh reality is something that visiting writer Ethan Todras-Whitehill has no qualms bemoaning; he says it will be considered “the last nail in the coffin of what was once the greatest trek on earth.”
If he’d seen the 150-mile Annapurna Circuit by jeep, Ethan writes, he’d have memories of beauty mid-blur instead of swaying footbridges over thunderous gorges; rocky footpaths jammed with goats, donkeys and water buffalo; terraced rice paddies thrusting green shoots against the olive hillsides; and the low hum of chanting monks seeping out of brightly colored Buddhist monasteries. For an interactive, photo-filled map, click here.
Embark will be disappointed to say the least if cars affect the beauty, culture, and serenity of one of Nepal’s–and the world’s–most epic treks, not just for visitors but the locals, too.
As if Nepal wasn’t mesmerizing enough, the country recently announced it is going rogue, marrying–gasp!–gay couples, according to The New York Times. ‘‘They are high-spending consumers,’’ a spokesman for the Nepal Tourism Board said of gay tourists.
Back in January, the Times predicted this move based on whispers about the world’s most famous base camp: Started by Sunil Babu Pant, an openly-gay legislator, Pink Mountain Travels and Tours promises to marry adventure travel[ers] with gay weddings. With talk that Nepal may legalize same-sex marriage this year as the country hammers out a new constitution (and, perhaps more importantly, deals with recent bouts of civil unrest), Mr. Pant is offering to hold nuptials at the Mount Everest base camp, jungle safari honeymoons and bridal processions on elephant back.
Whether these marriage certificates will be honored once back home depends entirely on where home is, but destination weddings to Nepal are about to become a whole lot more common, and adventure tours of such places as Island Peak and the Annapurna Circuit a whole lot more colorful. Let’s just hope those pride flags don’t clash with the Buddhist prayer flags.
Imja Tse was first climbed in 1953 by a British team as a training exercise in preparation for Everest and is today an insider trekking favorite the world over.
