Chronicle V • Alpine Climax Destination
Touchdown at Kala Patthar
Lndg Elevation
5,644m / 18,519ft
O2 Saturation
~50.8% Density
Temp Range
-5°C to -15°C
Coordinates
27°59'44"N 86°49'43"E
The helicopter lands gently on the rocky shelf of Kala Patthar at 5,450m — the climax of every Everest helicopter tour. You step out onto the roof of the world, face-to-face with the massive vertical wall of Mount Everest, standing closer to the peak than from any other viewpoint on earth. The helicopter engines keep running as you capture your photographs of the Everest summit, Lhotse, and the Khumbu Glacier below. For safety reasons, the stay is strictly limited to 10–15 minutes to prevent altitude sickness in the thin atmosphere at this extreme altitude.