The team arrived in Monjo just after the noon hour and filed into a walled-in terrace beside the two-story beige stone and stucco park ranger’s office. As usual, the checkpoint terrace was humming with trekkers milling about and talking while snapping photos of the snow-covered mountain peaks beyond the gatehouse entrance to Sagarmatha.
The waiting time for people entering the park depended on how well organized their guides were with the permits that needed final approval and processing; that, and the number of park rangers staffing the main desk, which was usually minimal. As a guide, you wanted to hit the park office no later than 1:00 PM otherwise the rangers would be taking their lunches, which meant anywhere from an hour to two-hour delay. As far as Frank was concerned, he wanted ou
