Description

Like coming to Dole from Namche, pushing on to Machermo involves another jump in altitude so either take a rest day in Dole or, at the very least, take this short day slowly and don’t rush.

There is not much ground to cover so there is no need to do anything more the stroll from farming village to farming village on the way up to Machermo, stopping for tea breaks at the lodges en route. The first lodge is at a spot called Lhabarma Kharka and the second at Luza Kharka.

Both offer the usual Nepalese beverage selection and typically excellent Khumbu views.

From Luza Kharka you can look down on Machermo, which covers quite a large area for having such a small population. If you move around the village you can find some excellent viewpoints and there are several good spots from which to take a look at the south face of Cho Oyu.

Cholatse and Tawoche also look excellent although it must be admitted that they look even better from the north.

If you cross the Cho La Pass (which is highly recommended) to the north of Machermo then you will descend beneath the north faces of these peaks and get to see their even better side. Machermo village is an ideal place for a rest day before pushing on up to Gokyo because it is high, but not too high and it gets a reasonable amount of sun.

Enjoying the warmth of the sun’s rays while letting your body acclimatise naturally is an excellent use of a day.