Eric and Sue are alive. We finished our treking a few days ago, and have
been resting - finally. A quick note, though, before I start the story:
Nepal is the most amazing place, and you should run, not walk, to your local
travel agent and book a ticket to come here.
I don't know if I explained fully before what we were going to do: here in
Nepal you can go trekking (aka walking) through the countryside, and every
hour or so you come across a town with little guesthouses that you can stay
at. You can either carry your own stuff, or hire a porter for about $5/day
to carry it for you. You can also hire a guide who will show you the way,
as well as fill you in on the mountains you are seeing and other facts about
local life.
The trek Eric and I embarked on was the Annapurna Circuit - according to the
book it should take about 19 to 21 days of hiking (around 5 hours a day),
covers about 300 km, and will take you over a pass at 17,768 ft (5416 m).
We decided, based on previous information from friends and the internet,
that we would start out without a guide or porters. We had been told that
it is easy to find your way (it is a dirt road used by all the locals to get
from town to town), and that if we got sick of carrying our stuff we could
always hire a porter in any town.
Did we make the pass? How long did we last at carrying our own stuff? Well,
you will have to hop into our virtual backpack and travel along to see (take
note of the elevation changes - remember, we are doing this all with our own
little feet):
Day 1: Kathmandu to Besishahar
We took the 7 hour bus ride expecting the worst - everyone had told us how
awful the roads were and how cramped the buses are. It turns out the whole
road was paved - quite smooth in fact. I think the travelling through China
and Thailand has helped - the other foreigners we met thought it was awful.
We even got to see some nice Indian "masala" movies in the bus along the way
(all the same formula: romance, violence, and musical production numbers).
We were tired out just from the 10 minute walk from the bus stop to our
hotel - how are we going to do this for 20 days?
Day 2: Besishahar to Bahundanda (2493 - 4134 ft)
Day one of hiking went as good as we could expect - extremely sore shoulders
and bruised hips by the end of the 6 or so hours of hiking we did. At the
end we had to go up this enourmous hill - we thought we were going to die.
The scenery was beautiful, though - terraced rice paddies and the fastest
river I have ever seen. We met two women from Chemnitz, Germany, as well as
two guys from New Zealand. Fried rice with cheese never tasted so good.
Day 3: Bahundanda to Chamgye (4134 - 4626 ft)
Despite waking up with good shoulders and hips, we had to go up the most
grueling of hills in the hot sun. The scenery is getting increasingly
dramatic - it is like Hawaii meets Switzerland meets Yosemite. The
waterfalls blow everything away - and the river only keeps getting wilder. A
Spanish couple stopped us and made us walking sticks out of branches of a
fallen tree - it helped the climbing tremendously. We ended up staying at
the same lodge again as the German women and the Kiwi men, as well as the
helpful Spanish couple. There is also another Spanish couple there, and a
German couple from Kiel with a porter. The porter tells us what hotel we
should stay at in the next town, so we see a bit of a family forming. I am
beginning to get anxious about the 17,768 ft pass - I don't think I can do
it.
Day 4: Chamgye to Bagarchap (4626 - 6824 ft)
We didn't think we could make it to Bagarchap, but everyone else in our
group was going to go there, so we plugged along to get there. We left
early to beat the heat, so the climbing wasn't too bad. It even felt like
we were getting used to our backpacks. The landscape changed from rice to
corn (and a little bit of marjuana). We had lunch in this sweet little
villiage - the woman made us mint tea by grabbing a handful of fresh mint
off of a plant growing on her roof - the husband insisted on cleaning up my
walking stick (which looked more like a branch than a stick). A passing
porter told Eric he was carrying 100kg - Eric tried to pick it up and
couldn't even make it move. We pass these porters all the time - as there
are no cars up here, everything is carried on peoples backs. I shouldn't
complain about my 20 lb backpack anymore, eh? At the end of the day we saw
on the map that we had a 200 m climb - we tackled it with a vengance, only
to find out after 25 minutes that we had gone the wrong way! we had to go
all the way down to the fork in the road that we missed and do the climb all
over again. If I didn't know better, I would think our stamina is
increasing...
