Ama Dablam Expedition 2022, Nepal (6812m)
Hello, I am Akarsh Goel from Punjab, India. A nature & mountain enthusiast, and trekker, who loves working out and handling family business. This October I took a daunting challenge to climb 2 beautiful mountains and one of them was a highly technical/difficult as people said.
It is a mountain in the eastern Himalayan range in Khumbu, Nepal. It is considered one of the most beautiful and technical mountains. Living near the mountain Sherpa people and the Tibetans are also fascinated by its beauty and it was them who gave it the name Ama Dablam which in translation means “Mother’s jewel”.
With an elevation of 6812m/22350ft, the mountain has a quite difficult terrain.
Though the peak is not high as Everest, it is often done by extreme enthusiasts. The way up is difficult and leads through steep ice and rock South-West Ridge.
No matter how beautiful it is, it demands strength and endurance. It is often said that Many people who even climbed Mount Everest struggle to climb Ama Dablam due to its steep and difficult terrain.
One has to master the skill of ice climbing, extreme weather, and high altitudes. It requires technical climbing skills. Every climber must practice breathing, and strong cardiovascular, walk with a heavy backpack a few miles 4-5 times a week and generally strengthen their muscles.
The one-month-long expedition had an international team of 7 members. All members with their sherpas started the trek from Kathmandu, Nepal. Here is my complete itinerary and experience which may be helpful for future climbers.
Day 1 Fly to Lukla | Trek to Phakding
We drove to Ramechhap Airport which took around 5 hours starting at 2 am. Due to bad weather, the flights were delayed by more than 6 hours and finally, I reached Lukla at 2 in the noon. It was only 20 mins flight. Lukla airport is considered the World’s most dangerous airport. After having lunch and some rest, we started the trek to Phakding which took around 2 hours. Stayed overnight here at an altitude of 2610m.
Day 2 Phakding to Namche Bazaar
Started trekking to Namche Bazzar at around 9. Today we gained an altitude of more than 1000m and the trail is quite steep and tiring at the last stretch. It takes around 4 hours to reach Namche. Altitude of Namche Bazaar is 3440m.
Day 3 Acclimatization day
Took an acclimatization hike to Tenjing Norgay memorial and then to Everest view hotel for clear views of Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam. Enjoyed a pot of Organic coffee with mesmerising views of these majestic mountains. Everest View hotel is situated at 3960m.
Day 4 Namche Bazaar to Pangboche
Started early around 8. It’s a long day with a steep trail and an altitude gain of around 550m. We had our lunch at a teahouse on the way and took 5-6 hours to reach Pangboche (3985m). We stopped at the Tengboche monastery which comes 2 hr before Pangboche.
Day 5 Pangboche to Chukung
Me and 2 other members wanted to climb Island Peak/Imja Tse 6150m as an acclimatization before climbing Ama Dablam so we went straight to Chukung (the next village to Dingboche) and the other 4 people went to Ama Dablam Base Camp. We had heavy packs today due to climbing gear and it took 4-5 hrs and gained an altitude of 750m. The temperature here was sub-zero. It was the first time we felt really cold since the trek started. We stayed overnight.
Day 6-7 Chukung to Island Peak Base Camp
Started around 9 and took 2 hours to get to Base camp reaching an altitude of 5100m. The base camp was pretty basic, had a couple of tents for sleeping, a kitchen tent and a dining tent. We had 1:1 tents so it was quite spacious for us and kept all the gear. Any liquid kept open got frozen and it snowed that night. Generally, people go for the summit the same day they arrive at BC but we were on the trail for many days without rest so we decided to take 1-day rest and go for the summit by midnight of the next day. We had some practice using fixed ropes, Jumar and rappelling. Just for perspective, our dinner was 5 pm and sleep time around 7. It used to get pretty dark outside by 6.
Day 8 Summit Push
We awake up at 11 pm, had some meal and geared up. We left at 12:30 midnight from BC in normal trekking shoes and carry the climbing equipment in our packs. It was a long, continuous and rocky steep hike to a point called Crampon point. Here we put on our big boots and crampons as the rocky terrain ends. It’s around 60 mins walk to the ice wall which leads to the summit ridge. By this time, the sun started to rise in the background with beautiful hues visible in the sky. The actual ice wall climb started at a gradient of 40-50 degrees. After 2 hours of climb, I found myself on the narrow summit ridge. I reached the summit at 8:30 am on 21 Oct 2022.
