10 Days Mera Peak Climb

Our Mera Peak climbing itinerary begins in Nepal’s busy, fascinating, and endlessly beautiful capital city of Kathmandu. If you’ve arrived a few days in advance, you’ve probably already started to acquaint yourself with the city’s historic temples, winding alleys, and friendly people. From Kathmandu, we’ll take a short flight to Lukla to begin our climbing expedition. The flight clocks in at just half an hour, and it offers impossibly scenic views of vast swathes of Nepal’s mightiest Himalayan mountains. After touching down in Lukla, we’ll meet up with the rest of our team, including the hard-working porters who you’ll enjoy getting to know over the next ten days. When it’s time to hit the trail, we’ll trek for approximately two hours across pleasant fields, shaded woodlands, and a few outlying settlements. Our destination today is Chutanga, where we’ll check in at a local guesthouse and enjoy our first night in the Himalayan mountains of Nepal.

Please note: Your flight to Lukla may depart from the Ramechhap Airport in Manthali rather than Kathmandu, due to ongoing upgrades at the Tribhuvan International Airport. Alpine Ramble Treks will keep you apprised of the situation and arrange any necessary additional transportation via microbus.

Are you ready for the first real challenge on your journey to climb Mera Peak? We’ll start by ascending to the east, rising from rhododendron forests into a barren world of rock and snow. If the snow is especially heavy, this will be the first occasion to equip ourselves with crampons, helmets, and ice axes as we climb into the true alpine territory. During our trek throughout the day, you’ll be afforded sublime views of the glacial Dudh Koshi River tracing its serpentine path through the highlands of the Khumbu. The highest point on today’s trek will be the mountain pass of Zatra La, which sits at an impressive altitude of about 4,600 meters above sea level. Climbing up and over Zatra La will bring us into the lovely Hinku Valley as we approach Mera Peak. We’ll descend for about 300 meters before reaching today’s destination: a comfortable trekking lodge at Thuli Kharka.

Please note: Depending on the progress of our acclimatization, we may need to spend an additional night in Chutanga, moving our trek over Zatra La to the third day of our Mera Peak climbing itinerary. For this reason, it’s always a good idea to build a few extra days into your travel plans and remain flexible with your schedule. As always, your safety is our first priority.

Today’s trek begins with a short ascent over a series of small passes above Thuli Kharka, where the distant mountains of the Hinku Valley are layered one upon the other, fading into the entrancing blue mist of early-morning fog. We’ll also get our first good look at the mighty Mera Peak itself, but we won’t be doing any more climbing today. Instead, we’ll focus on making a slow descent through rhododendron woodlands and stopping for lunch at an especially picturesque spot along the way. The scenery on the second half of today’s hike is nothing short of remarkable. We’ll trek amongst towering cliffs, navigate steep slopes of loose rock, and gradually make our way to the floor of the valley. We’ll stop for the day at Kothe, which is also known as Gotay; most places in the Himalayas go by multiple names, and it’s not uncommon to encounter many different ways to spell them. But no matter what you call it, Kothe represents a well-deserved place to rest and spend the next night of our Mera Peak climbing itinerary.

With Zatra La well behind us now, we’ll start to enjoy genuine solitude on the mountain paths of the Khumbu. Today’s route climbs through a rocky wilderness, crossing several yak trails and offering great views of both Mera Peak and the impressive mountain known as Kusum Kanguru. We’ll also have the opportunity to visit a small Buddhist monastery along the way. Called Lungsumgba Gompa, the monastery is believed to be more than 200 years old—in addition to an authentic cultural encounter, this stop will also offer the chance to catch a brief rest. Moving on, we’ll reach the small settlement of Thagnak. There are just a handful of trekking lodges here, but the good standard of accommodation here will ensure another comfortable night in the mountains—and the Himalayan views from here are a reward unto themselves.

Please note: Your guide may recommend spending a second night in Thagnak for acclimatization purposes. If this is necessary, you can spend the second day here exploring Thagnak’s immediate surroundings; trekking to the nearby glacial lake of Sabai Tso makes for an exceptional day hike. We can also take this opportunity to practice some basic mountaineering skills in preparation for our upcoming ascent to Mera Peak itself.

