Lauren Harby ’23 and her travel partner look out towards the Ama Dablam peak, one of the many peaks along the route to Everest south base camp. (Photo courtesy of Lauren Harby ’23)/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cI had never met another female solo traveler who wanted to do the same thing,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d Harby says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cSo we met up and we said, /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2018Let/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019s do this together./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019 /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
Their 12-day journey stretched to 17 due to weather delays in Kathmandu, Nepal, but they faced this setback with determination. Accompanied by a porter, who carried their larger bags, and a knowledgeable sherpa guide, Harby’s daily routine started at 6 a.m., involving six to seven hours of hiking and periodic stops at eateries and rest areas./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
The first few stops in lower altitude /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2014 Phakding, Namche Bazaar, Tengboche /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2014 offered plenty of homey comforts. They found Irish bars, bakeries, plenty of souvenirs and gear shopping and religious sites such as the Tengboche Monastery. Ascending from lower altitudes to over 13,000 feet, the trek grew increasingly difficult, with altitude sickness posing a significant challenge. Harby mitigated symptoms like headache and dry cough with acetazolamide tablets./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
As the environment changed at each stop, familiar faces provided a sense of community./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/nDuring the trek’s toughest moments, an Australian traveler’s quote kept her going: “You’ve got to cram your life with life.” (Photo courtesy of Lauren Harby ’23)/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cSince most guided treks follow the same schedule, you see the same people almost every day,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d she says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cMeeting up for evening tea and to just decompress from the day was a highlight as we journeyed onward. We even started a WhatsApp group to keep in touch./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
By 4 p.m., the group would reach their next town and check-in to a lodging place, called a tea house, for the night. These tea houses are designed to meet trekkers/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019 basic needs /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2014 food and a place to sleep. Extras like a hot shower, Wi-Fi, toilet paper and charging stations are available for an additional cost./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cMost evenings we/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019d end up in the common area [of the tea house] where fellow travelers would wind down from a long day of trekking,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d she says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cI/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019d just tune out the world for a couple of hours and watch some shows that I downloaded on my iPad just to have some sense of normalcy./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
Their arrival at base camp was unmistakable, marked by a massive rock bearing the words “Everest Base Camp” in red paint./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cI didn/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019t think I would cry once I saw base camp for the first time. Once my hand touched the rock, that/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019s when it really felt exhilarating,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d she says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cIt just felt overwhelming /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2026 to be there in person./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/nBuddhist prayer flags on a chorten along the Everest south base camp route. They are a religious focal point, believed to positively impact nearby residents and passersby. (Photo courtesy of Lauren Harby ’23)/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/nForever Changed/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n Trekking to Everest base camp in Nepal was a unique experience for Harby, distinct from her past adventures in paragliding, skydiving and climbing fourteeners in Colorado. She marks the journey as one of her biggest accomplishments in life so far./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cThis journey has proven to me that I can do anything, and whatever challenges I face along the way, I’ll find a way to overcome them./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cI learned that I am capable of so much more than I really think that I am,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d she says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cThis journey has proven to me that I can do anything, and whatever challenges I face along the way, I’ll find a way to overcome them./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
It/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019s onward and upward for Harby from this point forward. With her newfound courage to dream bigger, she plans to return to Nepal and take on the Annapurna base camp as well as Mount Kilimanjaro in the future./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n
/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cIf you have a goal, believe in your goal and your soul is going to get you there,/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d she says. /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201cYour spirit is so much stronger than you think it is, and I fully believe that we’re all capable./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201d/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Climbing to Mount Everest/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019s south base camp was not just a goal for Lauren Harby /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u201923, but a transformative journey revealing her inner strength and resilience./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":141630,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"lazy_load_responsive_images_disabled":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[15992],"tags":[9144,2319,202],"tu_author":[],"class_list":["post-141629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","tag-college-of-undergraduate-studies","tag-interdisciplinary-studies","tag-alumni"],"yoast_head":"/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/nEverest Bound: UCF Alumna/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/u2019s Epic Trek to the South Base Camp | 女仆AV News/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/t /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/t /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/t /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/t /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/t /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/t /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/141629/n