It’s hard to believe another month has disappeared already. Last month’s update finished with me saying that this adventure was finally starting to feel real.
Well… we’ve gone well beyond “feels real” now.
The Emirates flights are booked.
Somewhere in the Emirates booking system there’s a seat with my name on it that’s expecting me to turn up next April and fly halfway around the world. It’s a strange feeling. For months this challenge has been something I’ve been working towards, but now there’s a departure date attached to it. There’s no backing out because I forgot to put the bins out or because it’s raining. Nepal is officially happening.
Now comes the easy part…
…walking 120 kilometres through the Himalayas.
Speaking of walking…
One of the biggest milestones this month has absolutely nothing to do with Nepal.
I’ve now officially lost 85 pounds.
Eighty-five pounds.
If you’d told me a year ago that I’d lose over six stone, I’d probably have laughed, reached for another takeaway menu and promised I’d “start on Monday.”
Instead, here we are.
Looking back at old photos has become a surreal experience. I don’t really recognise the bloke staring back at me. The biggest change isn’t even what I see in the mirror—it’s how I feel. Walking doesn’t hurt anymore. Hills don’t fill me with dread. I no longer find myself mentally calculating where the next bench might be.
Don’t get me wrong… I still appreciate a good bench. I just don’t need one every twenty minutes.
The funny thing is that losing weight isn’t really the goal anymore. When this journey started, I wanted to become healthier. Now I’m training to give myself the best possible chance of enjoying every second of one of the greatest adventures of my life.
And, strangely enough…
I’m absolutely loving it.
I’m regularly knocking out 8 to 10-mile training walks, seeking out hills, adding weight to my backpack and generally making life deliberately more difficult. Somewhere along the way, my brain has decided this is fun.
A year ago I’d have questioned anyone who voluntarily spent a Sunday walking up steep hills carrying a loaded rucksack.
Now I’m one of them.
I’ve even reached the stage where I get genuinely excited about lightweight waterproofs, trekking poles and finding a backpack that’s 200 grams lighter than the last one.
Who knew middle age would look like this?
I’ve also finally seen the complete route we’ll be taking. The statistics alone are enough to make your calves ache.
- 120 kilometres of trekking.
- 22000 feet of elevation gain.
- Reaching Kala Patthar at 5,644 metres, where we’ll be rewarded with what many consider the finest view of Mount Everest.
The elevation profile is something else….
It starts off looking fairly civilised before someone in Nepal clearly announces, “Right… enough of this flat nonsense,” and points the trail straight towards the sky.
The good news is it eventually comes back down….The bad news is… not before you’ve climbed all of it.
One thing that’s made this adventure even more special over the last few weeks is discovering that I won’t be doing it alone.
A couple of good friends have now decided they’re coming along for the challenge too.
I’m genuinely delighted. Not only will it make the whole experience even more memorable, but it also means I’ll have someone to laugh with when we’re gasping for breath halfway up a Himalayan hillside wondering whose brilliant idea this was.
(I’m fairly sure we’ll all blame each other.)
The fundraising has also reached a milestone that I genuinely didn’t expect to hit this soon.
When I first launched this challenge, I set myself what felt like a very ambitious fundraising target.
Well…
We’ve reached it.
Not only that, we’ve gone beyond it.
I honestly can’t thank everyone enough for the incredible support. Every donation, every share, every message and every word of encouragement has helped keep this journey moving forward.
A particularly special thank you goes to one incredibly generous donor, whose donation single-handedly pushed the fundraising total beyond my original target. Your generosity genuinely blew me away, and I’m incredibly grateful.
Reaching that original target also marks the beginning of something even better.
Every single penny raised will be donated directly to Cancer Research. Thanks to another good friend for helping on the administration – you know who you are.
That means if you’ve been thinking about sponsoring me but assumed I’d already “finished” fundraising, please don’t let that stop you. The original goal has been achieved, but every additional pound raised now goes straight towards supporting the incredible work Cancer Research carries out every single day.
Knowing that this challenge can continue raising money beyond what I’d originally hoped for makes every training mile feel even more worthwhile.
There’s still a long road between now and April.
There’ll be more training walks.
More hills.
More kit testing.
More alarm clocks going off far earlier than any sensible person should be awake.
There’ll undoubtedly be sore feet, aching legs and moments where I question why I didn’t simply take up something easier… like chess.
But every step is getting me closer.
Six months ago I was hoping I could lose enough weight to make this challenge possible.
Today, I’m 85 pounds lighter, fitter than I’ve been in years, the flights are booked, the fundraising target has been smashed, friends are joining me on the adventure, and the dream of standing at Everest Base Camp no longer feels like a dream.
It feels like a plan.
As always, thank you to every single one of you for following the journey. Whether you’ve donated, shared an update, left a comment or simply taken the time to read these posts each month, you’ve helped me get this far.
The mountain is getting closer.
And for the first time…
I genuinely can’t wait to meet it.
Until next time,
Rich x
Rich treks Everest Base Camp 2027 