How to Trek to Everest Base Camp on a Backpackers Budget | Solo Trek to Everest Base Camp

is it possible to go trekking to everest base camp on a backpacker's budget what does an average daily cost look like how long will it take i'm going to break all of that down for you and more in this video [Music] the purpose of this video is to provide information about the ebc track and especially to those who are working with a small budget when i went in 2019 i struggled to find information that showed me it was possible to reach everest base camp without a guide porter or plane to look love after researching and then taking the trek i'd like to share the information i've learned so that others who are looking for this option will have a better idea of what to expect and where to get what you need but before i get into it i would like to mention that before going on this trek i had never been trekking before so the time it took me to complete the trek is likely a bit longer than when it might take a more in-shape or experienced trekker and secondly as i carried my own pack and went alone for going paying for a porter or guide so i can keep my costs low you'll need to factory in that additional daily cost to your budget if you're considering paying for either from now on i'll be referring to everest base camp as evc the abbreviation for it planning there are several things you should know before going on your trek and those are as follows first know there are tea houses all along the trek to ebc these are lodges where you pay to spend the night so you don't need to worry about bringing a tent or camping outside they also serve food so you don't need to bring a camping stove or planned meals but be aware prices in the mountains are inflated when compared to the lower altitudes this is due mainly to transportation costs but it also sees a lot of traffic from foreigners because of mount everest and prices could be steeper due to that as well to exemplify the differential rates a standard bottle of water bought almost anywhere in kathmandu costed me around 25 nepalese rupees whereas in the mountains it costed me around 100 nem police rupees aside from providing food and accommodation most of the lodges are very basic and none of them have electric heating many have only outdoor squatter toilets and even fewer have hot water that you will be required to pay for if you'd like to have a hot shower i had one shower during the three weeks i spent in the himalayas internet is also essentially non-existent in the mountains and even if you decide you want to pay for it i've heard the connection is terrible [Music] gear whatever you don't have you can find in the markets of kathmandu i'll touch more on that in a minute permits for trucking you'll need park permits to truck in the region these can be found at the department of tourism in kathmandu once there let the officials know what trek you will be taking and they will sort out the necessary permits for you i paid 30 us dollars for one permit there and an additional 30 us dollars for another necessary permit i purchased at a checkpoint once i was in the mountains near the village of georgetown download offline maps for your track i use maps.me for offline maps after some brief research online and a few questions to the guys that worked at my hostel who had worked as guides in the past i marked some villages on my offline maps that i knew i would be passing in order to reach liqula some of those villages before lukla are kare kola jubing paya and surge there are also villages along the way and the locals in the village can usually point you in the right direction so if you are unsure you are on the right track you can simply ask them look luck and they will likely assist once you reach lukla there are signs everywhere for ebc as well as people taking the same track as you and it's almost impossible to get lost there are also cairns all along the track cairns are man-made piles of stones and are often erected as landmarks a use they have had since ancient times so if you see them you know you are following in the footsteps of men you can also follow the trail of feces from mules and yaks as i discovered during my trek because the herders are guiding them from village to village and likely will be going where you need to go next but always check your maps because the feces trails could sometimes lead you astray lastly make sure to bring as many nepalese rupees as you'll need for your trek there are atms in lukla and a few in namche bazaar as well the small town about halfway between lukla and ebc but it's better to bring everything you need in case the atm are out of money and also because it's just cheaper to withdraw money in kathmandu's atms all right with that said gear obviously you're going to need some basic essentials for the track as i had spent the previous three months backpacking in india when i crossed the border by bus into nepal i had no gears or supplies whatsoever i had one pair of sandals and lots of dresses and that's about it so i needed to go shopping thankfully you can find everything you need in the markets of tamil the touristic backpacking neighborhood in nepal's capital kathmandu fortunately for me i am very good at bartering due to my own past experience of selling things on the street so i managed to get a good deal for most of my supplies here's a list of my supplies and what i paid for them pause the video if you need a longer look currency is in nepalese rupees but also shown in usd exchange rates shown are the 2019 rate when 100 rupees was worth almost exactly one us dollar [Music] as you can see altogether i spent around 150 for a backpack sleeping bag water bottle hiking boots 10 pairs of socks four pairs of pants a hat gloves rain poncho the park permits water purifying tablets and some altitude sickness medication only 150 dollars for everything i just mentioned bought in the market after bartering i got a very good deal for everything and that is in part due to my skills at bartering and also some of the items i bought such as my backpack and sleeping bag were not in top condition if you don't have much confidence in your bartering skills expect to pay a bit more okay so after getting all of your gear and permits for the track you are going to need to get to the region where the trek begins and that is the kumbu region typically the ebc track takes 14 days that