There were around 10 more people on the summit when I reached. I spent 30 mins to take photos, and videos and enjoyed the serene views of the surrounding peaks. Started the descent, it was a long, loose slippery trail with slate slabs after the crampon point. Reached BC at 12:30 noon, took some rest and started the trekking to Chukung. I reached Chukung in the dark as the pace was affected by exhaustion secondly, I hadn’t eaten any solid food for the past 48 hours as the food at our BC was terrible so I survived on water and BCCAs. To acclimatise, I used to drink atleast 4L of water every day.
Day 9 Chukung to Pangboche
We decided to take a rest at a lower altitude to recover before heading to Ama Dablam Base camp so we trekked to Pangboche which took around 4 hours. Had a hot shower, good food and rested well.
Day 10-14 Pangboche to Ama Dablam BC 4600m
We went to a nearby Monastery for the Puja ceremony which took around 2 hours. Then had breakfast and left for BC. It took around 2 hours and 15 mins to reach and the terrain had a gentle slope all the way. Our operator had arranged a lodge instead of a tent which was a great decision as it was warm and comfortable and you sleep in rooms and soft beds. We checked the weather hence we had to wait for the next 4 days to leave for the Summit push. We did the training, rested and ate well. Occasionally we went for stroll to the actual Basecamp which was around 15 mins away from our lodge.
Day 15 BC to Camp 1 5700m
We geared up, had breakfast and packed lunch. Did a quick puja ceremony and left for camp 1 around 10:30 am. The route to camp 1 is long, has a lot of gain in altitude and takes around 4-5 hours. Just below camp 1, there is a big boulder section which takes roughly 60 mins. Camp 1 is fairly big and accommodates around 20-25 tents. We settled in our tents and our sherpas brought snow from nearby, we then melted it for water and prepared soup, and noodles for dinner.
We used sleeping bags here, in the lodge we didn’t have to use the sleeping bag as there were blankets but it’s a personal choice. We left our sleeping bag and other unnecessary stuff at C1.
Day 16 Camp 1 to Camp 2 6100m
Camp 1 to Camp 2 is mostly rocky, boulder section. Now we were using our harness and fixed rope line as we were climbing rocks and walking on narrow ledges to move forward, there were thousands of feet of drop on either side so putting safety at all times was necessary. The views throughout the day were unreal as you see clouds beneath you and standing tall above surrounding mountains such as Mount Taboche. The final crux of this day was the Yellow tower which is a 90-degree vertical rock climb. We had to wait for 90 minutes as there was only 1 rope and we waited for other climbers to come down so we could go up the tower. It was a bit challenging to climb with the heavy packs. Once we were over it, it took 5-10 mins to settle in our tents.
Camp 2 is a very narrow and steep place which can only accommodate 5-7 tents so it’s very hard to sleep and rest. It’s so small that you have to put on the safety to move around the tents. We didn’t bring a sleeping bag to reduce weight so changed into Down Suits, melted some snow and ate a quick meal. Due to a shortage of tents and the steep terrain, there were 4 members in our tent. We rested for 2-3 hours but couldn’t sleep. Got up at 10 pm, packed our bags and only carried the stuff which was crucial for reaching the summit like different pairs of gloves, socks, batteries, energy bars and so on.
We had some tea/soup and got ready to leave for the summit push. It was 11 pm and we left C2.
Day 17 Camp 2 to Summit
The whole climb was done in the dark so we didn’t see much of the route while going up. The route was steep, mostly ice climbing using Jumar and fixed rope line. There were 2-3 section patches of rock climb where I struggled as crampons don’t provide grip on the rocks. No worries, I was able to overcome all such sections without much trouble. We rested for small intervals and finally reached Camp 3 around 4:30 am. We stopped at Camp 3 for 30 mins, drank hot water, ate bars and laid down using our bags as pillow support. When we left, it was a beautiful sky to look at, the sun was about to rise. It took around 3 hours to climb the Ice wall above camp 3 then we reached a flat surface.
