How do you start to summarize, to represent, to narrate an event of a lifetime? How do you do justice to something you haven't fully processed yet yourself? Something that may take its own lifetime to digest? Something you're pretty sure you'll never fully honor in words or other expressions no matter how much time passes?

It took 8 days, ~40 Km (~25 miles) trekking with ~2,000 meters vertical gain (~6,500 ft) to take this shot from 4,790 meters (~15,700 ft) of the 6th highest mountain on this planet (Cho Oyu, 8,201 meters / 26,906 ft)…at sunset.

Like everything within those 8 days (and the 12 that followed) it was unforgettable, and I realize it isn't/wasn't/will never be about the photos, but about the adventure, the memories and bonds built with my trail mates: Poison, Terabyte, Velvet, Bugs and Valley :) With love to all of them and the lands we crossed, Per (U-Haul).

Sometimes the power is in what you don’t see.

"I am watching the sun set on EVEREST!"

Shortly before taking this photo (on day 16 of our trek), we reached our highest point: the peak of Kala Patthar at 5,634m (18,474ft). Sitting there I was overcome with emotion and recorded a teary-eyed video for my wife in gratitude for her and for her amazing love and support.

After more than a year of planning and preparation, and after all of the effort over the last 16 days, I had arrived at the top, at the goal, at the best viewpoint of Mt. Everest. It just all kind of hit me at once. Realizing the best angle is just below the summit, we made our way down the mountain a bit to be humbled and privileged to witness this scene.

Going in, I wasn't focused on 'getting my Everest shot' as I'm not one particularly drawn to the iconic shots. But once there, once it was so clearly in view, once the sun started going down and gifted us this, it was a different story and I was once again awe struck and emotional. I was standing at 18,500ft watching the sun go down on the highest spot on this planet. It was surreal. I was watching the sun set on Mt. Everest. And I repeated to myself, "I am watching the sun set on Mt. Everest". How lucky of me to be in this position. How grateful I was. It was pure magic and joy.

This shot certainly doesn't scream Himalayas, perhaps it even evokes thoughts of warmer tropical climates. That said, it is sunset from the hills above Namche Bazar, which is the last large village you walk through on your way to Gokyo or Everest Base Camp (or both, as was our case).

For me, this image reminds me of the calm before the storm, the mystery of what was ahead, the mystery of the unknown. We knew that after leaving here it would get progressively harder, colder, longer, steeper, and fewer (oxygen!). I had that fear of 'What if I can't make it? What if I get sick?' in the back of my mind, hyper aware, anxious and looking for any 'not normal' signs I may have felt that could signal trouble ahead (and I'm pretty confident I wasn't alone in that). After all the research, training and preparation, the reality was that we just didn't know what exactly we would face. There was no way we could.

So, to me, this image is that last look back over the shoulder to the comforts of the known, before putting my head back down and marching forward on the adventure of a lifetime into a new and alien world…one step at a time.

There are a few things that I found constant when trekking across the Himalaya: dust, cold, non-fresh bakery (not that that stopped my sampling), Nepali time (multiply by at least 2), 'Nepali flat' (not!), good company.....and this guy...Thamserku.

From the earliest days of the trek to nearly the highest points on the journey, Thamserku (6,608m / 21,680ft) seems always to be there for you, if not alone then with its ridge connected Kangtega (not pictured). Its distinct peaks served me as an anchor of consistency and comfort as we made our way from one village to the next, getting to know its varied faces while discovering more new territory with each earned step. And it made me wonder, at times, if we were actually progressing at all (how, on Earth, could it still be in view?!?)

It feels like an old friend now. I make up we know each other. It's seen me make my way up and down. It knows what it took and gives me a little nod, while I humbly gaze up in utter awe of its presence and perseverance. And it knows that, too, straightens up just a bit more than usual, and continues to just...be.

Hats off, Thamserku. You da' mountain.

If Everest is King, Ama Dablam is the undisputed Queen. Few mountains in this world are in the same league in terms of raw beauty and majesty. It's just a mountain's mountain, and the one I picture when hearing that word.

I paid my dues to get this shot from Ama Dablam basecamp @ 4,600 m / 15,092 ft. What was supposed to be a fairly easy day with plenty of time before sunset to get settled, turned into an epic and grueling adventure that took us up and down over no fewer than 3 (4? 5?) ridges, had us hopping across "you-better-not-miss-this-step-or-you're-hosed-rocks" as we crossed a glacier / moraine, arriving maybe 15 minutes prior to this light that lasted all of 2 minutes.

But…of course…in the end…it was worth it. And that's not a statement regarding my evaluation of this image, it's my valuation of the journey and the battle to simply be able to be there to push that shutter button. As they say: Priceless.