The trek to Gokyo Ri, however, is not all about the final view.

BBC: Nepal��s other Everest

It is as you leave Machhermo, the final village before Gokyo, that you get a sense of entering mountain royalty.

BBC: Nepal��s other Everest

Once past the turning beyond Namche Bazaar and into the Gokyo valley, the spread of settlement diminishes and a more natural Nepal appears.

BBC: Nepal��s other Everest

On the shores of the third lake is the village of Gokyo, a collection of weatherbeaten trekking lodges peering out onto Gokyo Ri.

BBC: Nepal��s other Everest

It is here, over the tops of the inevitable ducks, that Gokyo Ri first comes into view, its brown rounded form a contrast to the snow-covered, sharp-tipped lines of Cho Oyu beyond.

BBC: Nepal��s other Everest

Spending nights at the villages of Phortse Tenga (3, 700m), Dole (4, 200m), Machhermo (4, 500m) and Gokyo (4, 800m) offers a comfortable four-day approach to the foot of the mountain from Namche Bazaar, ascending gradually through the thinning air.

BBC: Nepal��s other Everest