Size matters....

I've only got a 15kg allowance for my trek to Everest Base Camp so I've been spending the last couple of weeks planning exactly what I can and can't take with me. I've decided to hire my sleeping bag, rollmat and big warm jacket when I get to Nepal. Each item costs $1 a day to hire and will save me somewhere in the region of 3kg of weight.

Alongside the other kit (thermals, water bottles, trousers, boots etc) there's the hygiene/medical items. The basic list includes:






Toothbrush & Toothpaste - Soap - Shampoo - Lip Salve - SPF (8) and SPF (50+) - Antiseptic Wipes - Razor + Blades - Shaving Gel - Moisturiser - Deodorant - Toilet Paper - Tissues - First Aid Kit - Vitamins - Neurofen Packs - Aspirin Packs - Paracetamol Packs - Compeed Blister Packs - Cough Sweets - Cold/Flu Remedy - Plaster Packs - Antiseptic Spray - Foot Spray - Talcum Powder - Berocca Tablets - Immodium

I've found a cute company called GoTiny.co.uk who specialise in (you guessed it!) - mini size toiletries. Perfect. Saves me vital weight and space but also a bit of cash.

Four weeks to go....

It's four weeks today that I leave for Everest Base Camp. Thanks to Emily Cummins, I breached the £3000 mark last night! Check out my Just Giving page by clicking here. I've got another couple of hundred in the bag so I need to collect and bank that before I go. Thanks so much to everyone who's donated to Sue Ryder Care. My target is £4000 so if you're still waiting for that golden opportunity then now's your chance!


The last week or so has been about photography. I've signed up to Flickr and you can check out some of my very amateur shots by taking a look at my Flickr Photostream. It's experimental stuff right now so don't expect too much.



I've met some amazing photographers on there, including a local Dentist who lives in Guildford. He's been working on a lighting project and the results are quite spectacular. Check them out here.


There's no doubt that I'm pretty excited about the trek but I'm also quite nervous and anxious too. I'm worried that the stuff I've been dealing with over the last year could provide a stumbling block in terms of my mental toughness. I still feel a bit fragile and I'm going to miss the structure that's been a huge part of my daily life for the last 391 days.

That said, I'm probably better equipped now than I've ever been...time will tell.
 
It's about time I put the finishing touches to my packing and started weighing individual items. I've got a max allowance of 15kg! I figured I could wear as much as possible to reduce the weight of my checked in luggage. The allowance is based on the max limit for our internal flight between Kathmandu and Lukla. The airline is called 'Yeti Airlines'  and they have a very promising safety record:




I'm off to a wedding this weekend so it will be a good opportunity to raise a bit more cash and bid my relatives farewell!

ISOs and Shutter Speeds....

I've been busy buying kit for the trek. Alongside the wet weather gear, I've also purchased a new digital camera. The Panasonic Lumix TZ6 came out on top after a long trawl of review sites but it was CNET's recommendation that sealed the deal. You can read the review here.

It's been fascinating and hugely frustrating getting to grips with all the settings but I'm slowly working out how to take decent photos. Fortunately, the TZ6 has amazing auto-functions but I'm pretty keen to learn about the manual settings too. I hopped over to Amazon to pick up a Digital Photography book and stumbled across this by Scott Kelby. I'm still waiting for it to arrive but hopefully it will shed some light on my aperture and ISO settings. Part of the inspiration to get up and running with photography before I head to Everest comes from a set of photos on Flickr. Check them out.

I'm hoping to get some good moonlit shots of the mountains so I've bought a small 'Gorillapod' too. I don't want to harp on about it but social reviewing is absolutely the way forward for consumer purchasing. With seller feedback and price comparison sites, it's strictly a buyers market!

I sent my passport off to the Nepali Embassy and on Wednesday I got it back in one piece with the 30 Day Visa. That's most of the paperwork done now. Our Group CSR Manager sent an email out yesterday and all Everest Trekkers will be getting £100 from the company to put towards kit which was a pleasant surprise.

Today is Friday and I'm hooking up with a fellow trekker for lunch which should be fun. Still got plenty to sort out. Next on my list are the selection of medicines and first aid kit that I need. My local GP trekked the same route last year so he's given me prescriptions galore to help me through.


Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS) is top of list of things that could scupper a successful trip to Base Camp and a drug called Diamox can help reduce the impact. I'm also likely to get a mild form of Ecoli so I've got a prescription for that too.

One final shout for social reviews. This time it's for energy bars - Clif Energy Bars. Amazon's US site was much better for this and with 209 reviews at 4.5 of 5 they look like a winner! Check them out here.