Lhotse South face Expedition

Once you arrive at Tribhuwan Airport, our team will escort you to our hotel at Thamel. You can relax there or explore the city. Our guide will arrive in the evening to discuss and prepare you for your trip of Lhotse Expedition. 

In these 2 days, we will make the final preparations and arrangements for your journey. You will meet your team, guides and Sherpa and complete the government formalities like Expedition Permit, National Park permits and related documentation. Our team will beief you about the climb to Lhotse from South Face.

We start our Lhotse Expedition with a domestic flight to Lukla of about 35 mins. Established between a cliff and a hill with a short landing strip, Lukla Airport (Tenzing-Hillary Airport) is known as one of the most dangerous airports in the world. We will then trek to Phakding (8km) which will take 3-4 hours.

There are many cultural villages and you can view gorgeous Mount Khumbila and Mount Kusum Kangraru along the way. We will stay overnight at Phakding.

On the 5th day of our Expedition, we will trek up to Namche Bazar along the Dudh Koshi River. There are pine forests and several suspension bridges in the path we cross. We will also get to see the gateway of Sagarmatha National Park in Monjo. We will get our permits there and climb to Namche Bazar and stay there overnight. This trek will be 10 km and will take up to 5 hours.

Acclimatization day is a day to rest and to let our bodies adapt to the surrounding. Namche Bazar is the main trading center for the high Himalayas. There are a lot of cafes and restaurants there and the market is very lively and has a harmonious atmosphere. There is internet access and also has facilities of the hospital, post office, and health post. There will be a short hike to explore the nearby villages as well.

On day 7, we will head to Deboche. This trial will go along the glacial of the Dudh Koshi River and extends to 11 km and will take 5/6 hrs. However, it gives a spectacular view of Mount Everest, Mt Ama Dablam, Mt Nuptse, and numerous other mountains.

The path goes along the forest of beautiful blooming Rhododendron to Sanasa. When we arrive Sanasa we will reach a junction point which leads us to either Gokyo Valley or the Everest Base Camp. We take the second route and climb up the Tengboche Monastery and visit. This Monastery celebrates a 19 days colourful festival called Mani Rimdu in October or November. Witnessing this celebration will be an amazing experience. We will reach Deboche and spend the night there in a lodge.

Day 8 of our Lhotse Expedition will be a trek of 11 km which takes up to 6 hours. We descend to Imja River and then trek uphill to dense forest to the village of Pangboche. And walking past the steep Pheriche to the Lobuche River, we climb a steep hill and finally reach Dingboche also known as the Summer Valley of Khumbu region. We can see exotic views of Mt Makalu, Imja River and open savannahs. Not to mention the fields of buckwheat, barley, and potatoes. We will rest the night in Dingboche.

Day 9 is to rest and let your body adapt to the weather and surrounding. There are local villages that you can visit and get deeper insights into the culture and the lifestyles of the Sherpas. We will also go on a hike to Chukung village and even climb Chukung Ri if you want. It has a pheno

On day 10 of Lhotse Expedition, we will take a trek from Dingboche to Chukung which is located close to Island Peak. The route to Chukung has beautiful sceneries of the Himalayas. We will stay in a lodge for the night.

Day 11 of the Lhotse Expedition gets rougher as the trail has boulders and Glacier Rivers. We progress across through Lhotse glacier and arrive at the Base Camp for Island Peak which has a magnificent view of the Island Peak. We will spend the night and rest at the Base Camp.

Day 12 will be for giving you training for pre climbing by our team. Mountain climbing techniques, using climbing tools and gears like ascender, harness, etc properly. You will also receive training on how to use ropes during our climb and what safety measures to take. For practice sessions, you can climb up to High camp and then back to base Camp. We will rest the night in the Island peak base camp.

Our Day 13 target of Lhotse South Expedition is to climb the top of Island Peak. We will start the journey early morning. The route is moderate at first but has a steep hillside as you reach near the peak. The surrounding of the trail frequently changes and the views are amazing but the scenery from the peak is something you will experience as breathtaking. As you advance through the glaciers with the help of ropes, the temperature drops.

The weather during the afternoon can be risky so we advance to reach the summit before noon.  Once you reach the top, you will be able to see an astounding view of the gracious white snow-capped mountains like Mt Nuptse, Mt Lhotse, Makalu, Ama Dablam, and Mt Baruntse.

During these days, our first target is to trek to Lhotse Base Camp. The trek will start early morning as we have to cover about 10 km and will take 5 hours. The trek is much safer during early morning and you can also see the views of snow surrounding you everywhere as well as mount Pumori, Nuptse and Lola. Lhotse Base Camp is located 5,200 m from sea level. 

Preparation of the route is a long task, requiring fixing of ropes up difficult steep terrain, exposed to rockfall and avalanche danger. Our team will guide you throughout the entire journey of expedition from preparation to the summit. 

We will be staying at Lhotse Base camp for 10 days. These 10 days will be for your training and acclimatisation. You will be given training by our staff on how to climb and use tools and gears like ascender, harness, etc. Trainings on how to use ropes, and safety gears will be given along and you can also have practice sessions.  

