The last leg of the climb to the fourth lake (4890m) is through a landslide-prone stretch sandwiched between two hills. Automobile-sized boulders are scattered all over, and more are perched precariously on the hillsides over one's head on either side, ready to roll down. Lakpa stops occasionally to look up and sniff the air, making me very nervous. Rather than a pristine mountain sanctuary, this part of Gokyo resembles a construction site from hell.