My Big Escapade - Destination Unknown...: Day 88 - June 4

June04 at EveryTrail

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Wake up with a feet hurting real bad and i am still not able to walk properly. I even see boils between the toes, the source of pain. No choice but to walk with the same inappropriate shoes. Remove the insoles which feels slightly bettor. Now that charging is free take a backup of my pix in the laptop and start kinda late by 8. Buy myself a couple of badges of Base camp and kalapattar :) Could not really get the Tee shirt i was looking for. Meet Raymond on his way back to lukla as well. I am so concerned with the walk back today as the feet is paining just in the beginning of the day. To top it i have the long steep climb down from Namche. Not really wanted to get back on a pony for the last leg. I gave it a go no matter what happens. Climb down from Namche with lot of pain and get to the river. Now i notice every bit of arrogance in the path. As the uneven path not helping me at all. Have to keep going as i have to get to lukla by evening. Keep the torch handy just in case i have to walk in night. Decide on phakding for lunch. Negotiate my way till Joselle and i am hungry by now. Stop at a restaurant for some weird breakfast. Chapati with omelete!! By the time i am done, the group arrives there and its big hellos again. They are stopping at Phakding for the day and taking it easy. Bid farewell one last time to the group with thanks and start my way. There seem to be lot of porters on the path. And soon it became mutual irritation. With all due respect for these people leading a tough life and plight, but from my point of view where i am taking every step with pain have to get off the path to every porter. There seem to be many today. I have to get out of the way of luggage carrying yaks. This is not pleasant at all. But it was nice meeting one of the porter, singa bahudur. Had met him on the same stretch the first day of the trek and here i meet him on the same stretch on the last day of the trek. we both seem to have thinned out. Me with the trek and the bahadur with the seasons carrying of heavy weight for days. After a chat we bid farewell and i carry on. Reach Phakding by 3PM. Concentrating on the foot i have ignored taking rests and my back is now complaining about lugging around the weight. Am so tempted to stay back for the day there. But decided to making a home run to lukla at any cost.

Geting going after a break is even more painful and takes some time to get used to the pain. I just hope that i dont do any permanent damage! The ruggedness of the path is getting to me step by step. It was becoming a torchorous walk. What should have been a triumphant happy walk to the finish line is riddled with pain now. A hour to lukla there is a turn going away from the valley. I stop at the place for quite some time staring at the valley. It was an emotional moment recollecting my days in the valleys. This is where i had pushed my self emotionally physically beyond my limits and am still walking past the place. Still in a state of awe that i could possibly endure and triumph at such a personal challenge. I am not hooked to trekking. Its just the place, the Mt Everest and the curiosity to test my limits that got the bettor of me. Kinda felt the pang leaving the place but at the same time this is one beautiful place where i dont wish to come back. I cant deal with all that again. Reluctantly i turn away and look forward to getting into lukla on my own two feet. It there is a gradual climb to lukla and its not going to reveal it self so easily. The never ending gradual up slope, mountain fold after mountain fold frustrates me to the core. I start cursing and but dunno whom to curse.

Finally as late as 6pm there is just one more steep mountain fold to walk to the the arch at the beginning of the lukla town. steadily i limp my way to the finish line and a sense of euphoria engulfs me. My happy face comes out from deep within and all is forgiven and really happy. This is one of the rare moments in life where i exalted with full heart. Finally i can say to myself that Yup i made it. My be the passers by felt strange about about my smile as i am a bit limping through the lukla town. Now i can congratulate myself about the trek which i did not at the Base camp nor kalapattar.

Find the Namaste hotel and Meet Mr Kimi who has my air ticket. There's TV in the dining room have a heavy happy dinner and get to the bed. With one last hope that weather favors the next day and i can fly out. Feet and back hurting pleasantly i doze of the sleep.

One last look at Namche Bazar town..