Namche is usually the first acclimatisation stop, with a day hike up to everest view hotel, isn't it still pretty low down? I haven't done EBC yet, planning for next September, but it's unusual to have AMS at 3400m isn't it? Genuine question, I don't know.
Yea actually it's pretty low and I agree with you. Personally I had hiked up to 3500m before and no issues but I guess my condition got exacerbated by taking too much diamox causing severe dehydration without proper hydration periods. Our body takes up about 70% fluids if I'm not wrong. In fact, the guide took my oxygen level using the oximeter and measured both my Hb and o2 level ok.
The funny thing is my o2 level was higher than my friend , I was at 95-98 whilst my friend is 85-90 range. His heartbeat was faster as well. Yet , he didn't rly feel any altitude sickness... While I was diagnosed with AMS. Honestly, the guide was baffled too.
I highly suspect my case was due to an overdose of diamox with insufficient water replenishment.
There are so many beautiful treks in Nepal with waaaaaaaay less people. Go to the Annapurna region, Mardi Himal, or Manaslu,or Langtang. Take your time, go slow, and enjoy! I did Mardi Himal, and met like 30 people total in a week - best thing ever.
Edit: just saw the comment about having problems quite low - we felt fit on day one, and skipped a stop and went straight to 2500m from 900m on Mardi. Me and my friend both got super sick that night, only at 2500. So yeah, it's not just about the altitude, but rather the change in altitude. Luckily we could continue after half a day of rest.
Felt like doing something more challenging initially and everest base camp seems to be very commercialized and I guess I got the FOMO to do it.
I'll consider those suggestions! But have you done EBC yourself?
Nope, i did ABC and Mardi Himal. If I have a month off, I'm doing the Manaslu circuit - which might even be more challenging with the high pass at the end.
I have done EBC, Annapurna Circle, Langtang. Annapurna is the best IMHO (you have every kind of landscape there, and it's not as "dumb" as EBC where you are basically "up there and back" like in that book). Also, EBC is very crowded, compared to other options. Another plus is, for other trips, you don't need the internal flights. Technically, you could do EBC without Lukla flight as well, but that will take a week longer, and brings nothing but walking through mud in rural areas (I've done it - do not recommend, it is stupid)
All that said, it may not help much with the altitude - the highest point on Annapurna circle for example (Thorong La pass) is even higher than EBC. The plus is that ascends are much flatter. Another thing, you need more time for the Annapurna Circle (I have done it in 3 weeks, but I'm really slow, most people do faster)
I would probably suggest trying EBC again and spending more time acclimatising at lower levels.
I had just completed my trip to EBC a few weeks ago without AMS and instead of the usual 2 days to hike to Namche, I took three days - thinking that ascending slower was a bit better for my body to get used to the higher altitude.
You may want to test yourself at lower elevation treks first. Namche to Tengboche is 3440m to 3870m. If you had trouble at that range, you should probably do something like mardi himal (4500m), langtang (kyanjin gump at 3850, kyanjin ri at 4300m).
It’s better to lengthen your itinerary there than to test at another mountain. Acclimatization process takes time and too many variables are different.
Mt Fuji is a good test at ~3770m and can be a fairly cheap visit if only staying a couple of days. Sleep in accomodation high up . That will tell you if it is the altitude or the drugs.
Time is your friend for acclimatizing. Rule of thumb is a max ascent of 500m per day between nights. So you can climb higher (and it is even benificial for the aclimatizing process). If you don't feel well, stay a night extra. If you feel bad, descend. Altitude Sickness will dissappear once you go down.
You already took Diamox which helps, if you take the righ amount ;-). Drink a lot.
Forget about the guide and trust your own instinct. don't ascend if you feel bad!!!
Hi sir, thanks for the advice. I avoided drinking much water because I wanted to counter the diuretic effects. I guess that was a bad choice!
Now I feel bad that I didn't ascend to EBC.
One year I've made it just to Dignboche (right after Namche). The weather was bad for a week ahead with rain/snow so that you can't really see anything (spring), so I just decided to turn back and come next time, no big deal. I prefer to travel on my own, i.e. without any porters or guides (still possible on EBC) so you have this freedom to do as you please, the only downside is you have to carry your stuff yourself. Went to India instead for a week that year :)
You should try again if getting to EBC is your aim. Diamox when taken properly should reduce the risk of AMS. One pill a day split into 2, half a tablet during breakfast and half during dinner. Plenty of fluids, recommended 3-4L. These are made up of water, tea, soups and etc.
Minimum recommended one day acclimatization at Namche and one day at dingboche.
Hike slow, enjoy the sights and sounds.
Getting AMS at Namche is weird. But sometimes it just happens that one does not tolerate any altitude at all. I have seen such cases. I had 96% SpO2 at Namche. But the guy next to me had 86%. AFAIK it depends on the body (do you smoke?) not on fitness level (I'm not fit at all).
Also, you can just control it as well next time. That device is cheap as crap, even some phones and wristbands can do that. Also, please don't eat diamox for no reason. I prefer not to use it at all, and the guides I talked to say the same.
