Julia your bathroom pic brought back memories. I did that trek at 68, 5 years ago for me. The bathrooms were freezing (and disgusting) to use at night. I brought a she wee and started using it in my room. Still travel with it. Love your travel adventure stories.
Another one of your terrific and honest stories of travel adventures. All too often we only see the good experiences. Stories like this remind us of our physical constraints and how our body fails us sometimes.
But learning from these mishaps and laughing about them shows true strength.
Your experiences inspire us to face challenges with humor and grace!
Thank you so much Laura. What's fun is sharing this hilarious stories. We are so humanized when we are willing to share this stuff instead of just our wins. this kind of thing happens a lot more often than the big celebratory stuff!
While I am sorry for the huge inconvenience of having to pee in the middle of a very frozen night, I also had a good laugh -- okay to laugh at your expense after a decade has past? You tell a great story Julia, about the profound and the mundane and somehow they are equally entertaining and inspiring. I guess I can stop grumbling now when I get up at 2:00 am to relieve myself -- or maybe when that happens, I'll think of this story and chuckle, grateful that my toilet seat had never been that cold. Biggest of hugs and adventure on!
I once hosted a fundraising event where the guest speaker was the first woman to summit Everest. She talked about the challenges of hydration and peeing above the Death Zone (17K feet plus) -- and how she had one bottle for each in her tiny, pitch-black tent. You can imagine what happened.
Okay, Julia, you fessed up so it’s my turn. Our family’s first home that I remember had an outhouse. Mandatory 365. The house had a very shallow well and coal strip mining had shattered the layers of substrate, above seams of coal, that used to contain the water table. So our outhouse was to prevent toilet flushing from sucking our well dry.
Winter’s in NW PA in the 1950’s commonly reached -5 to -10° F. Some periods reached -20° F. In warm weather quick lime was on hand for some for control. Winter? So right. Nada. We were warned to keep our tails moving for #2 outings. A crude reminder of scenes from Dr. Zhivago.
Why am I laughing ... I can relate to the tired legs buckling to the effort to hold a squat ... but thankfully not to the skinned butt. Love reading about your adventures. I am off to NZ for 9 days tomorrow ... off to play. 😊
Wow, Julia, this is an amazing post with great complementary photos. I didn't laugh at your expense; in fact, I was somewhat horrified about the toilet story. But you had an amazing adventure. I am in awe of you, as well as the natives who have to haul items up and down. Amazing. I love your posts.
What an incredible and raw retelling of your high-altitude adventure, Julia! You’ve captured the unpredictable, brutal beauty of trekking in the Himalayas so vividly. From the bone-chilling cold to the camaraderie over shared suffering (and smelly socks!), it’s all part of what makes Himalayan trekking unforgettable. At Haven Holidays Nepal, we work with travelers from all walks of life who seek that same challenge—and transformation—that you so powerfully described. Thank you for sharing your story!
Julia your bathroom pic brought back memories. I did that trek at 68, 5 years ago for me. The bathrooms were freezing (and disgusting) to use at night. I brought a she wee and started using it in my room. Still travel with it. Love your travel adventure stories.
Thanks Carol. I tried using one and laughed so hard I peed myself. Never could take the damned thing seriously.
Thanks for sharing!
Another one of your terrific and honest stories of travel adventures. All too often we only see the good experiences. Stories like this remind us of our physical constraints and how our body fails us sometimes.
But learning from these mishaps and laughing about them shows true strength.
Your experiences inspire us to face challenges with humor and grace!
Thanks for making us all laugh.
Thank you so much Laura. What's fun is sharing this hilarious stories. We are so humanized when we are willing to share this stuff instead of just our wins. this kind of thing happens a lot more often than the big celebratory stuff!
While I am sorry for the huge inconvenience of having to pee in the middle of a very frozen night, I also had a good laugh -- okay to laugh at your expense after a decade has past? You tell a great story Julia, about the profound and the mundane and somehow they are equally entertaining and inspiring. I guess I can stop grumbling now when I get up at 2:00 am to relieve myself -- or maybe when that happens, I'll think of this story and chuckle, grateful that my toilet seat had never been that cold. Biggest of hugs and adventure on!
Thanks so much. I grumble too, because my feet hurt!
All I can say is..wow..Julia you’re a beast. I honestly don’t know if I could do half of the adventures you do. 🩵
That’s kind, Grace. I am just now starting to dip a spoon into some of those stories.
I once hosted a fundraising event where the guest speaker was the first woman to summit Everest. She talked about the challenges of hydration and peeing above the Death Zone (17K feet plus) -- and how she had one bottle for each in her tiny, pitch-black tent. You can imagine what happened.
I guffawed. Almost did that myself.
Okay, Julia, you fessed up so it’s my turn. Our family’s first home that I remember had an outhouse. Mandatory 365. The house had a very shallow well and coal strip mining had shattered the layers of substrate, above seams of coal, that used to contain the water table. So our outhouse was to prevent toilet flushing from sucking our well dry.
Winter’s in NW PA in the 1950’s commonly reached -5 to -10° F. Some periods reached -20° F. In warm weather quick lime was on hand for some for control. Winter? So right. Nada. We were warned to keep our tails moving for #2 outings. A crude reminder of scenes from Dr. Zhivago.
I can relate!!!
Great story. I felt your pain! 😁
Why am I laughing ... I can relate to the tired legs buckling to the effort to hold a squat ... but thankfully not to the skinned butt. Love reading about your adventures. I am off to NZ for 9 days tomorrow ... off to play. 😊
I so love NZ…last time I was there was 1990. So much has changed, likely.
Wow, Julia, this is an amazing post with great complementary photos. I didn't laugh at your expense; in fact, I was somewhat horrified about the toilet story. But you had an amazing adventure. I am in awe of you, as well as the natives who have to haul items up and down. Amazing. I love your posts.
EVeryone is invited to laugh at my expense! That's the whole point, Beth. It's hilarious! Thank you!
What an incredible and raw retelling of your high-altitude adventure, Julia! You’ve captured the unpredictable, brutal beauty of trekking in the Himalayas so vividly. From the bone-chilling cold to the camaraderie over shared suffering (and smelly socks!), it’s all part of what makes Himalayan trekking unforgettable. At Haven Holidays Nepal, we work with travelers from all walks of life who seek that same challenge—and transformation—that you so powerfully described. Thank you for sharing your story!
Explore more Himalayan adventures with us: https://havenholidaysnepal.com