Ama Dablam

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 steveej 30 Jul 2014
Hi,

Anyone with direct experience of doing this themselves?

Or buying a place on a permit but sorting logistics / safety / climbing themselves?

How much did it cost?
How Long did it take?
Time of year?

Looking for a project for 2015.

Thanks
 radson 01 Aug 2014
OP steveej 06 Aug 2014
In reply to radson:

Thats helpful thanks - I had seen the youtube video but not the write up which does give some useful details on timings etc.

Does anyone know the price of a permit?
 AndyL 07 Aug 2014
In reply to steveej:
In 2012 we did it for a total cost of $8000ish, split between 4 people. We had porters up to base camp, but were solo unsuported after that. This included Island peak, which we did for acclimatisation.

Ama permit: $1600
Island peak permit: $350
"Leason" officer: $1000
Porters (x4): $780
Lukla return airfare (x4): $1100
Agency fee (Himalayan Guides): $1000

Plus some other bits and bobs. My initial quote from Himalayan guides was a lot more bloated and expensive, but luckily I was living there at the time, so was able to hash out what we really needed - most agencys are used to fully supported guided expeditions on Ama.

We did both peaks in 23 days arrival and departure from Kathmandu days. This felt pretty tight, and didn't leave many rest days: If you can budget more time, definitely do, you will increase your chances significantly. Philippe Gattas trip report was very helpful when planning.
OP steveej 08 Aug 2014
In reply to AndyL:

what did the agency fee cover? did it include food at base camp and use of fixed ropes?
 AndyL 08 Aug 2014
In reply to steveej:

Other than porters, who we coordinated on our own (Some of them had a smattering of English, and one of our team spoke Nepali), we were completely solo after landing in Lukla.

Where the agency came into hand was navigating and "smoothing" the bureaucracy that is the Nepal tourist board. Getting permits sorted, booking flights and arranging return of garbage deposit. In the event of an accident, they are the ones with local knowledge who would be best placed to organize evac etc. If you want them to do more, they can (Most of their expeditions are fully supported/guided) but we wanted to be as independent as possible. We sorted our own kit, gear, food, logistics, etc. We had planned on freeing it, but bad weather and being short of time meant we used fixed ropes which had been put in place by other teams.

Our chief porter Bishal was excellent and I would definitely recommend him if he's still in the game - I could try and dig out his email address for you.

The Government Leason officer did absolutely nothing and was just a non-negotiable stealth tax!

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