Everest Region Napal on 10-8-2008

Today is Wednesday and our group got up at 5:30am this morning to catch our flight to Lukla from Kathmandu. Once we arrived at the airport, it was crazy with everyone trying to catch a flight on one of the small planes to Lukla. We were supposed to be on the 8:00am flight, but Wayne in our group forgot his camera so our guide drove 20 minutes back to the Yak and Yeti Hotel to get it. You don't want to be trekking through these gorgeous mountains without your camera. Probably because of this we were late getting organized and had to wait until 9:20am to catch the next Yeti Airline Flight. Word came back about 9am that all flight were cancelled for the rest of the day. We assumed this was because after morning time, clouds begin to move in and pilots can't see well enough to land in Lukla. Back at the hotel we learned from CNN Breaking News that one of those Yeti Airlines flights crashed into a cliff killing eighteen people. Twelve were Germans which we might have met in the hotel elevator the day before. I talked with a Nepal guide as I was checking into the hotel who said that he thought the first two planes made it and a third plane had to turn around and return to Kathmandu - a 45 min. flight one way. Later we learned that it was the 2nd plane here that hit a cliff and burned.

I'll blog again as soon as I know something more about our plans.

Warmest Regards,

Mike