It has been five years since I decided I wanted to become a trekking guide. My journey started by being a porter. Even though I have many connections in the trekking and tourism industry, I wanted to fulfill the role of a porter, to experience the life and the pain.

In the beginning, it was extremely hard. I had to carry a 30-kilogram load on my back with a rope that went around my forehead. However it was my first trek, and I felt excited and happy. I was going to be trekking to the Throng La Pass, the world’s highest pass at 5416 meters!

In 2014, I got chance to join the Peak Promotion team. Here I got a good chance to grow and excel. I’ve since been on many of their treks. This year, I received a call from the office in March, and was told that I would go with the Wilderness Medical Society team. I was happy to be given this chance. It was my first trek of the season and my first time with WMS.

As we were busy preparing for this trek, one by one the group arrived in Nepal. On March 23rd, I met the group. We went through the itinerary and for a welcome dinner.

I joined the team on a city tour. We visited many heritage sites, including BouddhaNath, Swyambhunath, the Great Stupa of Buddhist, and Pashupathi Nath, the Great Hindu Temple. It was an enjoyable day and a nice way to get to know the group.

Next we were all ready to fly to Lukla. We met the group at 4:45am at their hotel. After a slight delay due to not uncommon weather conditions, we were on our flight. We took our first of many tea breaks at the Khumbu resort in Lukla. Then our real journey began.

As each day passed we got to know each other well. We had so much fun that we didn’t realize how fast our days passed. Our team was full of entertainment and everyone was different, each with their own style. To sum them up in one word, I would have to say unique. We had plenty of fun, from card games to soccer matches.

One moment we won’t forget, on April 1st, the WMS trekkers played an April Fool’s Day joke on us. In the morning as we brought morning tea to each room, the group was nowhere to be found—until we checked the last room and found the whole team hiding together. They all laughed at the and yelled “April Fools!”

We all arrived to Everest Case Camp on April 3rd, where we spent two nights. At basecamp, it was normal for us to hear the ice crack from the glacier beneath us, but for those new to basecamp, it would take some getting use to. After our two nights of camping there, we began our journey back. We left four doctors, who stayed at EBC as volunteers in Everest ER – HRA (Himalayan Rescue Association).

On the way back to Lukla, we met another trekker Rodolfo from Brazil. He trekked the Chola pass and to EBC with another guide from Peak Promotion. They both us for the trek back. Rodolfo began to enjoy trekking with group. We played many a card game.

On April 7^th our last day of the trek, we all had dinner together and danced a lot to celebrate the success of our EBC trek!

We left Lukla for KTM on April 8th. That day I learned that I would to go to Pokhara Poonhill Trek with Rodolfo the next morning. Our trek started well, but two days in, Rodolfo told me he was not enjoying the trek. I asked him if there was anything I could do; had I made a mistake along the way? He then explained that when he started his trek to EBC, he was enjoying it thoroughly and he was happy that it was only himself and his guide, Phula. Then he met the WMS team and trekked with this “unique” group. Everything changed and he began to enjoy it even more. But now he was trekking in the jungle of Pokhara and he felt alone. He badly missed the group. He missed the card games, the conversations and the laughs. That was all he told me, but at the time I didn’t tell him that I, too, missed the group.

Last but not least, I want to say live in the present moment. Never be regretful for what is in the past. WMS group 2016 mean a lot to me, as they each taught me a lot. Thank you!

Special thanks to Mike McLaughlin and Hannah Dennison, who gave me this opportunity to share my feelings and views.

— Ang Dawa Sherpa, from Tapting 1, Solukhumbu Nepal