Day 8 - Hike up to Gokyo
A misty, cold day reminds us that we’re still gaining altitude, as if the frozen lakes and icefalls beside the glacier weren’t clear enough clues!
8 Photographs
1
Noone’s in T-shirts today! The temperature definitely stayed below freezing as the mist danced around us all morning.
2
The valley has become much shallower and narrower this high up, and ice now covers most of the river.
3
A beautiful little icefall flows into the river across the valley.
4
The first of the Gokyo Lakes is covered with a moving layer of ice making a wonderful symphony of creaks and groans. Gokyo Ri is the brown hill on the left, and Cho Oyu is in the center, with clouds still streaming off the summit.
5
The mountains on the far side of the lake echo the deep bass rumbles of the moving ice. Occasionally a crack would suddenly form, followed by a sharp jolt of sound. The harmonies and echos were mesmerizing!
6
Sherpa Dik waits for us as the second Gokyo Lake appears around a bend, signaling that we’re very close to the (tiny) village of Gokyo itself.
7
Just a little bit further in this frozen terrain...
8
...and we finally get to relax in the “sun” room of the lodge in Gokyo. It was even comfortably warm inside until the sun disappeared for the day! (Then the glass provided no insulation at all, and it was time to put the mittens back on.)