Island Peak Climbing with EBC

The name Island Peak may sound a bit strange for a mountain in a landlocked country, but its name was given in 1952 by one of Nepals early explorers, Eric Shipton, who presumed the peak to be standing in a huge sea of ice. However, the local Sherpa people call it Imja Tse.

The Asia Adventure Nepal has shaped an itinerary that combines the EBC trek with the Island Peak climb that ensures you get properly acclimatized and enough rest at the right places before you head for the summit so that you can enjoy the fantastic views that await you there.

After exploring historical Kathmandu and its ancient heritage sites for a day, we get geared up for our trip by checking all our equipment and making doubly sure that we have all that we need to hit the long and winding road to Island Peak. Our sojourn begins with a scenic flight to Tenzing-Hilary airport in Lukla, the starting point of our venture into the grand wild. After getting our first glimpse of the mountains from the windows of our STOL plane, we now get set to walk this beautiful landscape starting with a steep ascent to Namche Bazaar, the commercial capital of the Khumbu region. From here the views are even more dazzling, and we get to see the towering peaks of Thamserku and Kusum Kanguru. Once we reach this bustling, high-altitude hub, we stop for our first day of acclimatization and do some exploring of the surrounding areas. This will prepare our bodies for the higher elevations that we will be visiting in the days ahead.

Our ascent then passes through colorful Sherpa villages and continues on above the tree line to the desolate terrain of high altitude, a wonderful scene of silver-grey rock, ice, and mountain peaks that brush the clouds. We slowly make our way to Everest Base Camp and Kalapathar, where we get our closest views of Mt. Everest. After that we will begin our scramble up the Kongma-La, where the massive face of Lhotse looms over us at incredible heights. By this time we will be fit, acclimatized, and primed for the final climb of Island Peak as our skilled Sherpa guides lead us to the summit.

Depending on the weather it may take a day or two to scale the peak. For some climbers it takes an entire day of climbing. Others prefer to go up alpine style, camping at higher altitude for a greater feeling of adventure as well as a safer ascent the next day. When we reach the summit of Island Peak, we can take our photos and take in the view, then begin our leisurely stroll back down to Namche, all the while basking in the thrill of our time spent at the top of the world.
From there it is just a day or two back to Lukla and the bustling streets of Kathmandu.

With peaks and high passes, prayer wheels that speak to the gods and warm people along the way, this is an expedition that will not be forgotten.