Lukla
Trekking to Kala Patar

The View from Lukla

Trekking below Mt Everest
Lukla, Kala Patar and Beyond

Lukla lies in the heart of the Everest trekking area in the Nepali Himalayas. It's here - from Lukla to Kala Patar - that large numbers of trekkers venture into the mountains to begin their treks, sometimes lasting weeks or months in the Himalayas. For many, Lukla is the starting point.

Insanity at Everest
The Crazy Airplane Ride to Lukla

At the bend in the main trekking trail going up into the high Himalayas and Everest area, you can see Lukla quite plainly at one beutiful curve. It's here that Nepali - porters and travelers - stop to look at the airplanes flying in. During the busy season in autumn, one might see several airplanes an hour as they swoop down the mountain vally and make an attempt to land at the Lukla flying strip perched on the side of a mountain. One gets the feeling the Nepalis half expect a plane crash. And when you get a look at where the planes land, you might get that feeling, too, perhaps while you are on the plane!

Kala Patar
Getting there from Lukla

Some go to the Everest Base Camp. But most go to Kala Patar - the mountain at more than 18,000 feet elevation. They fly to Lukla and then head on up the trail.

We first found out about doing this through our own research, and particularly from Himalaya Moon, it is the best book we have ever read on trekking and traveling in Nepal. It was the our inspiration for the journey.

Kala Patar is a rather black looking pile of rock. It's rather inconsequential when looking at it because it is next to the biggest mountains on earth - Everest and a host of others. But it is the goal of many trekkers for a very key reason.