I have teamed up with Kathmandu giving tips and tricks about what to pack for the Everest Base Camp trek.
Ever since I could remember, hiking to Everest Base Camp has been my ultimate dream. I made it a goal of mine in 2019 to tick this off my bucket list, and I did it! Everest Base Camp is no walk in the park though, I can assure you of that. However, what helped me throughout my hike was making sure I packed the appropriate gear.
For 6 years I worked as a Kathmandu team member which has given me insight and knowledge into what gear you should be packing for your next trip to Everest Base Camp.
During my Everest Base Camp trek, there were a few things I noted that I didn’t realise initially going into my trip – baggage allowances, water, and how much you should be packing for each item. Depending on whether you are doing this as a solo journey without any help, or if you are doing Everest Base Camp with a tour group, these tips and tricks will still apply to you.
Baggage weight
As most of you would be well aware, your first pit stop on this long journey is flying into the infamous Tenzing–Hillary Airport in Lukla. Yes, these planes are very tiny, which is why there must be strict baggage allowances for the safety of the aircraft.
10kg for your main luggage (big backpack) and 5kg for your carry-on luggage (small day pack). You can always pay for extra kilos, but it will cost you USD 1 per kg. I don’t advise this anyway because what you pack you have to carry, and you should be trying to limit the weight as much as possible as it is a long hike.
I did my Everest Base Camp hike with Intrepid Travel. I used them because they are not only a well-renowned travel tour company but also hold responsible travel values for sustainable and ethical traveling.
You will witness on your hike many Donkeys, Yaks and Yows (Half-Yak, Half-Cow), wandering up and down the pathways. They are carrying hiker’s bags, rice, food, water, dal bhat, and just about everything you see along the way. However, I do not advise you to go with a tour company that uses animals to do these jobs. Instead give work to the Porters, which provides jobs to the local communities and people of Nepal.
Porters have a 30kg limit to what they can carry – which is normally two 15kg bags. So please be aware of this and limit your baggage weight when packing.
WHAT TO PACK
This all depends on what time of the year you decide to do the Everest Base Camp trek. My trip was in October, which is during one of the peak seasons to hike to Everest Base Camp. Even though this was the end of the Monsoon Season, I still experienced various types of weather – sun, rain, and snow. This list is a general rule on what you should be packing no matter the season.
Footwear
The first item you should purchase is a good pair of hiking shoes. The hiking shoes that I used were the Salomon X Ultra 3 Mid-GORE-TEX Women’s Boots. I have been using these hiking shoes for years now and have never had an issue with them. It is important to try on different pairs of hiking shoes to see which ones suit your feet properly. Make sure to wear them in before your hike as you don’t want to find out during the trek that they were no good.
Make sure to always fit your hiking shoes with a nice pair of merino socks and merino liners. I used both the NuYarn Ergonomic Hiking Socks/ Thermo Twin Pack Socks and MerinoLINK Liner Socks. I recommend five pairs of the Merino Hiking Socks and two pairs of the Merino Liner Socks. Use one pair of socks to wear to sleep at night or your feet will get cold!
Footwear Pack List:
- Hiking Boots – Salomon X Ultra 3 Mid GORE-TEX Boots, Tiber ngx Leather Hiking
- Merino Hiking Socks – NuYarn Ergonomic Hiking Socks/Thermo Twin Pack Socks
- Merino Liner Socks – MerinoLINK Liner Socks
Backpacks
Next, you need to decide what you will be packing your Kathmandu gear into. If you have decided to do this without a Porter, a 60-70 litre Hiking Backpack is essential. Otherwise, if you are in a tour group they will normally provide you with a bag for the Porters to carry. Make sure you get your pack fitted to you correctly, Kathmandu team members can help with this.
If you are in a tour group and have the option of a Porter carrying your main pack then a daypack is essential. I found that the Katabatic 28L Pack is a good size to fit all the necessary items needed when hiking. You want a daypack that is lightweight and has a comfortable harness system.
Backpack List:
- Hiking Backpack – XT Incite Pack, Vardo gridTECH 75L Backpack v2
- Daypack – Katabatic 28L Pack
- Pack Rain Cover (Medium)
Clothing
When deciding what clothing to purchase it is crucial to think about how much to bring for each item. I found that I initially overpacked some things and other items I needed more of. Clothing can be divided into three categories – Base Layers, Mid Layers, and Outer Layers.
