This weekend was all about the Puja. Our climbing teams at Everest Base Camp paused their technical training this weekend for one of the most significant moments of the season: Puja day.

The Puja is a Tibetan Buddhist blessing ceremony central to Sherpa life, performed before any expedition sets foot on the upper mountain. A High Lama leads hours of rhythmic chanting accompanied by bells, drums, and ritual horns, asking the mountain deity for safe passage. Climbing gear is brought forward to be blessed, juniper branches are burned to purify the camp, and offerings of food, drink, and incense are made to the mountain spirits. The ceremony culminates with the Lama applying white flour to the faces of all participants, a blessing for long life, before prayer flags are raised over camp. When those flags catch the wind, the Sherpa believe they are sending out prayers across the Himalaya.

Puja Ceremony Images from Edgar Parra and Mike Bennett

Training on the Lower Khumbu Icefall Images from Little Tendi Sherpa

Our Masters Team had a full two days at Lobuche Base Camp before making a push that many climbers only dream about. Saturday, they summited Kalapattar, then completed the trek to Everest Base Camp proper. They’re now settling in for two nights on the glacier, with the ice climbing clinic on deck.

Images from Dr. Brenton Systermans

And rounding out a big weekend on the mountain: our final Rugged Luxury team of the season arrived at Everest Base Camp in proper Rugged Luxury fashion, a champagne welcome on the Khumbu Glacier greeting them after a strong push from Lobuche Base Camp that included a summit of Awi Peak (17,208 ft / 5,245 m). Awi Peak is one of the more unique features of the Rugged Luxury program, a lesser-known, rarely visited summit away from the main trail and the crowds, with sweeping views across Everest, Lhotse, Nuptse, Ama Dablam, and Pumori. We aren’t mincing words when we say this: no other Everest Base camp trekking program includes a summit like this before arriving on the glacier.

Images from Tomi Ceppi