is counting the day you leave kathmandu on your flight till the day you touch back down in kathmandu after your trek i hear the flight only takes about an hour or so but i can't verify that as i did not fly if you are truly looking to do this trek on a budget you'll skip the 180 round-trip flight and take a bus from kathmandu to the kumbu region the bus is only 12 us dollars one way and takes around 16 hours to reach the kumbu region specifically the village of fabloo and from there you will have to trek a few extra days before you reach lukla where most everyone else has landed with the flight from kathmandu and where the everest base camp trek officially begins the reason you'll have to trek a few extra days from fabloo to reach lukla is because there are no more roads capable of handling vehicles after or nearly after fap blue so you'll be going on foot from there unless you can find a jeep which may be able to bring you ever so slightly closer to find the bus in kathmandu ask the locals or someone that works at your hostel what bus hub you can purchase a ticket for fabloo at once you go there you can find and pay for the bus going to fabloo i went several days beforehand and bought my ticket in advance just to be on the safe side the morning of i left my hostel at 3 30 a.m to arrive early to the bus station and after some difficulty locating my bus boarded it with only 20 minutes to spare before departure [Music] arriving in fabloo late in the evening in pitch darkness there was no electricity in photo when i arrived i heard a generator saw some faint lights and discovered a guest house i wandered in asked for a room ate dinner and went to bed the next morning i discovered from the man who ran the guest house that there was a jeep that would bring a few villages closer near tenenthaler the jeep cost me 500 rupees or 5 us dollars from there i began my trek on average i spent around 37 us dollars each day but if you were more frugal with your budget you could easily spend less i also bought drinks at the bar in namche bazaar splurged on pastries at various small bakeries along the way and bought dog treats for the strays i met along the way as well i'll show you my daily spending habits with prices displayed at the end of the video so you can see exactly what things cost in the mountains and what you could skip to further save money once you've finished your trek and would like to head back to kathmandu there are again several options to return to the city you could fly out from lukla if you felt like splurging though many times these planes get pushed back a day or two due to weather and low visibility you could also trek back to fabloo and catch a bus from there or you could catch jeep back to the capital as well i ended up taking a jeep from karikola to saleri and then catching a jeep from saleri back to kathmandu aside from me and a man from switzerland who had been on an expedition the other passengers in the crammed jeep were locals [Music] a few last tips before i finish this video one stay away from the edge of the mountain when herds of mules or yaks are passing i was almost knocked off the edge of a cliff when i got out of the way of a herd of mules it didn't consider my backpack was still on the way and a meal ran right into it i later discovered a german woman had fallen to her death in a similar situation a week or two earlier [Music] two avoid taking diamox the altitude sickness medication if you can help it as it has many unpleasant side effects such as difficulty sleeping strange dreams creating the constant need to pee and requires you to drink a lot of water as it dehydrates you everybody is different however and do what you need to take care of yourself i am asthmatic and a smoker but only ended up taking two diamox pills during my entire trek which i regretted as soon as i felt the side effects [Music] three when you arrived to gorakshep the last village before arriving to everest base camp don't stop to eat drop your pack off and head straight to camp someone recommended this to me and i'm so glad they did first if you leave straight away you'll essentially have ebc to yourself for a while as all the other trekkers and their guides tend to stop to eat so you beat the crowds it's a huge desolate place and even with people down there it feels very empty but it's nice to not have a person in sight and be alone with the mountains but even more importantly than less people is the visibility after speaking with several guides i discovered it's pretty common for clouds to sweep through by late afternoon and visibility becomes so low you can barely make out the mountains around you when i arrived to go to shep i dropped off my pack at a tea house had a quick tea and left for ebc while the skies were still blue i was so fortunate to have the clear visibility and ability to see the magnificent mountains around me by the time everyone else was making their way down the ridge to the camp the clouds had swept in and it had begun to snow completely blocking the mountains from view it snowed for the remainder of the day 4. another tip summit kalapatar and leave early to arrive by dawn it's a rough climb but absolutely worth it from there you will have the best view of mount everest or as they call it in tibetan meaning mother goddess of the world from base camp you can't even see it as you're too close and nuptse blocks it from view from kalapatar you'll have a perfect panorama of mount everest base camp one the stunning khumbu icefall and the surrounding himalayas including lotze five lastly if you plan on doing the passes make sure to buy crampons as you'll be crossing over several glaciers [Music] so that's it you're now ready to set out on your solo adventure to everest base camp i hope you found this video helpful and if you have any additional questions please don't hesitate to ask in the comments section below and i'll be sure to respond be safe and have fun

Channel: Gventures

Views: 68,986

Keywords: Everest Base Camp, EBC, Everest Base Camp on a budget, Backpacking, Nepal, Himalayas, Highest mountain on earth, Nepalese Himalayas, How to trek to Everest base camp cheaply, How to trek to Everest Base camp on a backpackers budget, Everest base camp on a small budget, Everest base camp on a budget, Trekking, Nepal trekking, EBC trek

Id: nEtttV0z2UY

Length: 13min 59sec (839 seconds)

Published: Sun Sep 19 2021