Base Layers are the first item of clothing you should be looking at for your hike. There are four different types of thermals – KMDCore, KMDMotion, KMDAccent, and Merino. You will mainly be wearing thermals at nighttime and higher up the mountain as it gets cold. I suggest having two sets of thermals for hiking in (KMDMotion, KMDAccent, or Merino) and two sets of thermals for sleeping in (KMDCore, KMDMotion, KMDAccent, or Merino).
Base Layer Clothing:
Thermals (leggings and tops) – KMDCore, KMDMotion, KMDAccent, or Merino
Mid-Layers are what you wear over your Base Layers. Mid-Layers are a personal preference and will differ from my own choices of what I wore on the hike.
- Pack one (1) long-sleeved collared hiking shirt, you may also use your thermals as a long-sleeved shirt some days.
- Two (2) hiking tops. Core Spun Merino Blend, driMOTION Active T-Shirt, or the Zeolite Short Sleeve T-Shirt work really well.
- Either one (1) pair of hiking shorts or hiking leggings. I didn’t end up using my Praca Hiking Shorts and instead wore the Aysen Women’s Hybrid Leggings.
- Two (2) pairs of hiking pants. I mainly wore the Eris Women’s Softshell Pants and XT Verso Women’s Hiking Pants as I got higher.
- Two (2) fleece jumpers, one for hiking in and the other to wear at night. I wore an older version of the Escarpar Women’s Fleece Pullover when hiking and the Arenha Hooded Jacket at night/when relaxing.
Mid-Layer Clothing:
- Long Sleeve Shirt – Tapah L/S Shirt v2, Kangsar Men’s buzzGUARD Travel
- Hiking Tops – Core Spun Merino Blend, driMOTION Active T-Shirt
- Hiking Shorts/ Hiking Leggings – Trailhead Hiking Shorts, Aysen Hybrid Leggings
- Hiking Pants – Kanching Zip-off Pants, Tupelo Men’s Hiking Pants, XT Verso Pants
- Fleece – Ridge Fleece Pullover, Tauro Men’s Lightweight Fleece, Escarpar Fleece Pullover
Lastly, the Outer Layers mainly provide you with protection plus warmth. While hiking the Everest Base Camp trek I encountered sunny and rainy days, even an unforeseen weather forecast when a snowstorm rolled in. What I’m trying to say is that the weather in the Himalayas is extremely unpredictable, so you must come prepared!
You will need to have a good down jacket and a waterproof rain jacket for your hike. I wore the XT Pinnacle Women’s Down Jacket and Aysen Women’s GORE-TEX Jacket. The XT Pinnacle Down Jacket was amazing when I got closer to Everest Base Camp as it was freezing and it kept me extremely warm.
Another option is to go for a 3-In-1 Jacket (Talas Waterproof 3-in-1 Jacket, or Isograd ngx 3-in-1 Rain Jacket) or a Benmore ngx 5-in-1 Travel Rain Jacket. These options allow you to have both a waterproof outer layer and an insulation layer all combined in one.
I packed waterproof rain pants in case of an emergency but didn’t end up using them. This was mainly due to my XT Verso Hiking Pants being soft shell, which could repel some water off them keeping me warm. In saying this, it’s always a good idea to carry some in your daypack anyway.
Outer Layer Clothing:
- Down Jacket – Epiq Down Jacket, Talas Waterproof 3-in-1 Jacket, XT Pinnacle Down Jacket
- Waterproof Rain Jacket – Aysen GORE-TEX Jacket, Bealey GORE-TEX Jacket
- Waterproof Rain Pants – Trailhead Rain Pants
Clothing Accessories
Below is a list of Clothing Accessories that I found most useful during my hike:
- Wide-Brim Hat
- Beanie
- Neck Gaiter
- Gloves (two pairs) – Pair 1:Classic Snow Gloves V2, Snow Sports Gloves, or XT Alpine GORE-TEX® Insert Snow; Pair 2: Merino Unisex Gloves, Fleece Gloves
- Bandana
- Underwear
water
One of the things on the top of my ‘what to pack list’ is water…that’s right, water!
You must make sure that you are drinking enough fluids when doing the Everest Base Camp hike. It is recommended that you drink at least 3 liters of water a day, I was drinking close to 4 or 5 liters.
A good cost-effective and sustainable way of doing this is to buy Aquatabs.