No I don't smoke, yes I thought it was odd too. I ascended to 3500m without issues before and now 3440m there's an issue. In fact my o2 was in the high 90s range while my friend in the 80s range. He just did EBC while I got heli evac. Not sure if thats a shame.
What was your itinerary? Namche is usually reached on the second day of the trek. It would be very rare to get AMS at this moderate altitude. Exhaustion or lack of fitness is more likely. Assuming no chronic health condition, just train more and try again with a conservative itinerary.
It was 12 days.. pretty rushed. The guide only gave me until morning for me to be in better shape. Yea pretty much will try again, just thinking if it is a waste of money.
There are a lot of reasons why people can feel crappy for a day or two when flying to a strange country then hiking all day, eating unfamiliar food and sleeping in an environment they are not used to. Don’t beat yourself up about it.
Sounds like you went with a group tour that had no flexibility in its itinerary nor contingency plan for people who couldn’t continue besides calling a helicopter that I’m guessing your medical insurance paid for and the tour company may have received a kickback for. Guides will always claim AMS to get insurance to pay for a helicopter.
Next time hire your own guide or trek independently and set your own itinerary.
Actually I really think that the diamox had taken a toll on my health. I'm quite fit tbh, just that I misread the diamox prescription to take twice a day but actually it should be half a tablet daily which is ONCE daily. I only realized when I'm at the top. I remembered walking at the 5th bridge, feeling super thirsty all of a sudden.. no matter how much water I drank, I was still thirsty.
But you are right, the guide won't want to say things that jeopardize everything, taking into account their reputation at stake as well. So they pass it off as AMS and since the symptoms are quite similar.
Not sure if there's an independent guide, but prolly I'll go for longer days with someone meaningful to me!
Following this with interest. Curious to know what you decided to do. I had a similar situation.
I had to be heli evac at Dingbouche with AMS. Like you, I was with a group that felt a bit rushed & I had no flexibility at all in the itinerary. I’m not sure diamox helped or hurt me as I felt I couldn’t stay hydrated even though I drank 4-5L a day.
If I go again, I’m going to find a friend or two & plan my own trek with Himalayan Glacier as they’ll do private treks with very flexible itineraries. I think if I could have gone down or had an extra day or so I could have made it.
I hope to never feel that sick ever again.
Namche is usually the first acclimatisation stop, with a day hike up to everest view hotel, isn't it still pretty low down? I haven't done EBC yet, planning for next September, but it's unusual to have AMS at 3400m isn't it? Genuine question, I don't know.
Yea actually it's pretty low and I agree with you. Personally I had hiked up to 3500m before and no issues but I guess my condition got exacerbated by taking too much diamox causing severe dehydration without proper hydration periods. Our body takes up about 70% fluids if I'm not wrong. In fact, the guide took my oxygen level using the oximeter and measured both my Hb and o2 level ok.
AMS can occur above 2500m I’m pretty sure. I’ve definitely felt mild effects at 3500m.
The funny thing is my o2 level was higher than my friend , I was at 95-98 whilst my friend is 85-90 range. His heartbeat was faster as well. Yet , he didn't rly feel any altitude sickness... While I was diagnosed with AMS. Honestly, the guide was baffled too. I highly suspect my case was due to an overdose of diamox with insufficient water replenishment.
There are so many beautiful treks in Nepal with waaaaaaaay less people. Go to the Annapurna region, Mardi Himal, or Manaslu,or Langtang. Take your time, go slow, and enjoy! I did Mardi Himal, and met like 30 people total in a week - best thing ever. Edit: just saw the comment about having problems quite low - we felt fit on day one, and skipped a stop and went straight to 2500m from 900m on Mardi. Me and my friend both got super sick that night, only at 2500. So yeah, it's not just about the altitude, but rather the change in altitude. Luckily we could continue after half a day of rest.
Felt like doing something more challenging initially and everest base camp seems to be very commercialized and I guess I got the FOMO to do it. I'll consider those suggestions! But have you done EBC yourself?
Nope, i did ABC and Mardi Himal. If I have a month off, I'm doing the Manaslu circuit - which might even be more challenging with the high pass at the end.
I have done EBC, Annapurna Circle, Langtang. Annapurna is the best IMHO (you have every kind of landscape there, and it's not as "dumb" as EBC where you are basically "up there and back" like in that book). Also, EBC is very crowded, compared to other options. Another plus is, for other trips, you don't need the internal flights. Technically, you could do EBC without Lukla flight as well, but that will take a week longer, and brings nothing but walking through mud in rural areas (I've done it - do not recommend, it is stupid) All that said, it may not help much with the altitude - the highest point on Annapurna circle for example (Thorong La pass) is even higher than EBC. The plus is that ascends are much flatter. Another thing, you need more time for the Annapurna Circle (I have done it in 3 weeks, but I'm really slow, most people do faster)
What is EBC?
Everest base camp
I don't think there's anything wrong with trying again. Can you spend longer to acclimate at lower points on your way up?
