Locals at the chorten

Today was the most disastrous day yet. I don't know why TP took us up so high yesterday. We went up 600 m, not 500, according to my guidebook. You are only supposed to go up 300 m each day, to prevent AMS. Ironically, even though my book points this out, it recommends going up 720 m for yesterday.

I kept waking up last night with a slight altitude headache. It was minor, but I didn't want to go any higher today. Of course everyone else were being asses, and wanted to go on anyways. Then another guide told us TP was dizzy, vomiting, and having trouble breathing. Those are serious symptoms, and require immediate descent. This just goes to show AMS can strike anyone, regardless of age, fitness, or previous experience (TP says he's gone around 22 times).

We walked a couple hours back to Gunsang, but the trail was pretty flat, and TP still felt bad. The English guys couldn't be bothered, and went back up the trail. Mike went back to Yak Kharka, where I'm supposed to meet him tomorrow. The Nepali guy who was going to take TP down to Manang wanted to have lunch, and TP was vomiting, so I threw my pack in a room, and escorted him down. We had to walk all the way to Manang before he felt any better, since the trail was pretty flat right until town.

Trail kids

He was good enough to have lunch, and I had some more excellent (and pricey) yak cheese quesadillas. Then he went to the clinic. The doctor thinks it's AMS, and gave hime some diamox, but the question is if he'll be able to do this in the future. I imagine it will ruin his career if he can't. He said he may meet us on the other side of the pass.

Then I had to hike back up to Gunsang a couple of hours, and 400 m. The trail that seemed level this morning was now uphill the whole way. Complicating matters was the dropping temp, and the fact all my gear was in Gunsang. Then it started to rain, which became freezing rain, and finally snow. When I got there I climbed under a blanket with all my clothes on, the only way to keep warm in the unheated mountain lodges. When I awoke, a thunderstorm blizzard was in progress, and a couple cm of snow had already accumulated. I hope it's not too bad on Thorong La. I'm the only guest in the tiny lodge, and I finished the only book with me, so early to bed tonight.

Going down helped my headache, though. From now on I'll limit ascents to 300 m a day.