Smoky air in the teahouses?

I%26#39;ll be doing a teahouse trek (Everest Base Camp) in October. I%26#39;ve heard that some of the teahouses are very smoke-filled. I%26#39;ve had lung problems in the past, so I%26#39;m very susceptible to smoke. Have people found them to be smoky? Was it a common problem? Could you sleep outside and just eat inside? Any other tactics for dealing with it?

Thanks

Smoky air in the teahouses?

Hey Mike,

I have stayed in most of the teahouses in the Khumbu. The bedrooms are usually the problem, it%26#39;s the nice warm stove in the dinning room. The higher up you go the worse the smoke. It wouldn%26#39;t be so bad if it wasn%26#39;t yak dung, which smells like old cigars. I think that if you limit your time in the dinning room you should be OK. Also you think you%26#39;re going to have a problem ask the outfitter if they can bring a tent and mattress for you. This might cost about $100, but well worth it. The teahouses can be noisely, with people singing and playing cards no realizing that the teahouse staff likes to go to bed around 9 pm. I%26#39;ve had to go down and ask people to keep it down.

I run treks in Nepal and in the Everest area I always bring tents and give clients the option.

I%26#39;m leaving Oct. 9 for Lukla, have a good time yourself.

Smoky air in the teahouses?

After posting the original question, above, I did the Everest Base Camp trek, and had no problems with smoke. Even when they were burning Yak Dung in the stoves, the smoke went upo the chimney, not into the room. Maybe it%26#39;s a problem in some teahouses, but not in any of the ones we stayed in.

The other reply (to bring a tent and foam pad) makes sense, as a back-up. All the tenting groups camp right next to the teahouses, so you could camp there too. But you probably won%26#39;t need it.

So if anyone else has lung problems, don%26#39;t worry about it. Have your doc give you some meds for the altitude, and come and enjoy this wonderful place.