Above camp 3, the winds got a little stronger and I was feeling cold in my hands. I was scared to take off the gloves just for a second as some days ago 2 members of our group had suffered minor frostbite during a summit push. Moreover, we encountered snowballs coming flying to us from all above. Some of them hit me but not severely, we just braced and hoped to get hit on our helmets. Unfortunately, a fellow climber from our group got badly hit on his thigh by a huge chunk of snow just above camp 3. He tried and couldn’t move so he was rescued by heli to Kathmandu. We crossed many difficult sections such as Grey Couloir and Mushroom Ridge.
Now we had to climb another steep ice wall for roughly 2 hours to reach the summit. There were 2 crevaces but not very deep and at an angle so we were pretty much safe from them. Finally, we reached the summit of Ama Dablam 6812m/22350ft at 10:35 AM with views of Mount Everest, Lhotse, Island Peak and many such peaks in the background. It was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of moment; pure joy and a sense of accomplishment. Spent 20-30 mins and had to descend back due to strong winds. The temperature was -25 to -30 degrees C and winds blew at around 50-70 km/hour.
We had to rappel down to Camp 2 which took 7-8 hours, it got dark when I reached camp 2 exhausted yet happy. As I mentioned earlier, there was a shortage of tents at camp 2, we didn’t get a tent and had to wait in open for 3 hours sitting in strong winds and no real food/drink. There was a kind sherpa who managed to get a tent from a group leaving for the summit that night and he offered me and my sherpa to stay with them. So we were again 4 people in one tent. We just had tea and tried to sleep. At least it was better than sitting outside on the rocks the whole night. It’s not possible to go camp 1 during the dark as it’s technical and difficult hence dangerous. Important to note that, everyone had to rappel down for most of the part from Summit to Camp 1.
Day 18 Camp 2 to BC
It was a bit of relaxed sleep and finally, the job was done. Now, we wanted to reach Base camp asap and recover at a lower altitude. We left camp 2, and going to camp 1 was no simple task. We had to rappel and climb down for roughly 4 hours. Upon reaching Camp 1, we took off the harness and took short rest. Gathered the stuff which we had left 2 nights ago then left for BC. Below camp 1, there is a bit tricky boulder section which takes around 45 mins to cross then it’s quite simple, just hike down the trail for 3-4 hours. We reached the BC by 6 in the evening with heavy packs and a feeling of relief and joy. I ordered a big dinner as we didn’t have real meals in 4 days. We celebrated with a cake and called it a day.
Climbing down Camp 2 Ama Dablam Akarsh Goel
Day 19-20 BC to Namche
Took around 7 hours and 25 km of hiking down with mixed up and down gradient. Took a rest day at Namche and explored cafes and amazing restaurants. Bought some souvenirs to take back home. Honestly, everything at Namche is expensive due to logistics costs so you can buy similar stuff at Kathmandu at much lower rates. Just try to control the temptations.
Day 21-22 Namche to Lukla
Again it’s a long day with 25 km of trekking. We descend to Phakding and then gently ascend from Phakding to Lukla. We had to stay one extra day at Lukla as didn’t get last-minute tickets to fly back. We roamed around; found a restaurant and enjoyed the whole day there with good food and scenic mountain views.
Trail from Namche bazaar to Phakding Nepal
Day 23 Lukla to Kathmandu
My flight was early morning 6:45 and as usual at Lukla, you shouldn’t expect it. I had to wait 2 hours for 20 mins flight to Ramechhap. These both airports are not organised properly sometimes people had to wait whole day, stay overnight and catch the flight the next day due to the weather and all. I had to wait for my fellow climbers coming on different flights and we left at 1 pm for Kathmandu. It took 5 hours to reach.
For the next couple of days, we explored Thamel and Kathmandu. Found many restaurants, bought tons of gifts for family and a masterpiece painting of Ama Dablam. Visited local heritage templates and met many amazing people from around the globe. It was an overall once-in-a-lifetime experience. Thoroughly enjoyed and pushed my limits, and did some things which people call crazy and impossible.
This mighty mountain has not been summited by many people in India. Even No one from Punjab has summitted this mountain to date, making me the first person to climb the Ama Dablam from Punjab (First Punjabi to climb Ama Dablam). Before attempting this climb many people told me this was crazy and impossible for me to do as my first mountain. I’d like to say if you work/train for it and have confidence in yourself, no one else should what’s possible or impossible for an individual because with a strong mindset big things can be achieved.
Get connected with me:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/akarshgoel_/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008640730069
