Tibet Day 6, Tingri to Everest Base Camp

An early start and shortly after leaving, it's YAFC where we have to have our passports and Tibet passes checked. That done, we see dramatic early morning sun striking shadows on the craggy hills as we go. I notice Matt's tyre is running low on air and he stops to await the van and sweeper Alex. Meanwhile we turn off to the left towards Everest and wait for them, which seems to take an age. Eventually Alex and Matt turn up, but the tyre is still running soft.

A group of well loaded Chinese bikes arrive, they're en route to Pakistan. We've seen them on the road for a couple of days now and they kindly lend us their pump. The consensus is that it's a slow puncture, so Alex says wait for the van and do a bike swap. It arrives without the trailer and Alex insists we need this for the two days (we're heading back to Xigaze tomorrow via Tingri). Potentially another long wait, we pump up Matt's tyre and push on; it lasts the whole day without problem! Still, we've wasted too much time and it just shows how little things can disrupt plans.

We start seeing Everest as we go, taking the odd picture. Then starts a winding asphalt road the like of which rivals anything I've ridden in the Alps. Hairpin after hairpin, tyres run edge to edge with the stand scraping the road on left handers. There's almost no traffic so it's like a track day in the mountains.

We stop at various points to take pictures of the winding road below. We reach the top at 5100m and see amazing views of the mountain. Then we notice some local riders heading up a dirt road on the left. I decide to follow them and after about 500m we reach another viewpoint at 5235m with even more spectacular views. I build a cairn to remember fellow riders who've departed and Aussie Chris builds one in memory of his wife. Chris and his wife were planning to visit the Himalayas together before she died, so it's a very emotional time for him. Aussie Alan and he share a moment.

Then downward and another set of truly amazing curves until we reach a tea house and stop. The owner, Gao Wei, kindly gives this to us for free in exchange for a group photo with him. He's been in Tibet for a year and comes originally from Hunan Province. Wherever we go, people have been so kind to us.

Everest gets larger as we reach our hotel for the night and check in. Then it's straight on the bikes again to head towards Base Camp. It's a few km to a transit point where sadly we have to leave the bikes and board a bus that takes on a very bumpy winding journey to the actual Base Camp - it would have been a great ride.

'Base Camp' was quite frankly not what we expected, it's a tourist base camp. The real one is about 1km in the distance and we can see it's made up of a collection of different tents and other temporary looking structures.

Still, the views of Everest are the best we've seen and it's as close as we're going to get. We climb the local vantage point - slowly, it's 5100m - to get the best pictures. It's covered in fluttering prayer flags and the wind is extremely strong. Everest is framed by the hills in our valley and looks very majestic once the few random clouds clear. We take many photos including group photos while struggling to hold a Nomadic Knights banner and of course the MS People's Front who are now invading this part of Tibet. Fortunately there are no officials around to complain. I attempt an upside down yoga pose like I did at the End of the World in Patagonia, the effort required to hoist the legs up there is enormous and after three tries I just about nail it.

We get back on the bus, mount the bikes and arrive back at our hotel. There's patriotic Chinese music playing on a tannoy over the village. I would imagine it's to stamp 'Chineseness' on the area; it must drive the Tibetans nuts.

Before dinner, I go for another madcap jog, this time at 5000m. 2km is all I can manage and it takes me the best part of 20 minutes to complete it. The legs are fine, it's just I can't get enough oxygen into them to power them; it's like trying to run an engine at full power with a limited fuel flow, pity our little Zuumavs!

Dinner is an assortment of dishes, but my protein choice is once again egg based; the meat dishes look delicious - it's tough being awkward. Ablutions are done al-fresco as there is no bathroom only a bowl in our rooms and a large thermos of hot water. The toilet is a squad and drop affair and stinks to high heaven, although the yaks outside looking in through the open windows may be partly to blame. But it's freezing cold in our rooms and no heating. Tomorrow morning at 6am for a 7am start is going to be tough, tough, tough.

Bed is a double quilt affair, with an electric blanket and improvised hot water bottles using our old drinking water bottles. While waiting for sunset on the mountain, I'm inside my quilt typing my blog, wearing thermal hat, and multiple thermal layers, it's toasty under the covers. I miss the sunset while being creative, apparently it was very beautiful.

There's no wifi at the hotel and no access to mobile data for me from the local cell tower, so this blog entry is going to be delayed.

...Just after midnight and my data connection comes back. You're in luck.

Sent from my trusty rusty BlackBerry