Stories from the Mountains

Oxygen at 56%. Altitude: 3,550 m. That was the first reading in Manang, one of the most popular stops on the Annapurna Circuit. Hospital records in Pokhara later documented High-Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE). This Manang HAPE rescue, coordinated by Himalayan Guardian Nepal with Alpine Rescue Service Pvt. Ltd., shows what happened next and what every trekker should know.

Late October is one of the best weeks to trek in Nepal, until a cyclone is on the forecast. Here is what is normal after Dashain, and what to check before you go.

At 4,357 m, a trekker’s oxygen saturation read 36%. This Dingboche altitude sickness helicopter rescue shows what followed: a clinic assessment, a medical note reading “urgent descent”, and an evacuation to Lukla, about 1,500 m lower. This anonymized case paper sets out what the records document, what the guidelines say, and what Everest Base Camp trekkers can learn from it.

“Is it the cheapest?” is not the first thing trekkers ask me. After months selling trekking insurance in Nepal, I can tell you what is.

On 17 October 2026, as many as 113,000 people are forecast to leave Kathmandu in a single day, and your trailhead bus may be among them. Trekking during Dashain in Nepal is possible, but transport, staff, permits and beds all change. Here's what to arrange first.

Flying to altitude can trigger altitude sickness but does flying away from it, by rescue helicopter, make things worse? Here's what actually happens, physiologically and operationally, during a Nepal high-altitude evacuation.