#1 Numero Uno – My Everest

So, it’s actually happening. In what has already been a year full of incredible moments I have decided that this is the one when I should take on my biggest of “Big List” dreams, one that also happens to be my toughest of challenges.

For so many years I have talked about trekking to Everest Base Camp taking that chance to look up at the tallest summit and the pinnacle of the world. For so many years I have quietly placed it in my “tomorrow” pile, knowing that to achieve my dream I would have to conquer what has become an overwhelming fear.

I’m not quite sure when my fear of flying first began. When I was younger, travelling both to see my Dad overseas and on adventures with my parents I never thought twice about jumping on a plane. In fact the endless movies, the pre-flight McDonalds and bad plane food were all pretty exciting.

I do recall an incident in my early teens flying into Bangkok airport through an electrical storm when our plane was struck by lightning. My Mum’s reaction to being scared is to laugh hysterically and me, sobbing (like the rest of the plane) kept saying “It’s not funny Mum!!!” However, I have flown hundreds of times since then and it only in the last five years that I have really struggled. I’ve become the white-knuckle flyer who stares at the seatbelt sign and holds on to the seat during even the mildest of turbulence. Friends and strangers have held my hand to calm me down and I can’t remember the last time I got through a movie.

So, I’m guessing I’m not an ideal candidate to fly into one of the scariest airports in the world. Located 2800m above sea level, surrounded by the Himalayas and with a sloping runway less than 500m long, Lukla Airport also boasts highly changeable weather meaning trekkers can wait for days to get in and out with even the most skilled pilots suggesting “non-flammable clothing like hemp”.  Words like “fireball”, “suicide” and “insanity” are fairly common and reputable choices such as Yeti Air and Buddha Airlines don't exactly instill confidence. (Does Buddha give you more or less chance of meeting your maker?!)

The first step to overcoming my trepidation was to simply book my flights into Nepal. Knowing that I may get the opportunity to see my cousin while I was there was the extra motivation I needed and once I’d gotten my three weeks leave approved (real life is so inconvenient), it was a few simple clicks and Voila! This little lady is now firmly booked on a Singapore Airlines A380 (via Singapore for some encouraging Mum hugs) departing in October. Bravo CJ!

Having been told that I couldn’t miss out on seeing Gokyo Lakes I put the call out for guide recommendations to tie this in with Everest Base Camp. It turns out everyone’s guide is THE BEST. It also turns out that everyone’s guide is super friendly and helpful, and after weeks going back and forth it was impossible to make a decision.

Then a little aviation incident stopped me in my tracks. Seeing news of the Asiana crash in San Francisco led me into a downward spiral of sleepless nights and Googling Nepalese aviation statistics. 34 fatalities last year and almost 100 in the last three years. Three accidents in the last two months alone. Speaking with my boss, it appears he was chatting with a group in his hotel in Kathmandu and they all lost their lives a few hours later. He hadn’t told me knowing it was stop me going. To say I was spooked would be putting it mildly. I started researching all alternatives to flying anywhere in Nepal. 

However, I’ve never been one to let fear get in the way of a good story (I’ve jumped out of a plane and head first off a bridge!), and the very wise Ralph Waldo Emerson said “Always do what you are afraid to do”. So first thing this morning I confirmed with my lovely friend Sangita at Himalayan Glacier Trekking. 18 days to Everest Base Camp, Gokyo Lakes and Cho Lo Pass, to an altitude of almost 6000m and most importantly with two hair-raising flights in and out of Lukla Airport. So, sixty years after Edmund Hillary stood atop the tallest summit in the world, I will look out the window of that tiny plane and remember to say to myself "I am conquering my Everest" Then perhaps like my mother I will laugh.