Mt. Ama Dablam Expedition is more than just a climb. It's a journey into the heart of the Himalayas. Located in the Khumbu valley of Nepal, only 12 km from the summit of Mount Everest, AmaDablam demands the attention of every passer-by. Soaring ridge lines and super-steep faces guard the summit from all but the experienced climber. From the summit you are surrounded by a vista of peaks like the five of the highest peaks in the world are clearly visible.
Mt. Ama Dablam's first ascent (via the SW ridge) was not made until the mid 60's by a strong NZ/USA team. The north ridge fell to a talented French team as late as 1979. In recent years many parties have successfully climbed the mountain, with nearly all ascents via the original SW ridge route.
Our ascent will also be made via the conventional SW ridge route, a technical route that requires 3500m of fixed ropes and three camps above base camp. The climbing with thisroute involves pure rock climbing on exquisite granite followed by mixed snow and rock climbing. The last section to the summit involves ice climbing followed by a long steep snow slope: often ropes are employed all the way to the summit. The reasons for this are three-fold: safety, speed, and success. Due to the technical nature of the route, ropes will be fixed for most of the climb above camp one. A good working knowledge of abseiling and use of mechanical ascenders (jumars) is mandatory; prior experience is required.
Objective dangers on the SW Ridge route are minimal, ice cliffs do not threaten it, the snow slopes are generally stable (with minimal avalanche risk), the rock is of good quality and the mountain is below the reach of jet stream winds. The route is extremely exposed and mistakes with rope work can be unforgiving. For this reason, we have a low client: guide ratio and use experienced guides to keep you safely on track. Your guide(s) will be involved in the fixing of rope and the smooth running of the expedition but their primary concerns are client safety, best service and success.
Island Peak "ImjeTse", 6,160meter has an impressive, highly glaciated West Face, which rises from the Lhotse Glacier. In fact, the mountain extends from the South Ridge of Lhotse Shar and is separated only by a small col.
Above this gap is the ridge leading to the summit. From base camp, we will ascend a steep, grassy slope and small rocky steps to high camp. It is necessary to climb a steep, exposed 300 meters of snow and ice ramp to the summit ridge; fixed ropes will be used at this point in an otherwise, non-technical snow climb. We will negotiate a final tricky snow pitch before reaching the summit. Again, stunning views of the surrounding mountains can be seen from the peak, including Nuptse, Lhotse, Cho Polu, Makalu, AmaDablam and Baruntse.
Situated on a large meadow with wonderful views of the Imja valley.
Our first real camp is only one and a half-hours walk above Yak camp. This section is marked by rock cairns and involves boulder hopping and some easy scrambling. We sometimes fix a couple of sections with rope to be used as a handrail.
This section of the route is usually rock climbing only, depending on the season. The granite is high quality and the moves fun, challenging and exposed but “do-able”. We follow a narrow ridge, switching back and forth on each side of the ridge. This is the hardest rock climbing of the entire route. In places the exposure is extreme and you are very thankful for the fixed ropes in place. Whilst it is generally easier not to pull on the ropes all the time if you are finding the going getting a bit too hard you can just rest on the fixed rope. You can also use your jumar to help you over the odd spot of difficulties. Most of the climbing in this section is traversing on the rock, so good rock climbing skills will help you move efficiently and quickly over this terrain.
Camp two: Situated on top of the YellowTower on a narrow platform this campsite is rather exposed and has fantastic views. If you dropped your cup from here it would probably land in base camp!
Now for the hardest snow and ice pitches of the route. We follow a system of steep snow and ice gullies up to join a feature called the Mushroom Ridge. Whilst the ridge itself is not as technical as the gullies leading up to it, the exposure here is palpable. It is a narrow, windy, snow mushroom-like ridge with giant Himalayan peaks in the background. This feature leads us up onto a small plateau at 6300 m, which serves the purpose of camp three.
Camp three: A cold and exposed position is the start of our summit push. The Sherpas will often use a full climbing rope to tie our tents down as the natural shape of the mountain can at times, unfortunately, funnel the wind to this location. It is, however, the only safe flat piece of real estate within the range of the summit.
The initial route is to the right of the huge “dablam” (ice cliff), up a moderately steep slope, which is often iced. Once past this feature, we move toward the center of the face. The angle eases slightly and a couple of tough hours later we emerge on the summit (6,812m). The summit is the size of a tennis court and allows us to move around and take pictures. Five of the world’s six highest peaks are clearly visible, with many other 7000m and lesser peaks filling the gaps.
Day 1
Arrival in KTM, transfer to hotel& briefingDay 2
Half day sightseeing and afternoon equipment checking and fittingDay 3
Fly to Lukla, Trek to Phakding (2,600m)40min flight, 3-4hrs trekDay 4
Trek to Namche (3,440m) 5-6hrsDay 5
Acclimatization day in Namche to Khumjung/Khunde (3,800m)Day 6
Trek to Tengboche(3,905m) 6hrsDay 7
Trek to Dengboche (4,410m) 5hrsDay 8
Acclimatization day in Dingboche up to 5,100mDay 9
Trek to Chukung (4,743m) 3-4hrsDay 10
Acclimatization to Chukung Ri (5,550m), 5hrsDay 11
Trek to Island Peak base camp (4,970m) 4hrsDay 12
Summit attempt of Island Peak (6,160m) and return to base camp 10hrs / to ChukungDay 13
Trek to Pangboche (3,930m)Day 14
Trek to Amadablam base camp (4,600m)Day 15-23
Climbing Period on Mt. AmadablamDay 24
Trek to Pangbouche, 4hrsDay 25
Trek to Namche 5hrsDay 26
Trek to Lukla 6hrsDay 27
Fly to KathmanduDay 28
Free day in KathmanduDay 29
Int’l departure to home Our 6,000m expedition peaks are more challenging than trekking peak climbing trips. Your tough level of fitness is really important for this trip; therefore we strongly suggest preparing yourself for good physical fitness level. You do not need to be an athlete, but a good level of overall fitness is important. Being fit will certainly improve your chances of reaching your chosen summit. As an indication, you should be able to walk 8 km / 5 miles with a maximum height gain of 800m/2,000ft with a 10kg rucksack in 5 hours or less.
