Mera Peak Climbing - 17 Days

Upon your arrival at the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, you will be greeted by one of the representatives from Himalayan Trekkers with your nameplate. Then, you will be transferred to your respective hotel in Kathmandu and assisted till your hotel check-in.  After you have freshened up and rested, we will have a short discussion session regarding your Mera Peak Climbing journey.  Then in the evening, we will take a short stroll around Thamel Street and the market. The streets and corners of the city’s biggest commercial neighborhood are filled with different businesses such as hotels, restaurants, travel companies, clubs, bars, pubs, spas, hiking/trekking/climbing gear shops, marts, etc. Though it is a commercial hub, you can see a few temples, stupas, and monuments on each corner. 

After breakfast, your city guide will pick you up at your hotel to start your full-day guided sightseeing of Kathmandu. Our first sightseeing site will be the Buddhist site, Boudhanath Stupa which is the biggest stupa in Nepal and one of the biggest in the world. It was declared one of the seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Kathmandu Valley in 1979. This dome-shaped semicircle stupa with a golden pinnacle and giant Buddha eyes in every direction is believed to house the relics of Lord Buddha. 

After visiting Boudhanath, we will drive to Pashupatinath Temple. It is one of the four most revered Hindu sites in the world. The main temple of Pashupatinath Temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva but non-Hindus are restricted from here. For non-Hindu followers, there are more than a hundred other temples and monuments there to explore. You can also witness the open-air cremation ceremony, interact with the colored Jogi babas, and take pictures of the mischievous monkeys there.

Following the tour, there will be a briefing on the trip, an introduction to the trekking guide, and a last check of the climbing gear for the trek to ensure that everyone is ready for the thrilling journey that lies ahead.

Our Mera Peak Climbing trip begins with an exciting morning flight from Kathmandu to Tenzing Hillary Airport in Lukla at 2860 M. Lukla is the gateway to the Everest region.

After a brief rest and getting the Local Area Permit in Lukla, we will head toward the east to Chhuthang. Passing by the Buddhist Mani walls and Prayer wheels and thick forest of Rhododendron and Pine, we reach our destination in the late afternoon.

We leave Chhutahng after breakfast and head towards Zatrawal Pass. Our route goes through a steep tracked slope with occasional ups and downs before we come across the Zatrawala Pass at 4610 meters. The pass summit offers beautiful views of numerous mountains, including Lumding Himal, Number Himal, Kongdi Ri, and Karyolang Peak.

Then after spending some time at the pass, we will resume our trek and make an hour or more to descend to Thuli Kharka through Chattre village. On the way, we might encounter some Yak Pastures with yaks grazing over the breathtaking countryside. Our today’s trekking concludes once we reach Thuli Kharka at 3900 meters. 

After breakfast, we will depart from Thuli Kharka to reach Kothe today. Today’s route will take us to the Khumbu region’s Hinku Valley which offers the first sight of our ultimate destination, Mera Peak. We begin our trek with a gradual descent right in front of mountain views. Additionally, there will be consistent uphills and downhills, which will gradually alter the track. However, we will still enjoy the journey because we will be traversing over a verdant, thick forest of oaks, pines, and rhododendrons.

Leaving Kothe behind, we will once again follow the riverbed trail of the Hinku River and move forward to reach Thangnak. En route, we pay our visit to Lungsumgba Gompa in Gondishung. From Gondishung, the terrain becomes easier, allowing us to take in the stunning surroundings. We eventually arrive in the pastureland of Thangnak whilst enjoying the breathtaking views. 

Today’s journey is a bit more difficult than the previous days’ as we will have to trek along the steep moraine trails. We pass through the steep moraine trails, make steep hill climb, and ascend the Hinku Nup and Shar glaciers to reach Khare. From Khare, we get to take in the breathtaking panorama of the Northern Face of Mera Peak. 

Today is set aside for the required acclimatization day as we need to give time to our bodies to get acclimatized to the higher altitude. Hence, we spend an extra day in Khare enjoying the mesmerizing view of the snow-capped peaks in the surrounding. We will also practice climbing today using a harness and climbing gear. Your climbing guide will provide you with some useful information and highly helpful advice to ensure a safe ascent. 

After breakfast in Khare, we will trek toward the Mera Peak Base Camp. This section is more technically challenging than the prior trials. We will navigate the treacherous Mera glacier on our way to base camp. On arriving at the base camp, we will set our camps and rest. 

From the base camp, we ascend the treacherous slope to Mera La to make it to the Mera Peak High camp. Once we reach the High Camp, we will rest and prepare for tomorrow’s Mera Peak Climbing. 

We will be able to enjoy the magnificent views of Mt. Everest, Makalu, Kanchanjunga, Cho Oyu, and the south faces of Lotshe, Nuptse, Chamlang, and Baruntse from High Camp. The majority of the summit route is also visible from here. 

The highlight of this Mera Peak Climbing journey has come today. We will set out very early in the morning at around 2 AM in order to be at Mera Peak before noon because starting from the afternoon, there are strong winds that can make it more difficult for us to continue our summit.

We will enjoy the astounding vistas of numerous eight-thousanders and other peaks including Mt. Everest, Mt. Cho Oyu, and Mt. Makalu from the top of Mera Peak. Then after spending some time at the summit, we descend down to Khare for an overnight stay.

This day is set aside as a backup day in case of our summit on Day 11 gets canceled due to severe weather or a member health issue. However, if all goes according to plan, the extra day can be spent hiking more leisurely and discovering new areas of the trail. 

Leaving Khare, we will trek to Kothe retracing the route back via Hinku Valley. Since most of the path is downhill, walking on downhill trails is simpler and faster. Our walk will be mostly amid the dense forest of Oak, Pine, and Rhododendron trees.

After having our breakfast at Kothe, we will start our today’s journey to Thuli Kharka uphill through a thick rhododendron forest that crosses the western portion of the Hinku valley. After 5-6 hours of trekking along the amazing views, we reach Thuli Kharka for the night. From Thuli Kharka, we are able to get sight of the Mera South, Mera North, and Center Mera in all their splendor. 

Today is the last day of trekking on this Mera Peak Climbing journey. We set out from Thuli Kharka after breakfast towards Lukla. Our trek goes past the Zatrawala Pass at 4610 meters before we get to Lukla. In the evening in Lukla, we celebrate the success of the Mera Peak Climb. 

We will catch an early morning flight from Lukla to Kathmandu. After enjoying a 35-minute aerial view, we land in Kathmandu and drive to the hotel. 

If you choose to explore the unexplored places in the city, we can arrange a sightseeing tour for you. In the evening we will host a farewell dinner at an authentic Nepali restaurant with a cultural program.

As the trip comes to an end, today you will be transferred to the airport for the flight back to your home or onward destination 3 hours prior to your flight schedule.