Aquatabs are so easy to use! All you do is drop one small tablet into 1L of water, leave it for half an hour and that’s it, you are ready to go! Some people say you need to boil water, but nobody did that. The water was safe to drink by just doing this method. I recommend buying two packets of Aquatabs, that way you have some spare. Aquatabs are super cheap to buy and will save you so much money on your hike.
What to drink out of? I recommend having two 1L Water Bottles and a 2L Hydration Bladder. I really liked the 1L Drink Bottle BPA Free Tall as my water bottle because they were a slim shape to then fit down the side of my daypack. The 2L Hydration Bladder was so handy! You didn’t have to stop when hiking to pull out your water bottle, which was a game changer. I mainly used the 1L Drink Bottle BPA Free Tall water bottles to refill the 2L Hydration Bladder when I ran out of water.
Water Pack List:
- Aquatabs
- 2L Hydration Bladder
- Water Bottles – 1L Drink Bottle BPA Free Tall, Drink Bottle BPA Free Wide Mouth
Sleeping
Your accommodation on the Everest Base Camp trek is quite luxurious compared to many other hikes in the backcountry. You will be staying in tea houses on your way up to Everest Base Camp. This makes sleeping very comfortable. There is no need for sleeping mats here as you do get beds provided to you.
However, you do need to make sure to have a warm sleeping bag as the nights get very cold in the Himalayas. I suggest purchasing a sleeping bag that has a sub-zero rating. I had the Columbus Women’s Down Sleeping Bag. This had a comfort degree rating of -3 Celsius (26.6 Fahrenheit) and a transition degree rating of -9 Celsius (15.8 Fahrenheit). The Columbus Women’s Down Sleeping Bag was perfect for me and kept me comfortably warm during extremely cold nights.
Sleeping bag liners are also a good idea to keep your sleeping bag clean, but also add a bit of extra warmth. They are also handy if you don’t want to sleep in your sleeping bag and you can use them as a sheet.
Lastly, a little tip and trick that I would like to share with you is to think about packing a hot water bottle. Fill it up and pop it into your sleeping bag before you go to bed. This will really keep you that extra bit warm during those frostbite nights!
Sleeping Pack List:
- Sleeping Bag – Navigator Down Sleeping Bag, Columbus Down Sleeping Bag
- Sleeping Bag Liner – Silk Liner, Cotton Liner v2, or Thermal Liner
- Hot Water Bottle
Hiking Accessories
Below is a list of other Hiking Accessories that I found most useful during my hike:
- Fizan Hiking Poles – found these helpful when going downhill
- Head Torch – Raven 200 Head Torch
- First Aid Kit
- Stuff Sack v4 (Large) – handy for dirty clothing
- Pocket Hand Warmers – optional, but I wish I had packed a packet!
Charging Appliances
You will be able to charge your devices (phone, camera, etc) at the teahouses along the way. This took up most of my budget on the mountain, as I always needed to recharge my phone, GoPro, and camera batteries.
What would have saved me needing to recharge them constantly would have been to purchase a rechargeable battery pack, or solar pack. You can’t go wrong with Goal Zero’s products. They are reliable and will save you so much money on needing to recharge your devices! I would recommend getting either the Goal Zero Venture 30 Recharger or go full solar with the Goal Zero Nomad 7 Plus.
Travel Accessories
Below is a list of other Travel Accessories that I found most useful during my hike:
- WET WIPES! – you will 100% need these when you can’t shower, Body Wipes 8pk Pack of Cards – this will be your best friend when you are at the teahouses! You sit around a lot at night and a pack of Waterproof Playing Cards is essential!
- Money Storage – RFIDtech Money Pouch, RFIDtech Money Belt; also an extra small wallet to store small amounts of cash is useful.
- Locks – Lock 3 Dial ABS
- Power Adapter – Adaptor Plug Europe v2
- Sunglasses – Traveler by TOMS Eben Sunglasses
- Toiletry Bag – Kit Lite Toiletry Bag, Kit Classic Hanging Toiletry Bag
- Micro Fibre Towel
- Sunscreen/Mosquito Replant
All of the information provided in this article is from my own experience hiking Everest Base Camp. I hope you enjoyed reading my tips and tricks about what to pack for Everest Base Camp! This was one of the greatest accomplishments and adventures I have ever done, so get excited!