Michael Hooper an Eagle Scout from the Colonial District (Troop 680 Eagle, March 3, 2020; Grand Slam of High Adventure 2020)recently completed the Everest Base Camp trek. Michael said that while he was struggling to make the climb he remembered his intro to backpacking five mile round trip to Manassas Gap on the Application Trail shortly after he crossed over to the Troop and later completed his Backpacking Merit Badge with his Scoutmaster, friends, and fellow members of the Hawk Patrol as well as our trips to Philmont and Northern Tier (Okpik dog sledding).The Everest trek took him 11 days in total. Six and a half days trekking up the mountain, two acclimatization days, and two and a half days trekking down the mountain. While the trek up was difficult as each step towards basecamp at altitude became laborious and his breath was constantly out despite flying up the mountain the previous few days, he finished the entire trek two days early because they were moving so fast, and they ended up skipping a stop. He said the views were some of the best views he has have ever seen in his life.Michael lives in Virginia and returns from India and Nepal in June and will go back to UVA in the fall. He hopes to register as an adult leader when he comes back so that he can do a few backpacking trips with the Troop 680 Scouts when he’s not busy at school.Shared by: Scouter John Mirvish
