Phakding to Namche Bazaar

I woke up feeling rough today, having had trouble getting off to sleep, and with a mild headache. My Withings smart watch said I got 5 hours 42 which is definitely not enough. We ate breakfast around 8am and then left the tea house at 9am to go to Namche Bazaar. I felt weak walking in the morning, and tired.

At around 10:30am, Geljen and Raj stopped for lunch. I had a pancake, a lemon honey and ginger tea, and then lay down on the bench and had a sleep for probably 30 minutes while waiting for them to get Dal Bhat.

After I woke up, I felt a lot better, and my energy levels were higher. We trekked to the famous Hiliary bridge (there are two bridges, the older lower one, and above it the higher and longer newer bridge). Walking across it was very cool, and the views were excellent. It was high up when you look down into a valley.

From the Hilary Bridge, we had a 1 hour 30 minute hike completely uphill to get to Namche Bazaar. It was a tough hike, and a lot of people were going slowly, clearly exhausted. We stopped around half-way for a pee stop and a 5-min rest, and then continued up unto the Namche check-point, not far outside the town.

We arrived after 5 hours 35 minutes (including lunch and stops) at Namche Bazaar. Apart from a headache 1/10 I felt quite good. We checked into the Hill Top Lodge, right at top of Namche, and I sat down to transfer some videos and photos. My headache got worse, around a 2/10, so I took two paracetamol.

Most people spend a rest day in Namche, but my plan is to move on to Pangboche tomorrow and get higher. I don’t feel the need to stay in Namche. I’d rather spend more time in Dingboche in a couple of days.

Stats
Weight: 70.5kg
Fat 15.1%
Muscle 80.6%
Visceral Fat 2.5
Resting hear rate 61
Nerve health 88
Sp02 91%
Altitude 3520m