After breakfast this morning, it’s time to take the next steps on our Mera Peak climbing itinerary. Today’s trail has some tricky terrain in store for us; we’ll start by climbing a steep glacial moraine, quickly gaining height and earning great views of windswept mountains and frozen alpine lakes. From here, we’ll descend into grazing pastures with wide-open panoramic vistas of splendid natural scenery. After picking out a pleasant spot to stop for lunch, we’ll shoulder our packs and begin climbing once more—we’ll be leaving the scenic Hinku Valley behind and ascending into higher, wilder territory. Our destination today is the small town of Khare, which boasts spectacular views of Nepal’s most beautiful Himalayan mountains. While some trekkers and climbers choose to set up their tents at one of Khare’s many campsites, we’ll opt for lodge-style accommodation to make sure we get plenty of rest over the next two nights.

While our Mera Peak climbing itinerary has included several possible acclimatization days, this rest day is built directly into our 10-day itinerary. Once we reach Khare, we’ll be sleeping at an altitude higher than 5,000 meters above sea level. To cope with this extraordinary elevation, our bodies need additional time to adjust in order to reduce our risk of contracting symptoms of altitude sickness. Fortunately, Khare is situated in some of Nepal’s most spectacular Himalayan wilderness, and you’re sure to enjoy the chance to relax in the midst of this splendid scenery. We’ll also be sure to spend some time to make any final climbing preparations. We can practice the proper use of crampons, ice axes, ropes, and abseiling techniques. If you’d like to stretch your legs, we can take an acclimatization hike in the direction of the mountain pass known as Mera La. This day hike will give you a sneak preview of the mountain we’ll soon be climbing. This afternoon, we’ll return to Khare to spend another night. 

Are you ready for a real adventure? Today represents one of the toughest challenges on our Mera Peak climb, as we’ll be ascending to an elevation of 5,780 meters. While some climbing itineraries will stop at Mera Base Camp or pitch a tent at Mera La, our 10-day Mera Peak itinerary will bring us right to Mera High Camp. We’ll pick our route carefully today, as our path leads across frozen glaciers of dazzling beauty, where overnight snowfall may affect our route. The journey between Khare and Mera High Camp will also treat us to unforgettable views of Everest, Cho Oyu, Lhotse, and Makalu. As our boots crunch across the hard-packed snow and wreathes of cloud swirl between the highest peaks of the Himalayas, you’ll truly feel on top of the world. Mera High Camp itself is comprised of just a few tent platforms sheltered beneath some overhanging rock. We’ll set up our tents here, prepare a hot meal, and have a late-afternoon briefing about tomorrow’s plans.

Today is the big day: before the first light of sunrise breaks across the Himalayas, we’ll set out for the summit of Mera Peak. As we trek in the mid-morning darkness, our path will be lit by the brave glow of our headlamps, and the only sound will be our boots breaking through the crust of ice which covers our trail. While the ascent isn’t particularly difficult, the extreme altitude will force us to keep to a moderate, safe pace as we climb. We’ll actually visit two different summits today: the southern summit and the higher main summit, which sits at an incredible 6,461 meters in elevation. Shortly before reaching the main summit, we’ll use a series of fixed ropes and jumars to make our final approach to the peak. We can only spend a few minutes at this kind of altitude, so we’ll soon make our descent of the mountain and spend the rest of the day trekking back to Khare. We’ll celebrate our accomplishments at our trekking lodge—we’ve successfully climbed Mera Peak!

Please note: If weather renders the summit impossible to reach, or if one of our party experiences altitude sickness, we may need an additional day in this itinerary to make a second attempt on Mera Peak. Please remember to be flexible and heed your guide’s advice.

With many miles of trail—and one mountain summit—behind us, we’ll make the next leg of our journey by helicopter. This is the secret of our 10-day Mera Peak climbing itinerary, and it’s one of the reasons that Alpine Ramble Treks is able to offer the shortest and most affordable version of this epic Himalayan mountain trek. After enjoying a leisurely breakfast this morning, we’ll take to the air while the sky is clear. Flying low over the tallest mountains in the world is sure to represent one of the most memorable experiences in any traveler’s lifetime, and it’s nothing short of astounding to watch the terrain unfold beneath your feet in a fraction of the time it takes to travel on foot. When we land in Lukla, you’ll have the rest of the day at your disposal. This airport mountain town is known for high-quality bakeries, quirky bars, and friendly locals. We’ll enjoy a celebratory dinner in town before turning in for the night.

Now that we’ve climbed Mera Peak and returned from the mountains, it’s time to depart from the storied highlands of the Khumbu and return to the Kathmandu Valley. Our morning flight will put us back in Nepal’s capital city in plenty of time for your outgoing flight. Alternatively, if you have any ongoing travel plans in Nepal, we’ll get you checked into a first-rate hotel and help arrange your next adventure. Thank you for choosing Alpine Ramble Treks to lead your Mera Peak climb!