Heading to Cholatse

When I returned from Everest in May of 2022, I pronounced my “gap two and a half years” officially over. Then I turned to figuring out how I wanted to spend my time going forward. I knew I wanted to re-engage with some nonprofit boards, and to serve on a corporate board I was in discussions with, but the rest was up for grabs.

In the months that followed, one thing came into focus. While I liked everything I was getting re-involved with, I didn’t want to fully lose the spirit of my gap year. The two and a half years I had spent climbing mountains, cross country ski racing, and doing daily workouts had been rich with purpose, satisfaction, and joy. Why walk away from that? As I ramped up my mainstream commitments, I resolved to keep some “gap” in the mix.

Calendars have a way of filling up. I knew I would need to be purposeful in creating and protecting gaps. Jill and I spent another winter in Vermont, where we cross country skied pretty much every day, and in May we spent a really fun month in the British countryside. I also got in some great backcountry skiing in British Columbia. While I didn’t feel a need to return to the world’s absolute highest mountains, mountains in general still exerted a powerful pull, and I was mindful that I wouldn’t be physically able to climb them forever. Several options for expeditions presented themselves, and I identified a four week block of time that, with calendar surgery, could be fit into a busy fall.

And so it is that I arrived this morning in Nepal to climb a jagged, 21,000 foot peak named Cholatse overlooking the Khumbu Valley. Here is a photo pulled from the web which shows it in relation to Everest and other neighbors.

And here is a close up taken by a climbing guide named Guy Cotter. I will be climbing the ridge on the right.

There are a lot of wonderful things about how this climb came together. I will be climbing with Phil Crampton, the Expedition Leader I was on Everest with in 2022. Supporting us will be the same Sherpas I climbed to the summit with. Other team members include two Aussies and an American, all experienced climbers. But most wonderful is that our 29 year old daughter Holly will be joining as well.

Holly took the past year off from her job as an investment banker to travel alone around the world. Among her many adventures have been climbs of big mountains in Bolivia, Ecuador, and Pakistan. When I committed to Cholatse last spring, I had no idea where Holly would be in the fall and I didn’t expect her to be a part of it. Then she ended up spending the months of September and October in Nepal, and decided that joining the Cholatse climb was a great thing to do before completing her year off and heading back to the U.S. Suddenly, a climb I was already excited about took on a whole new layer of meaning.

Mountaineering rituals start well in advance of setting foot on the mountain. I have been training hard for this all year, following pattens similar to those I used in preparation for Everest. As the departure date approached, I methodically assembled gear and created detailed checklists. This led, as usual, to a living room full of carefully arranged piles. In this case, a few of the piles were for Holly.

Happily, all of it made it into two duffles. Jill braved rain and traffic to drop me at Logan Airport.

The trip to Kathmandu, via Doha, also had the feeling of ritual. It was the same airline and flights I took to Everest in 2021 and 2022. During the same six hour layover in the same airport lounge, I had the same romantic feeling of time traveling between worlds, and the same feeling of contentment and anticipation. Per custom, I sat on the left side of the plane so I could watch the early morning sun illuminate Dhaulagiri and the Annapurna range as we approached Kathmandu.

The ride this morning from the airport to the hotel was through familiar streets, blessedly free of traffic and air pollution thanks to a major holiday keeping people outside the city. The October air and bright sun was reminiscent of forty years ago, when I spent a fall in what was then an exotic, charming, mountain valley town. Passing through the gates of the Yak and Yeti hotel, where I holed up before and after both of my Everest climbs, felt like a homecoming. Jill and I also stayed at the Y and Y briefly in 1990 during our first year of marriage.

I spent this afternoon changing dollars into stacks of rupees, picking up last minute items in local shops, and dividing gear between my backpack and a duffle full of climbing stuff that will be transported to base camp by a combination of porters and yaks. Holly is spending the day riding back to Kathmandu on a bus, having just finished a month of trekking in the Annapurna region. It will be beyond wonderful to see her this evening.

After spending one more day in Kathmandu, I will head into the mountains and start an extended, solo trek to base camp. Holly will spend a few days resting up after her Annapurna trek, then meet up with the rest of our climbing team in Kathmandu. They will then fly to the Khumbu and spend five days trekking together to base camp, where I will meet them on November 3. My trek, which will take ten days, is going to make a long arc through a valley west of the Everest region, then climb over a high pass and down through another valley to Cholatse. The attached screenshot from Google Maps shows my intended route, bending clockwise in blue. Cholatse is circled in red. If you zoom in, you can find Everest base camp in the upper right. If I have time, I may trek up a relatively unvisited glacier system to the base of Cho Oyu, the world’s sixth highest mountain, (as depicted by the up and back blue line at the top of the arc.)

Forty-eight hours from now, I will be on the trail, heading up to high mountain valleys and passes that make my heart sing. While I enjoy trekking in company, I also enjoy it solo. Reflection flows easily, and there is a oneness with my surroundings that is meditative and spiritual. Then I will join a like-minded team and climb a beautiful, challenging mountain. Not only that, but I will climb it with my daughter! I am blessed. Unlike Everest, which typically takes 4-7 weeks to climb after reaching base camp, Cholatse should only take a couple of weeks. I will be home before Thanksgiving.

