The day started with a gentle climb through the valley and the sun was shining. The gradual accent quickly became boulder climbing as we pushed on higher to the 5400m of base camp. Helen was powering ahead this morning but for me and most others it was one foot at a time and regular stops to catch breath. You fight for breath at some stages and the recommended 'slow and steady' is by far the best policy. A steady rhythm of plodding and regulating your breathing gets you higher. This morning was tough though and progress was slow. The climb continued and eventually, Gorak Shep was in eyesight. I climbed down the tricky boulder path to the guesthouse to try find Helen and grab a much needed tea. As I got in however I was saw her sat in the corner with blood pouring from her knee. As she tried to move out the way on an oncoming yak, she stumbled and badly cut her knee on a sharp rock. Fortunately for her, the Everest Marathon team had gathered at this particular guesthouse in preparation for the marathon the next day. The marathon doctors were quickly to her call and within minutes they were there with a huge medical bag. Two Indian doctors assessed the situation and on inspection of the deep cut in her knee, the was no other option but to operate! As one doctor passed me his phone with flashlight activated the other began to fill his syringe with anaesthetic. I soon realised that I was in charge of providing light for the procedure. The operation was over in 15-20 minutes and the young doctor managed to put a few stitches in her knee, dress it and pass her some painkillers. She was under strict instructions to rest it for the remainder of the day. After a cup of tea, in typical Helen fashion, we were up and off to Base Camp! Maybe the anaesthetic was long lasting but she continued to stride ahead as we embarked on the main event. It was around 3 hours to base camp along a route that we had got to know well by now, 'Nepalese Flat'. This was far from flat, but up and down. The route included many boulder climbs as we edged closer to what we had been striving to see. Eventually we had our first glimpses of Base Camp. Coming towards us were Sherpa after Sherpa and yak after yak carting gear off base camp following the seasons summit attempts. This year marked the first summit attempts for 3 years. 2014 brought a devastating Avalanche,killing many and stalling and future attempts whilst 2015 brought the horrific earthquake that killed tens of thousands around Nepal and many at base camp and on the mountain itself. Just before the short accent down off the ridge to base camp, we were halted by a number of yaks coming up the steep narrow track in the opposite direction. The initial estimate of a few passing yaks turned into a 20 minute wait for hundreds to pass us, all carting mountaineering gear down. Eventually it was our turn to carefully manoeuvre down and climb back up onto the glacier that is home to Everest Base Camp. After a steep climb up, we stumbled upon the mountain of rocks that marked base camp, officially! Hundreds of prayer flags decorated the official mark of our destination. After several photos and yoga poses we had a wander around base camp. There were a number of teams that still remained there, in the typical yellow tents. It was getting late on the day and we still had a 2 hour trek back to Gorak Shep so after a few selfies, we began the trip back. Today was one of the longest and most difficult days and the last part back to the guesthouse was particularly gruelling. Eventually we made it back to Gorak Shep. We spent the evening in our friend Rebecca's guesthouse having a dinner or Dal bat. In the morning we would climb Kalapatar of the weather was clear - Bikram would let us know if it was clear with a knock at the door at 4am. That was the agreement as we headed for bed.