Yeah, I cried a little… ok, I cried a lot haha.

It was just one of those life-changing moments ya know. You can’t speak, you just stare, and breathe, and the happy tears come rolling down your cheeks. You smile your biggest smile, and you say to yourself “YEAH!! This is what it’s all about!” It’s the ultimate “high” (5,895m high, yeehaw!) You hug everyone in sight, and you notice that a few of them are crying too. That’s the joy you feel after an 8-day trek when you’re standing at Everest Base Camp (EBC). There’s tears, hugs, laughter, singing, and lots and lots of dancing atop the helipad. It’s magical, to say the least.

It’s safe to say that some of the best days of my life were the days I spent trekking along the most beautiful trail I had ever seen- the trail from the little village of Lukla, Nepal to EBC.

The terrain could change so much in a day. The jaw dropping views, the sweet sounds and smells of Mother Nature, and all the feelings I felt along the way, were an ultimate sensory overload. It wasn’t just the beauty that overwhelmed me, it was the physical demands, and learning about the Sherpas way of life in the Himalayas. There’s something so very rewarding about pushing yourself out of your comfort zone and seeing the things you’ve dreamed about in person.

Like many of my trekking goals, I had left EBC on my “someday To-Do List.” Lucky for me, fate had other plans. In May 2018, the owner of Travel Her Way invited me to join her and four other women on a journey to trek EBC. At first, I was on the fence, I didn’t feel financially or physically prepared, and I kept telling myself to “be responsible” and stay home, and work, and blah blah blah… LAME. The YOLO crept in, and as I started doing my research, I realized something super cool; the proceeds from our trek would pay for a years’ worth of education for a child in Nepal. Ok, ok, SOLD! This girl is trekking EBC!

One of the best parts about adventuring with strangers is making friendships that will last a lifetime. Over the course of those 15 days, we became a little family. I took so much more from this journey than I could have ever asked for, and I am truly grateful for that. Shout out to Travel Her Way for making the magic happen.

We came, we saw, we conquered. Then we had an ice cold beer at the top.  Cheers to an amazing group of people and the good times we shared on this adventure of a lifetime. We freaking crushed it! 

The hardest part about EBC was leaving EBC. “But I’m so close already, I can’t go back now?!” But yeah I would totally die up there, haha… but maybe not…. Everest is a HUGE commitment, it cost an average of $65,000-$70,000, and don’t get me started on the training.

My Everest dream remains tucked in my back pocket until I feel “ready,” but the question is- when are we ever really ready to risk it all to fulfill our wildest dreams?

More of Sarah’s story as shared on Instagram…

May 4, 2018

“Just taking a little stroll along one of the most iconic, well known treks in the world! 🌍 Round trip our #ebc trek will take 11 days, 2 of which are acclimatization days, and from our starting point (Lukla, Nepal) it’s a solid 80.78 miles out and back. The length is definitely not the hard part- it’s the high altitude gains along the rocky terrain and the risk of altitude sickness that’s the real kicker here. 💪🏻😅 So ready to get my ass handed to me by this beast of a trek! 🗻”

May 7, 2018

“Hanging with my mountaineer man Tenzing Norgay and enjoying the Everest view! 🙌🏻On May 29th 1953 Sherpa Tenzing and Sir Edmund Hillary were the first to summit Mt. Everest, Happy 65th Anniversary to these brave souls 🙏🏻 I can only dream of what it would be like to make that ascent.”

“It’s crazy how Ama Dablam (the sharp beautiful Peak to my right) looks so much bigger than Everest (the little bump above my backpack) from here. When I look at it all I can think about is how badly I want to summit the top! We were only a few hours from the Ama Dablam Base camp and from there it’s a 9-10 hr trek to the top. Maybe next time Ama Dablam.”

May 12, 2018

“17,500 ft wooohooo 🙌🏻 😆after 8 days of trekking we found ourselves standing a mile and a half from China, this is #ebc 🗻 and this was hands down one of the best days of my life!”

May 16, 2018

“Gotta give a shout out to one of the happiest, most fun-loving humans I’ve ever met 🙏🏻 Nirmal is one of those bright, sunshiny people that you immediately enjoy being around. He’s so entertaining, with never ending energy/never ending dance moves🕺🎶and he’s a big reason our 11 day trek was so much fun. There are many different ways to explore the #everestbasecamptrek . Im thankful for having a guide that is not only knowledgeable, but also enjoyed connecting with us while sharing his language, culture, and beautiful homeland🇳🇵 @stylestbro Thanks for being such a great teacher & friend, we love you Nirmal☀️”

May 18, 2018

”If you know me, then you know I’m very much a ‘feeler’ 💓#enfp personality ALL THE WAY✌🏻I definitely shed some tears along this trek and truth be told, I was quite overwhelmed with emotion on this particular day. 😭 For starters- Everest Base Camp- are you kidding me?! It was the morning after, and I’d never felt so on top of the world. My heart was overflowing with compassion watching and learning about the Sherpas’ way of life. It broke my heart, and filled me with gratitude as I thought about how good I have it. I started imagining how I could revisit these villages of the EBC trail and how I could help. Much love & kudos to you @travel.her.way for providing a way to give back to this community🙏🏻 I love what you do and I’m grateful to have journeyed with you all 💞”