In order to get ready for this challenge, you need to be trained at least for about 5 to 7 months to prepare yourself as a strong candidate. You can go to the fitness center every morning for about 2 hours, do hiking every weekend with increasing weights on your pack (i.e. 7kg, 10kg, 13 kg, 16kg and up to 20kg), manage some time for cycling for a couple of hours for 3 or 4 times a week. However, during climbing, there might be little symptoms of altitude illness like mild headache, fatigue, etc. but take it as normal and just drink a lot of water (4 – 5 liters) every day. On this trek, you need to be able to hike 6 – 10 hours over hilly terrain up to 6,000m of altitude with a daypack. On the summit push, extra effort is required walking on ice and climbing up to 10 – 12 hours. We will have porters to carry our heavy camping equipment, food and also the climbing gear.
All of our 6000m expedition trips are accessible to experienced trekkers and those who have done some climbing trips in European mountains in order to take another challenge on the Himalayas Mountains. This trip will be helpful if you want to gain some knowledge about mountaineering and have a future plan to climb the BIG Mountains.
If you have any previous mountaineering experiences and well knowledge about how to play with mountaineering gears, good with rock climbing and ice climbing, will surely increase the chances of reaching the summit and also previous trekking and mountaineering experiences is mandatory but doesn’t require any technical experience. But if you are participating in one the technical climbing peak then you must have well knowledge about how to use the mountaineering climbing gears (i.e. crampon with boot, Ice axe, harness, ropes, jumars, prussiks, abseiling, moving past knots, anchor etc.).Crampons are used for maximum grip and harness and ropes are used for maximum safety during climbing. But for those who have no mountaineering experience and skill but have got tough level of fitness, you will have basic training sessions by our guides about how to use the climbing gears during rest/acclimatization day. So we always make sure regarding the safety of the team and the successful climb of the peak.
I had the amazing opportunity of trekking through Khumbu, Nepal over Renjo La towards Gokyo lake and back down through Namche Bazaar. This trip would have been impossible without the incredible support of the Dream Himalaya Adventures team. They handled all of the logistics and support throughout the trip so that our experience could be completely stress free. The amazing staff is so kind, friendly, and some of the best people that you'll have the opportunity of becoming acquainted with. I'll be going back soon with Dream Himalaya and I recommend you do the same!
Dream Himalaya provided an unforgettable adventure led by our exceptional guide Karma. His expertise, coupled with his genuine love and joy for the mountains, made him an absolute joy to be with for three weeks. With his support and the rest of the team, we successfully climbed Lobuche Peak. We couldn't have achieved it without Dawa's professionalism, meticulous planning, and genuine care.
Dream Himalaya Adventures is a great service provider. We trekked along the Bhote Koshi towards Nangpa La. Then, crossed Renjo La and spent some time in Gokyo before heading south along the Dudhkoshi to Chumoa. Pema and Kami are extremely helpful, thoughtful, and reliable. They made our trek very comfortable. Our hosts at the guesthouses were kind and generous. Dawa and his team provided great service. I highly recommend Dream Himalaya Adventures.
We took a slow pace trekking clockwise up and over the Renzo pass. It was a stunning journey: all of the guesthouses we stayed in were lovely (warm, clean, with delicious food), and our guides were so kind and caring! Pema and Kami were so fun to spend the trek with, flexible in our group's plans, and very thoughtful, helping us achieve all that we wanted to do. I hope to do another trek with Dream Himalaya Adventures in the future!
To: Dream Himalaya Adventures c/o Dawa, The service you have provided during my trek was superb. Your services are excellent and worthy of recommendation. You deserve this recognition and appreciation!!! There is always a touch of excellence in your work! Thank you and God bless! Keep it up!
Thank you to Dawa and Dream Himalaya Adventures for making our trip an adventure of a lifetime! Very professional with outstanding communication even during our preparation. All our expectations were exceeded! Staff was very kind and professional as well. Shout out to our Sherpa Pasang and our porters for a job well done. They took care of us well. Thanks to my hiking buddies Gary and Vlad your the best! Dream Himalaya Adventures is the way to go! 🙏
A great experience & adventure even though quite challenging. Dawa from Dream Himalayan Adventures was excellent & very accommodating ,he makes sure you are well equiped for the adventure ahead. The accommodation on the trek is serviceable & the food surprisingly very good considering the remoteness. The staff at base camp ,sherpas & porters are all friendly ,helpfull & know their stuff. I would be very happy to use Dream Himalaya Adventures again.
I’m so glad I chose Dream Himalaya to handle the logistics for my EBC Trek this April 2023. Everything was meticulously planned, handled and executed from the get go which enabled me to enjoy a great hassle free trek. Everything from thé coordinator, guides and sherpa were awesome. Truly world class service from the day you arrive at KTM until you say your goodbyes . These are the stuff dreams are made of .
What an adventure ! in a beautiful location surrounded by beautiful people. I was treated like family by Dawa and Pasang. All I have is beautiful memories and superb photos. I loved Nepal / Himalayas/ Everest region and would only recommend Dawa and the team to trek with in Nepal.
We had the best time with the team from Dream Himalaya Adventures they went above and beyond for me and my wife before, during and after our trip I will be 100% returning to do my trips with Dawa and his team
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