In 2019, I climbed the highest peak in Antarctica, Vinson Massif, with son Will; a shared experience I will cherish forever. While I am not a strong enough biker to keep up with son John on his long rides, I hope someday to pull off at least one with him. These kinds of things are at the core of what I treasure. That is what makes Holly coming on Cholatse so special.

My last blog post was 15 months ago. I thought I was done, but a number of you encouraged me to give it another go for Cholatse. So I think I will. The next post will be from somewhere on my approach trek. Please follow along if you are so inclined, and feel free to tune me out if you aren’t. I will more than understand.

Namaste!

39 thoughts on “Heading to Cholatse”

  3. As always, inspiring and oh-so thoughtful! Go get’em, and have an amazing time with Holly! Jill deserves a VERY special Christmas gift this year!! 😉

  5. Thank you for bringing back the blog! I am so thrilled for you, and Holly, and so delighted you have decided to bring us all along for the ride! Godspeed, my friend!

  7. Tom, such a great start to a great trip. I’m visualizing alongside you on most of it so far! My best to Holly. Great work on keeping control over your time and pursuits!!

  11. Tom,
    What a terrific adventure, even more special that you are able to do it with your daughter. I hope you have great weather and an uneventful climb. Thanks for taking us all along.

    Best wishes, Morty

  12. Sharing passions and adventures with your kids is the best reward of being a parent. It leads to deep, incomparable memories. There is that certainty of an intimately known companion that gives ease to the experience. We few get that chance. Again, love reading your blogs, like opening a new book from a well-loved author! As always, wishes for safety and satisfaction in your level 2 fun!

  13. As you head to the mountains I head to the bonefish flats of Andros. Not quite the same but still sharing a gift of nature that we should and need to cherish.

    Love to you and Holly and may you march on in peace and love.

    Slammin

  15. Tom,
    Great to have you back in action. Enjoy the peace and quiet of the mountains!
    Good luck & Cheers!

  16. Sometimes my heart fills up before my head allows me to speak. This is such
    a time, my Son. My thoughts go on full speed, and they are with you and my dear family. Dad/Al

  18. Very cool that you are being joined this time by Holly! Safe travels and look forward to more good reads ahead on this blog.

  20. Sounds like a fabulous “coda” to your Everest success, Tom. Best wishes to you and Holly and I will eagerly follow along!

  21. I was just thinking about you, Cousin! Amazing that Holly is joining you on this adventure. I had no idea that she too is an avid adventurer of the high peaks. Looking forward to your blogs, and hopefully hearing the details “from the horse’s mouth” when you are back. It will be a Thanks-giving indeed this year!

  22. So wonderful for both you and Holly.

    Question:

    When you say you trek alone – is that absolutely so, no guide no sherpa?

  23. This is very heartwarming and very special. I am filled with joy for both you and Holly.

  24. Have a wonderful trip, Tom! And it’s lovely that Holly and you will be making the climb together! Looking forward to more blog posts and photos. Love to you both!

  25. Gap Decade! You know you earned it. Plus it shouldn’t even count if it’s with a child, those adventures are priceless.

    Roley poley Slowly Slowly.

    -Andrew

  26. Namaste from Peru Tom! What a dream come true. 40 years ago four of us were experiencing Nepal for our first times, exploring rivers unknown to any of us by kayak. Now you can climb with your daughter in a country so dear to your heart. An Unbelievable gift. Cherish the moments. Don’t let your gap years pass until your body tells you to! Have your best climb yet!
    Fair winds and Cheers. Lisa

  27. Another journey that we at home are thrilled to share through your marvelous voice. Enjoy every minute with Holly and the rest of the seasoned and well travelled crew. And thanks for allowing us to come along. Safe travels.
    Soo B

  29. What a joy to read about your latest adventure as it commences, Tom! As always, your writing seems so effortless and inspired. I love hearing about the pleasure you derive from the high mountains and I can’t wait to hear about your shared experiences with Holly. Enjoy every moment!

  30. I feel like I’m opening a new adventure book – I love your writing and zest for adventure. May all the spirits protect and lift you to the highest joys!

  34. Peace, and sigh…

    “While I enjoy trekking in company, I also enjoy it solo. Reflection flows easily, and there is a oneness with my surroundings that is meditative and spiritual.”

    You go, grasshopper!

  35. Belated read/react, so not sure you’ll see this one.
    Wow. Your dedication and sense of purpose are so inspiring and admirable Tom. I’m with you (via blog) every step of the way!
    I LOVED your dad’s entry, and I love that you get to do this with Holly. So amazing that your kids are so with you (via foot and backpack) and that Holly’s grandpa gets to see this.
    And from the details of your blog, Cholaste is NO JOKE! You downplay it a little relative to Everest in your humility, but it is f’ing impressive and amazing.
    Safe journey my friend. Really looking forward to a winter slide show!

  37. How great that you will share this experience with your daughter Holly! As you said, it’ll make it extra special.

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