Thursday, November 12, 2009

Day 8 (25 Oct, Sunday) Dingboche to Loboche - 4930m

Today, we trekked from Dingboche to Loboche (4930m), gaining around 500m elevation.
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Morning View
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Price of items in the mountain:
1 Roll of Toilet Paper = 150NRps (S$3)
1 bottle of 1-litre water = 200 NRps (S$4) - I bought 4 bottles yesterday
1 hour of battery charging = 300 NRps (S$6)
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These items were not from my medical box, they were found in my bag as I needed them on a daily basis.
Lip Balm
Moisturizer
Hand Sanitizer
Water Purification Pill
Bo-Chee-Wan for Diarrhea
5-pagoda poweder for Diarrhea too
Anti-Inflammation Pills for Sore throat
Difflam Lozenges for Sore Throat
Diamox for Headache (aka AMS)
Clarinase for Running Nose
Cod Liver Oil Supplement
Vitamin C Supplement
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I know there are lotsa items, but I was trying my best to keep my body healthy
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Frozen River in the morning
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Awesome View!
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Stone Hut
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JeeBan (our cool porter) was chilling and waiting for us.
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Lunch Area
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I was getting worried when I experienced mild headache again @ the lunch area. I was already taking two tablets of 250mg of Diamox daily (the recommended dosage is 1 tablet). To prevent the AMS from getting worse, I decided to increase my dosage to 3 tablets.
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Guess What?
3 tablets is the recommended dosage for people suffering from High Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE) or High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE) . These 2 are serious life-threatening conditions.
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But I really wanted to make sure that I do not suffer from AMS.
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Great View
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Prayer Flags @ Everest Memorial
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Beautiful Memorial Area
There are lotsa Chortens erected to remember those who died in this beautiful yet harsh environment.

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Trevor Eric Stokol
(23 Dec 1979 - 22 Jul 2005)
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This Chorten left a lasting impression for me, because we are about the same age.
I was wondering what happened to him until I found this on the web:
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Beautiful, yet Solemn
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Each Chorten represents someone who died here
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This might be the World Highest Memorial Area
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I was abit sadden to see the Chorten, and kept asking myself why do people climb Mt Everest?
Why do people jeopardise their own lives?
Is it for Pride?
Is it for Glory?
Is it for Ego?
Is is because it is there?
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Nuptse  (7879m)
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Trekking towards Loboche (4930m)
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Nuptse (7879m)
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Resting...
As you can see, there are no more animals or plants at this elevation.
There are no more villages, and anybody who is sane will not live here.
Loboche town existed primarily for trekking tourists like me.
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After-sunset View of Nuptse from the teahouse.
It was only 5pm, but it was freezing outside.
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Unfortunately, despite taking 3 tablets of Diamox, I was still suffering from Mild Headache, and I rarely suffer from headache when I was back home. I had to make a decision if I should go ahead with the final ascend to Kala Patthar (5545m) tomorrow. At the dinner table, I told my guide and friends that I would not go ahead if I have headache the next day. But deep inside, I really wanted to join them.
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If it is just physical challenge, I would definitely push myself ahead.
However, this AMS could potentially affect my health and put my life in jeopardy.
I asked myself:
What will happen if I push ahead even though I have headache?
 What if my condition worsen, would Diamox help since I have taken over the recommended dosage already?
Would I need an emergency evacuation?
Can the helicopter land around here?
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And the most important question:
Am I being responsible to my parents if anything happens to me?

1 comment:

  1. I hv a feeling that those chorten were erected there for a reason; not somewhere else more accessible but in the vast beauty to remind climbers that there's always a price to pay. And if u were so fortunate to escape unscathed then be grateful u'd live another day. For if I were to scale Everest and risk my life so close to oblivion, I would do so if only to remind myself how nice it is to be alive! Just a personal feeling ... :P

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