Departure, Travel & Arrival in Kathmandu

The day I was leaving for Nepal was very busy. I had so many last minute things to do, mostly tech. Charging batteries, getting my new laptop installed, getting my Go Pro set up, and packing all my gear.

At 4:30pm, I met the airport transfer driver and said a sad farewell to Kay, the kids and my dear mother. Rosa my daughter was holding on to my leg and would not let go, which was unusual for her. George gave me a massive cuddle. Kay had a kiss and big hug goodbye, and Mother too.

I was a little nervous when the driver said it was a 1 hour 50 min journey to London Heathrow airport, as normally it’s about 1 hour 15mins. When I got to the airport I was also worried my bags were significantly over weight. I had paid for 40kg, but they felt heavier. Online check-in advised it was an extra £200 for 5kg! I was very nervous when checking in, but the weigher LCD was not working and the guy put it through. I took out the Withings bodyscan scales and the Star Link as they said no electronics. I tried to find my camera microphone but could not find it so left it in the bag. My Garmin was also in the hold bag too. I hope they will be ok.

One of my bags was fine, and went through, but they said the other one was oversized. They told me to take it to the side of the check-in desks and I left it next to another bag. An airport worker came along, and I put the bag on a trolley next to him, assuming he was going to take the bags and put them through.

Everything went smoothly and the flight took off on time, and I managed to sleep on and off for most of the journey to Mumbai, which took around 9 and a half hours.

We landed in the morning, and we were rushed through security at Mumbai to get the 11:10 flight from Mumbai to KTM. We only just made the flight, and I am sure they delayed our flight as quite a lot of people were doing the same transit. We took off around 30-40 minutes late.

The flight to KTM took a couple of hours and it was very surprising not to see the airport was busier. I had printed my VISA on arrival form, but when I went to the pay desk at the airport, they said it was the wrong version of the form as it did not have the airport name on it. I queued at the kiosk to get the right form. The printers were not working on the kiosk so everyone was taking a photo. Back to the cash desk to pay the $120 visa fee for 60 days.

Getting through security and passport control was quick as the airport was not too busy, which was very different from when I arrived in November 2024 and it was incredibly busy. I got my Airalo sim working, and got internet. I went to Find My on my phone and had a gut wrenching moment to see that one of my iTags was at KTM, and the other at LHR. My bag came through and surprisingly it was the bag with my Garmin InReach in it. I went to the service desk, and they asked me a few questions. My oversized bag did not have any electricals, although they kept asking me if I had a power bank in the bag (which I did not). They filled out some information and then shared me a number. While I was at the counter, another lady came up, and she was on the same flight. She asked me if my bag was oversized, and I said yes, and she said the same thing happened to her. We were both in the same situation – bags stuck at Heathrow. We exchanged numbers so we could keep in touch.

I went through the airport, and met the Summit Climb guy who took me to a minibus taxi, and we drove to the Harati Manor Inn in Thamel. The journey took about 30 minutes and when I arrived, I was warmly greeted by Geljen sherpa. It was great to see him, and we had a big hug.

After checking in and meeting Deha, one of the Summit Climb team who also runs a school in KTM, he called the airport to get more information.

Geljen took my bag up to the room, I unpacked, and then met with Kiran, a local who had been helping me get the drone permit. Kiran was great, friendly, and incredibly helpful.

Geljen, Kiran, Raj, Pemba and myself went to the Gauri Trekking shop to get some gear that I needed. That included an 8000m down suit and a -40 sleeping bag. I decided to buy the downsuit which was second-hand and cost $300 USD. I wanted to stich some patches on the suit and a Union Flag on the arm. After getting the equipment and kit, we went to the stitching shop tucked down a narrow side-road, and dropped the down suit.

After heading back to the hotel, Geljen left with Raj, and Kiran and myself went to get food in Thamel. There are plenty of places to eat in Thamel, and it’s a very bustling, busy and chaotic city. Motorbikes, cars, and scooters fly at you from all directions and you need eyes in the back of your head. After food, I headed back to the hotel, did some admin and struggled to get off to sleep, finally sleeping around 1:30am or 2am as I was still a few hours early on London time.