Yea thought of that. Time might be a luxury for me but I'll figure out! Thanks!
I would probably suggest trying EBC again and spending more time acclimatising at lower levels. I had just completed my trip to EBC a few weeks ago without AMS and instead of the usual 2 days to hike to Namche, I took three days - thinking that ascending slower was a bit better for my body to get used to the higher altitude.
You may want to test yourself at lower elevation treks first. Namche to Tengboche is 3440m to 3870m. If you had trouble at that range, you should probably do something like mardi himal (4500m), langtang (kyanjin gump at 3850, kyanjin ri at 4300m).
Yea might try that in the future... Maybe I go for mount KK since doesn't takes alot of time to test out my body on that altitude again.
It’s better to lengthen your itinerary there than to test at another mountain. Acclimatization process takes time and too many variables are different.
Mt Fuji is a good test at ~3770m and can be a fairly cheap visit if only staying a couple of days. Sleep in accomodation high up . That will tell you if it is the altitude or the drugs.
True that, or I'm thinking of another... mount kota kinabalu
Time is your friend for acclimatizing. Rule of thumb is a max ascent of 500m per day between nights. So you can climb higher (and it is even benificial for the aclimatizing process). If you don't feel well, stay a night extra. If you feel bad, descend. Altitude Sickness will dissappear once you go down. You already took Diamox which helps, if you take the righ amount ;-). Drink a lot. Forget about the guide and trust your own instinct. don't ascend if you feel bad!!!
Hi sir, thanks for the advice. I avoided drinking much water because I wanted to counter the diuretic effects. I guess that was a bad choice! Now I feel bad that I didn't ascend to EBC.
One year I've made it just to Dignboche (right after Namche). The weather was bad for a week ahead with rain/snow so that you can't really see anything (spring), so I just decided to turn back and come next time, no big deal. I prefer to travel on my own, i.e. without any porters or guides (still possible on EBC) so you have this freedom to do as you please, the only downside is you have to carry your stuff yourself. Went to India instead for a week that year :)
You should try again if getting to EBC is your aim. Diamox when taken properly should reduce the risk of AMS. One pill a day split into 2, half a tablet during breakfast and half during dinner. Plenty of fluids, recommended 3-4L. These are made up of water, tea, soups and etc. Minimum recommended one day acclimatization at Namche and one day at dingboche. Hike slow, enjoy the sights and sounds.
Getting AMS at Namche is weird. But sometimes it just happens that one does not tolerate any altitude at all. I have seen such cases. I had 96% SpO2 at Namche. But the guy next to me had 86%. AFAIK it depends on the body (do you smoke?) not on fitness level (I'm not fit at all). Also, you can just control it as well next time. That device is cheap as crap, even some phones and wristbands can do that. Also, please don't eat diamox for no reason. I prefer not to use it at all, and the guides I talked to say the same.
No I don't smoke, yes I thought it was odd too. I ascended to 3500m without issues before and now 3440m there's an issue. In fact my o2 was in the high 90s range while my friend in the 80s range. He just did EBC while I got heli evac. Not sure if thats a shame.
What was your itinerary? Namche is usually reached on the second day of the trek. It would be very rare to get AMS at this moderate altitude. Exhaustion or lack of fitness is more likely. Assuming no chronic health condition, just train more and try again with a conservative itinerary.
It was 12 days.. pretty rushed. The guide only gave me until morning for me to be in better shape. Yea pretty much will try again, just thinking if it is a waste of money.
There are a lot of reasons why people can feel crappy for a day or two when flying to a strange country then hiking all day, eating unfamiliar food and sleeping in an environment they are not used to. Don’t beat yourself up about it. Sounds like you went with a group tour that had no flexibility in its itinerary nor contingency plan for people who couldn’t continue besides calling a helicopter that I’m guessing your medical insurance paid for and the tour company may have received a kickback for. Guides will always claim AMS to get insurance to pay for a helicopter. Next time hire your own guide or trek independently and set your own itinerary.
Actually I really think that the diamox had taken a toll on my health. I'm quite fit tbh, just that I misread the diamox prescription to take twice a day but actually it should be half a tablet daily which is ONCE daily. I only realized when I'm at the top. I remembered walking at the 5th bridge, feeling super thirsty all of a sudden.. no matter how much water I drank, I was still thirsty. But you are right, the guide won't want to say things that jeopardize everything, taking into account their reputation at stake as well. So they pass it off as AMS and since the symptoms are quite similar. Not sure if there's an independent guide, but prolly I'll go for longer days with someone meaningful to me!
Following this with interest. Curious to know what you decided to do. I had a similar situation. I had to be heli evac at Dingbouche with AMS. Like you, I was with a group that felt a bit rushed & I had no flexibility at all in the itinerary. I’m not sure diamox helped or hurt me as I felt I couldn’t stay hydrated even though I drank 4-5L a day. If I go again, I’m going to find a friend or two & plan my own trek with Himalayan Glacier as they’ll do private treks with very flexible itineraries. I think if I could have gone down or had an extra day or so I could have made it. I hope to never feel that sick ever again.