Day 19 -- October 16 => Dingboche to Dughla

Tawoche (6542m/21,463') and Cholatse (6440m/21,129')

Leaving our campsite in Dingboche sometime after 8am, we ascended for about 15 minutes to a chorten. Here we got excellent views of the south and southwest faces of Tawoche and Cholatse. Below us was Pheriche (4243m/13,920') which I never travelled through during the trek. There is an excellent health post in Pheriche and unfortunately for some members of our group, they would have to make a stop there a day or two later. You could also see Makalu, the world's 5th highest, from this vantage point but the sun's position at this time of morning did not make for good pictures.

Lobuche East (6119m/20,075')

Once past the chorten, much of the way to Dughla was over a gradually rising barren landscape. Impressive views of Taboche, Cholatse, Awi Peak (5245m/17,208'), Lobuche East (a trekking peak) and occasionally the very top of Pumori (7145m/23,442') would provide distractions. I did see one woman on a horse going back towards Dingboche or Pheriche. If you see a Westerner on a horse out here, it usually means they are off to the nearest health facility. A horse costs $100 USD/day to rent -- much cheaper than a helicopter ride though.

About 20 minutes from Dughla, the trail descends to cross a stream feeding into the Lobuche Khola. Then, another ten minutes back up to our campsite at one of the two lodges in Dughla (4620m/15,158'), arriving just after 11 am. Dughla is also known as Tuglha, which was on the map I had.

Awi Peak (5245m/17,208') and Cholatsho (lake)

After some juice and a brief rest, a group of us headed up to a ridge above Dughla for the views and a bit more acclimitization exercise. A 1/2 hour of strenuous hiking brought us to the top of the ridge and views of the Cholatsho, a lake below Cholatse and the Chola glacier on Tawoche. On the east shore of the lake, I could see a trail heading up between Cholatse and Awi Peak. The map shows it going up to Chola la (5420m/17,782') before dropping down to the Gokyo Valley.

After about 45 minutes of enjoying the views, we headed back down to camp for lunch.

Nuptse (?) from ridge above Dughla

My first serious problems with altitude emerged this afternoon. A headache intensified during the afternoon accompanied by nausea. After talking to Chris, I took 250mg of Diamox and took it easy for the next few hours until dinner. I also drank about 1 liter of water in one hour. By the time dinner was ready at 6pm, the headache had decreased to a more tolerable level. By bedtime, I was feeling better although a moderate headache persisted. In retrospect, I think I had ascended to the ridge above Dughla much too quickly. I had felt pretty good earlier when I first arrived in Dughla.

The moon was almost full at this point, and in between cloudy periods, the moonlight reflecting off Taboche and Chalotse was spectacular.

Day 18 - Dingboche acclimitization Day 20 - Dughla to Lobuche

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Created: December 22, 2002