Climbing Island Peak

We had the pleasure of climbing Island Peak with High Himalayan; our trip included Everest Base Camp, Kala Patthar and Island Peak. Jyamchang and his entire team did an extraordinary job of taking care of us, always doing the extra to take care of us and make sure we had the best possible opportunity to succeed with our climb. The team is both skilled and strong, and helped us in every possible way, such as carrying extra from our personal equipment to relieve our loads etc. We would not have succeeded on Island Peak without the care, support, help and patience from a strong team of climbing guides. One area for improvement; we would have appreciated more information about practicalities, equipment, itinerary etc before the trip. I hope to return to Nepal again in the not-too-distant future and would be happy to make a new trip with High Himalayan.

It was a trip of a life time ! But unfortunately there was a few issues that I will list here : - Before booking, I specifically asked if our guide will really be Tshering Bhote, and you told me "yes". I book the trip, arrive in Kathmandu, and realize that our guide will NOT be Tshering... Not cool... - The "to buy" list we got from you (Explore Share) included ropes of certain diameter and certain length, and when you arrived in Kathmandu, the guide told us right away that it was not suitable ! We had to buy new ones. - Before leaving, I asked if I can rent some of the heavy gear (crampons, ice axe, also helmet) and I was told yes. Once in Kathmandu, they tell you that you cannot rent crampons, you need to buy them. This is not nice because then you don't get much choice in models and in prices... And I didn't allow for this extra weight in my bags too, which then creates problems at the airport on the way back home. But the worst was the helmet : the company lent me a helmet that was broken in many parts. I asked the guide several times to have another one, he didn't want to. I didn't pay for it, but the helmet was not comfortable and made me have sore head, and it was a serious safety issue. - The itinerary makes us climb LOBUCHE EAST first, then ISLAND PEAK, and finally AMA DABLAM last. Which makes sens because AMA DABLAM is the highest and more complicated mountain to climb, so it gives us time to acclimate, to get used to the mountain gear, and to gain confidence hiking in high altitude before trying the big one. But right from day 1, our guide's plans was not to do AMA DABLAM last (but he didn't tell us). Indeed, he forced us to go to AMA DABLAM before ISLAND PEAK, even though we didn't want to. And sad to say that on summit day, the weather was better on ISLAND PEAK than on AMA DABLAM. I later on learned that they always do it this way. So why not telling us right from the beginning and change the itinerary that we receive before booking ? The fact that they receive a summit bonus on AMA DABLAM and not on ISLAND PEAK could explain this... But then the hike is not done according to the hiker's needs and will, which is a shame. - After doing AMA DABLAM, we were then supposed to go to ISLAND PEAK. But to our surprise, our guide stayed in AMA DABLAM to guide another group ! (another summit bonus...). Instead, he asked one of the sherpas to guide us to ISLAND PEAK, along with 2 porters. The sherpa/guide is a really nice guy, trying hard to help, but could barely speak any English and had no mountain certifications at all. The trip advertises, in big block letters and in the trip's title, a guide with big fancy mountain certifications, and we ended up with someone not speaking English and with no certifications, to take us to the second highest mountain of the trip ! Not cool... The guide that I paid for is on AMA DABLAM, also getting paid by another group. How does this work ? - On LOBUCHE EAST, the guide also skipped the crevas rescuing training day. He explained that other people in the group didn't feel so well, that's why he preferred skipping it and doing it later on AMA DABLAM or ISLAND PEAK. The problem is that we never did this training day, even though we finished the trip with a few spare days left. Overall, it was still a great trip. The THG staff is great, nice, positive and helpful people. The cooking was just amazing ! The porters are always smiling, and everyone gets on well, making it a nice atmosphere. It's just lacking some communication between Explore Share and THG I think, and a guide maybe a bit more frank with his clients. Hope this helps ;-)

It was an excellent trip with a good team to take care of us. I just didn't liked 2 things : - Hidden cost that were revealed at the last minute (differents bonus not talked before) - The guide that pushed us too fast even when i was feeling sick and knowing we got plenty of time... Else Tseering and his teams were always there to help and adapt to our need.

A truely amazing experience that I would recommend for anyone serious about climbing AMA Dablam. You need a very high level of fitness & mental strength to climb ama Dablam, it is not a beginner peak. Research the climb, gear required & treking around the Khumbu area before you desire to do this course so you are under no illusions prior to leaving for Nepal. If you have done the research, have all the right gear and have trained appropriately I guarantee you will love this. I recommend purchasing Uphill Athletes 24wk mountaineering training program to get you into mountain shape.

Very good acclimatisation program and safe 1:1 climbing as I always was well looked after. Communication regarding weather and conditions were meticulous so we could adapt as we went along, increasing safety.

I had an amazing experience with Tshering’s experienced and highly qualified team including guide Sonam Shalaka and Sherpa Thomas Vechayba. I really enjoyed the concept of acclimating for Ama Dablam by doing the Everest Base Camp trek via Gokyo Lakes and climbing a number of peaks along the way, including Lobuche, rather than the typical repetitive climbs from base camp. It is always my preference to climb with local guides who intimately know the mountain and local customs and this was a perfect example of the benefits of that rather than going with a large group of westerners. Explore-Share always does a great job of facilitating those connections. This was an outstanding experience all around and I would gladly recommend Tshering and his team for any mountaineering experience in the Himalayas.

I would definitely recommend booking with Tshering’s company, Top Himalaya Guides! He is very welcoming and due to his extensive experience with the mountains, he can help you with all the arrangements and any questions or other service requests you have. Due to his recommendation, we were able to change my itinerary to something that I wouldn’t have wanted to miss out on! He also provided excellent staff, my guide Namja was very experienced and qualified, which made me feel super safe in the mountains at all times. I can only look back on an incredible trip! Already looking forward to the next!

I can't say enough about Top Himalaya Guides (THG)! Extremely knowledgeable and experienced guides with a genuine passion for the mountains. Our lead guide Sonam did a great job of managing expectations and ensuring that we stayed healthy and happy throughout the expedition. We were fortunate to summit all of our objectives including Ama Dablam, which was an experience of a lifetime. I highly recommend THG for any Himalayan experience and will definitely be using them again when I return to Nepal!!

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This company made my trip to Nepal and Himalaya to a great and memorable journey! The guide is professional, friendly and everything was well organized. I went to Himalayan Alpine Mountaineering course who is a great way to experience both trekking and climbing in Himalaya.