At around 5,357m, or 17,575 ft, Gokyo Ri affords tremendous views of the Himalayas. In this image I highlighted some of the near peaks which are so clear and punctual, it feels like you can touch them from across the valley. To the right is Mt. Everest but from this location, the Machermo Range steals the show, in my book.
Trekking to this spot takes about a week and then another day to hoof it up the hill from 2,500′ below. We chose to head up before sunrise in order to capture the morning light and we were not disappointed. Buddhist prayer flags adorn many of the rock cairns atop of the ridge and we even found a Hello Kitty shrine, just to throw in some ‘weird’ for the day.
The trek up the valley and then up the final hill may leaving you huffing, but the views from the summit will leave you breathless.