October 28, 2013
The north side of Ama Dablam taken from near Chukkung village in the Imja Khola valley (Eric Simonson)
IMG guide Erica Engle reports “Yesterday we trekked to the village of Chukkung, situated at the edge of the morainal terrain below the Lhotse and Lhotse Nup Glaciers. We enjoyed tea from the cozy sunroom of our lodge while marveling at the incredible amphitheater of peaks before us, including the north side of Ama Dablam, Amphu Gyabjen, Island Peak, and the massive wall of Nuptse, Lhotse, and Lhotse Shar. With an early start today, we had a nice climb of Chukking Ri (18,190 ft / 5546m) to get our first taste of some high altitude.  From the summit we enjoyed great views, then made our way back down to Dingboche, where we are prepping for tomorrow’s trek to Lobuche. Due to heavy snow up high (which remains from the big cyclone) we are not going to be able to cross Kongma La pass, so we are going down and around to Lobuche.”
Eric Engle