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How do you celebrate a gruelling six-day hike up the tallest mountain in the world?
By cracking a Jasper brew, of course.
Stavro Korogonas and Gabrielle Valcourt traded the Rockies for Mount Everest in February - and took two cans of Jasper Brewing Co’s Crisp Pils along for the trek.
The couple laced up their hiking boots and braved freezing temperatures and an intense schedule to scale 5,380 metres to the mountain’s base camp.
Korogonas, owner of Jasper Pizza Place, said: “The feeling was incredible. So many times during the trek we faced our own doubts and worries from illness to weather. We made it to our destination.”
Korogonas kept a travel journal during the punishing two weeks it took to get up and down the mountain.
In it, he described the bitter cold he and Valcourt endured every night staying at tea houses at extreme altitudes.
But it was not all struggle, two nights before Korogonas and Valcourt got to Base Camp they experienced a silent moment of beauty in the mountains.
Korogonas said: “The nearly full moon lit up the entire valley. I could see yaks hundreds of feet away.
“Every star in the galaxy blinkered above while the mountains stood elegant and illuminated from the moonlight.
“It was brief but perhaps one of the best moments of the trip.”
And Korogonas said the last day hiking up, the final push, nearly broke them.
He said: “It was the most painful day yet as we gasped for air.
“Our guide and our porter hopped from rock to rock, never taking a deep breath but instead looked bored and cold waiting for us.
"The trail levelled out before descending into the glacier, we rounded the corner and up a small bank we had arrived to Base Camp.”
When they finally got back to Kathmandu, Korogonas reflected on their journey.
He said: “Mission accomplished, we worked our butts off, dealt with less than ideal conditions and persevered through some adversity.
“We made great memories and new friends and found ourselves closer than ever.”
He said he and Valcourt rested for their last day in Nepal before flying to Thailand for “some real relaxation”.
“We joked about the next trek or adventure but Gabrielle refuses to let me plan the next holiday,” he said.
