Our first peak climb started early with tea at 4:45AM. The day was breaking fast with a full moon hovering over the mountains and lake- very beautiful and quiet. The climb up Gokyo Ri was relentless, and the group was put to their first real test. We slowly climbed up and up on a rough track that snaked up the mountain.
After 2 ½ hours of climbing, part of our team reached the summit and waited for everyone to regroup. We stayed about half an hour (good for acclimatization), taking photos, eating chocolate, drinking water and then started down the same route. Whilst the relief of not having bursting lungs is immense it is still incredibly hard on your legs and joints as you try to avoid slipping and stumbling on the rocks and loose earth. It took another hour and a quarter to get back down. The plan had been to move on to our next lodge, but we decided to stay another night to allow for more recovery.
(Thanks to Lottie for the details of the report)