Everest Base Camp packing list

The Ultimate packing list for the famous Everest Base Camp Trek- 12 night, 13 days.

We completed base camp in Winter from 4th Feb – 16th. It was cold with temperatures dropping to -24 on a night in the higher altitudes. We had to pack more warm layers than you would need in the popular trekking months of March, April and October.

Women’s Packing List-

Essentials before the trek:

Passports
TIMs Card (permit to allow you into park bought in Kathmandu)
Plenty of Rupees, as no ATM’s. We took about £250 for all accommodation, food, water and the odd toilet roll or wifi. You would need a tad more if want to eat better meals, as we were ill we both stuck to plain rice for every meal.
A Map if you are doing it solo, or download Maps.me for Iphone/Android, it has the whole route on there.

Clothes and gear:

2 Dri fit Tops- 1 long sleeve top 1 short
1 trekking Tshirt
2 Merino wool thermal base layer tops.
1-2 sports bra
4 pairs of pants- some girls used panty liners to keep their knickers clean so only had to take 1 pair.
2 liner socks
3 pair woollen blend trekking socks
1 pair trekking pants with zip off bottoms- to make into shorts for warmer months.
1 pair of warm fleeced leggings for sleeping
1 pair Marino wool thermal leggings- extra layering only for Winter months.
1 pair of sports leggings – it gets hot in the day even in February and i walked in just these for the first 6 days.
2 fleece sweaters – one lightweight (daytime), one heavier (nighttime).

Outer Layers

1 wind/rain proof over-layer- I had a rain mac and then a big down coat I rented from Kathmandu to go over my smaller down jacket when it hit -20. You will not need 2 coats in March/April.
1 down jacket
2 warm woolly winter hats- one that covers your ears for sleeping.
1 peak hat- for hotter months
1 Buff to cover your face/ ears when it’s cold walking or to protect you from dust on the path.
2 pair gloves – 1 will do for warmer months.
1 Pair good walking boots.
1 pair of sandals for toilet trips and to give your feet a break (we only took our walking boots as it was to cold on a night to wear anything else, but these would be extremely useful in March/April.

Gear-

1 head lamp and 1 torch for on a night
1 sleeping bag at -20. Can go more lightweight in warmer months as tea houses supply blankets if needed.
1 pair of sunglasses for the UV rays
Hiking poles

Technology:

Everyone will take different depending on their interest in the photography side of things but i took-

1 DSLR Camera and charger (I didn’t need to charge once)
1 re-charger that charges up to 7 times.
Solar chargers are a great idea as you can strap them to you bag when walking and then charge at night. They are expensive to buy, but if you take a lot of tech with you it’s a good investment.
Extra batteries for headlamps/torches
1 GoPro
1 Iphone and charger

Tip: Keep batteries close to your body or in your sleeping bag to make them last longer.

First Aid and Toiletries:

Diamox – to help with altitude sickness (I took these from Namche Bazaar as I got ill and didn’t know if it was altitude or food poisoning)
Chlorine Tables to purify water- a great money saver as water gets expensive.
Sunscreen
chapstick for lips
immodium – diarrhoea is common at altitude and we both experienced this.
Plasters and blister pads
Cold and flu tablets – We didn’t need these but i know a few people who got bad colds up there.
Moisturiser- a small tube of this is fine, our ankles and legs from not being out got super dry and flaky in our leggings
Tweezers
Paracetamol for headaches- if they don’t work then you have the altitude headache and should either take Diamox or rest until it goes.
Toilet paper- lots of! It gets super expensive the higher you get so stock up down below.
Dry shampoo
Hand sanitizer
Micro fibre towel if you want to pay for a shower! If not don’t take one.
Travel hairbrush and toothbrush

Extras:

Tang – to make your water taste good. Loads of flavours- Buy in Kathmandu
Tea bags – as you can buy boiled water in Teahouses. Tea is still cheap though so not a necessity.
Chocolate – even just for reaching the top. We cant eat chocolate but would have killed for a snickers up there.
Trail mix /peanuts/ oat bars for snacks through the day- These are a must as they massively helped during the 3 hour hikes uphill.
Sweets- at higher altitude its hard to eat and walk as you get so out of breathe. Having some sucky sweets would have been a great sugar hit whilst not having to chew.
Cards or a small book to kill time on an evening
A camel pack for water is great as you don’t have to stop to drink and reach into your bag to get it. Our water bottles got so cold at base camp that the water inside froze and we had nothing to drink for hours.