Day 5: Bagarchap to Chame (6824 - 8596 ft)
Today's hike was only supposed to take 4 hours and 15 minutes, and we were
determined to make it before lunch. We had been last ones in every day now,
and we wanted to beat someone today. The scenery changed from corn to pine
trees and landslides. Some of the landslides were seriously dangerous (one
slip would take you down into that deadly river) and I even got hit in the
head by a 3 inch rock while passing one. Something about the mountain air
that makes you lose your senses, I guess. Our early start paid off, though,
as we came in to the lodge right behind the New Zealanders and the German
couple. We were treated to a beautiful view of Lamjung Himal and Annapurna
II - I think they are both around 8000m high. Our "family" is quite tight
now - the 12 of us usually have the lodge to ourselves. Tonight it is cool
- a welcome change to the heat up until now.
Day 6: Chame to Lower Pisang (8596 - 10137 ft)
I think the altitude is starting to get to me - my head doesn't seem too
attached to my body. We are still carrying our own stuff, and it really
begins to feel normal. Today we hike through pine forests that remind us of
Tahoe - we come across a rock face that is more like a rock bowl, but 1300 m
tall (I think El Capitan in Yosemite is only 1000 m). We were treated to a
stunning view of Annapurna II, and a landscape that now resembled New Mexico
/ the Grand Canyon. How can all this exist in this little country? I am
increasingly worried about the altitude, but everyone else just laughs. I
feel pressure on my temples, and I think I want a headache more than
actually having one.
Day 7: Lower Pisang to Manang (10,137 - 11,286 ft)
After almost convincing myself that we should stay at Lower Pisang another
day to aclimate, I decide I can't leave our "family", so we plod on to
Manang. I can definitely tell there is less air here - trees are gone and
we just have hearty shrubs around. The tour book said that Manang has more
German bakeries than London - don't know if it is true, but there sure were
plenty. I am still very paranoid about the altitude, but for some reason
there is no going back now. We will see if we need a porter to carry our
stuff over the pass - everyone else says no, we should do it ourselves.
Day 8: Acclimization day in Manang
I took a little hike up to see this amazing glacier - Eric took a strenuous
hike out toward Tilicho lake with some Swiss "lads" (and very fast trekkers)
to see if we should do the side trip. We had met a man in Kathmandu who
said it was the most beautiful place in the world, so Eric was keen. When
he came back he said it was doable, but was just worried because there are
so no other trekkers coming or going on the path. We tentatively decide not
to go. My altitude fear is subsiding, as I have yet to have a headache.
Day 9: Manang to Yak Kahrka (11,286 - 13,250 ft)
We woke up early and had a "huge" argument because Eric decided he wanted to
see the lake. So in a huff, we head out in that direction for about an
hour, at which point we stop and have a loud fight on this plateau in the
middle of nowhere. After about 1\2 hour we calm down and decide it is too
dangerous for us to go the lake alone, so we head back to Manang and then
head up toward the pass to catch up with the family. We begin to leave the
bushes behind, and are left with little else. We arrive so late that they
don't have a room - so they give us a room in the new building that is still
being built - the mud walls are still wet! Slept like a baby - maybe all
this exercise is agreeing with me!
Day 10: Yak Kahrka to Thorong Phedi (13,250- 14,599 ft)
We got up early and were treated to beautiful views of the mountains. We
hiked slow but steady - definitely less wind up here. Just walking gets my
heart rate up to 150 - that normally takes fast walking at home! We arrive
early in Thorong Phedi, and just sit in the sun and acclimitize - apple pie
and hot chocolate for everyone! The next day will be the pass - I am really
not afraid anymore. We meet 4 Americans who have to turn back because one
guy threw up upon arrival. All of our "family" hike up a bit further and
stay at the high camp, but we decide to play it safe down lower. We decide
not to hire a porter - we know now that as long as we go slow, we can do it.
Day 11: Thorong Phedi to Thorong La to Muktinath (14,599-17,768-12,336 ft)
We wake up at 4:15 and Eric feels nauseous. After some water and Power
Bars, he decides he would rather get it over with than hang out another day.
So at 4:50 we set out with flashlights and head up the ENORMOUS hill. Our
motto is "slow and steady" and it works. We are like two sturdy pack mules,
and we end up passing all sorts of people on the way up. It took us exactly
4 hours to get to the top - and I felt fantastic! I had heard stories of
people who take 10 steps and then have to rest - not us! We pranced around
for 1/2 hour or so - had perfectly clear weather so we got to look up at all
the mountains that were STILL taller than us.
And then we did the descent.
I guess most people are focused on the uphill, so they don't even think
about how hard it is to descend a mile in elevation in one day. The path
was slippery and steep - our legs were aching for it to stop. Nine hours
after we started, we finally arrived in Muktinath to find our "family" who
came running out to give us hugs and kisses of congratulations. To be
honest, I look back at what we did, and can't believe we accomplished it.