Base Camp to Camp I is mixed climb of about 750 meters climbing route with few steep covered with snow, ice and rocky walls. On day 27 of Lhotse South Expedition, we will trek up to Camp I. Climbing up to Camp I can be hard because of your first day climbing experience from Lhotse south face.

 So the ascend will take place early. This will be just an attempt as to make you familiar with the routes and the difficulties so that you are well prepared for the final time.  We will stay overnight at Camp I.

On Day 29, we will stay at the base camp. This day will be your rest period as well as training. We will also prepare for the trek to Camp I. 

We will start our trek early in the morning and head for Camp I. This time the path will be more familiar and it will be easier. After about 5 hours you will reach to Camp I. We will stay there for 2 days. These days are for your rest and acclimatisation and  from the camp I you will get to enjoy a beautiful view of the surrounding and the mountains as you prepare to ascend Camp II.

On day 32, we will climb up to Camp II which is located at the bottom of West ridge. You pass the gorge and reach Lhotse Camp II after climbing about 1,300m in 9-10 hours. You will get to see a magnificent view of the Lhotse. We will stay here for 2 days for letting your body adapt to the surrounding and get rest before climbing up to Camp III. Most climbers feel most interesting climbing to Camp II with through the route accompanied by the big steep faces of Lhotse walls.

We start our Day 34 with trek to Camp III which may be difficult for some climbers because of the effects of high altitude. The climb to Camp III mostly uses ropes as the steeps are ranged from 30 to 45 degrees. We will rest there for the night and the following day. This climb was an attempt climb so that your body adapts to the surrounding and to be more familiarise with the route.

On day 36, we climb down back to Camp I and rest there for the night.

With an early start of the day we descend to Lhotse Base camp along the same route. We will stay in the base camp for 2 days as rest.

We will climb up to Camp I today. The climb will start early in the morning. Once we reach Camp I we will stay there overnight. 

On day 42, we will make our way up to Camp II. We will rest there for the night.

Our target on day 43 will be to climb up to Camp III, those climbers who felt uneasy the first time may feel better now as their body will have adapted. After a difficult climb up to Camp III we will rest. We spend the next day there too for rest.

On our day 45 of Lhotse South face Expedition , we will ascend to Camp IV which is located at 7,900 m. The face raises at 40-45 degrees and will take about 8 hours climb. This is the last camp and closer to our destination. We will rest there and prepare for the final ascend.

Our final ascend of Lhotse South face Expedition will take place on day 46. It is a 10 hours climb. Since the weather is not constant in the afternoon, we start our climb at 12:00 AM. The climb will be very difficult and our climbing Sherpa and climbing guides will take you through safe routes. While climbing up to the summit, we will come across steeps that ranges from 40-45 degrees and sometimes an 80 degree bulge. So you need to be very careful.  

The climb is difficult and tiring but once you reach the top, it will be worth the hard work. You will get to see the panoramic view of Mount Everest (8,848.86 m), Ama Dablam (6,856 m), Nuptse (7,879m), the South Col and snow covered region for as far as you can see.After resting a while we will start to descend back to Camp II as soon as possible. The wind and weather can be very rough and unpredictable in the afternoon. We will stay at Camp II and rest there for the night.

On day 47 of Lhotse South face Expedition, our goal for the day is to climb back down to Base camp early morning. We will stay in the Base Camp.

After the tiring ascends and descends, we will rest in the base camp for 3 days. We will spend the day mostly resting and packing and cleaning the camp site. You can also explore the nearby regions.

We are ready to descend down after having enough rest. The trek will cover almost 14 km but It won’t be such a hard trek. You can see Imja River and the dense pine forest of Pangboche. It will take 7 hours to reach Tengboche. We will stay the night in Tengboche.

Our Day 52 will also be long trek down from Tengboche to Namche Bazar. We will cover 14 to 15 km this day. As you trek down you can enjoy the view of the Bazar and the Himalayas surrounding the Bazar. Walking past the Tengboche and Sansa, we will reach Namche Bazar after 7 hours. You can rest there and we will stay the in Namche overnight. 

The decline from Namche Bazar will be about 8 hours long covering about 17 or 18 km. We will trek the same downward steep to the checkpoint of Sagarmatha National park. Then after crossing suspension bridges and Phakding we will reach Lukla and rest there for the night. And prepare for the flight back to Kathmandu.

Due to the weather, there will be an early flight to Kathmandu. It will take about a 45 mins domestic flight. Once we reach there we will take you to your hotel Thamel Eco Resort. You are welcome to rest and maybe later take a tour of the city. 

This is an extra day for you to get to travel and explore the city. There are many places you can visit be it cafes, pubs, spas, restaurants, museums, art galleries and so on. You can also visit the historical and cultural site like the Kathmandu Durbar square, Patan Durbar Square, Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Swayambhu, Pashupati Nath and so on.  

This is your departure day. One of Makalu Adventure staff will take you to the airport for your flight. We hope you enjoyed this journey and took in memories that will be exciting and thrilling to remember and share with your loved ones.