Strong will, I guess...
I think this message is getting to long, so I won't bore you with details of
days 12-15. There are plenty of stories to tell, but for the most part it
was the same coming down as it was going up. This side of the pass is more
travelled, and hence the towns seem bigger and a bit more commercial - we
definitely liked the other side better. But I do need to tell you about day
16:
Day 16: Tatopani to Ghorapani (3904 - 9383 ft, this is not a typo)
Let's see - we had a big 9 hour hike on day 15 and are tired, but what the
heck, let's go climb a vertical mile! We considered this the hardest day -
the last hour we really didn't think we could make it, especially Eric -
thank goodness for a Snickers bar. We arrived at dark to a lodge with a hot
shower and a hot stove to warm ourselves around - how lucky can we get!
DAy 17: Ghorapani to Tadapani (9383 - 8497 ft)
We wake up at dawn to hike up yet another 350m to Poon Hill to see the view
of a bunch of peaks. We had a bit of clouds, but the moved around enough so
that we got to see everything. We both felt like crap, though, hiking up,
yet again, and on empty stomachs. I was keen on hiking down the rest of the
way and sleeping in a plush hotel in Pokhara - Eric wanted to head down for
three more days of hiking, of which the second day would be through a
beautiful forest. I was frightened, as there were stories of muggings and
even a killing through that forest, but I decided to bite the bullet and go.
We headed out, and to our dismay had to head up for another 300 m or so
before we started to descend. The trail was really remote, and we were
worried we were going the wrong way. Luckily, after 2 hours, we ran into a
Nepali man who assured us of our direction. Upon arriving in Tadapani we
were invited into the kitchen of our lodge where we joked with the owner and
his wife. The informed us that the dangerous part was what we had hiked
today - alone. Yikes!
Day 18: Tadapani to Ghandruk (8497 - 6365 ft)
We went to the lodge next door to find a group to hike with - luckily there
was a large meditation retreat that was heading through the forest, so we
waited for them. I must say that the forest was worth the effort - beatiful
trees draped in moss and fern. Eric stepped a foot off the trail to relieve
himself, and came back with 20 or so leeches on his shoes. The people from
the meditation group helped him pick them off, so he stayed unbitten. You
couldn't stop for long or else they would hop on you, so we kept it going
for three hours. At one point the meditators warned Eric about a leech on a
leaf he would pass by. So Eric takes his stick and swats the leave - to
their dismay: a few were buddhists who didn't believe in killing anything,
including leeches!
Day 19: Ghandruk to Naya Pul (6365 - 3510 ft)
Down, down, down - I really don't think my body can take one more minute of
this. I have visions of air conditioned hotel with CNN, but it can't come
soon enough. We hear stories about another bus strike, which means we won't
make it back to civilzation - I cringe at the thought. Luckily the bus
strike isn't for a few days, and we finally climb the last hill, fall into a
cab, and make it to Pokhara.
So here ends our trekking adventure. We stayed for just a day in Pokhara,
so we could make it back to Kathmandu before the bus strike. We stayed long
enough to enjoy the peace and tranquility of the little city on the lake, as
well as run into many of our friends and acquaintances from the trek - it
was like it was our own small town. We did meet two really nice women from
New Zealand who had just arrived from India - so they filled up two whole
pieces of paper with things for us to see. If all goes well we will run
into them again in Southern India - gosh the world seems small...
We also ran into the two guys from New Zealand again and spent an evening
with them in a bar where one of them took over the microphone from the house
band and sang for a good part of the evening (he was better than the house
band, so no one minded).
The bus trip from Pokhara to Kathmandu deserves a whole message to itself,
but let me put it as the word problem that Eric came up with:
A bus leaves Pokhara at 7 AM for Kathmandu. There is light rain, but
otherwise conditions seem ideal.
a) At what time does the bus arrive in Kathmandu?
(answer: 2 pm)
b) What if there is a landslide that has occurred the night before, as well
as a bus bombed-out by Maoist extremeists in the middle of the road that no
one seems interested in moving even though it happened 4 days prior - and
there is a bus strike the next day, so anyone who wants to get somewhere
better do it that day - then what time does the bus arrive in Kathmandu?
(answer: 9 pm - argh)
We relaxed in Kathmandu - slowly got our Indian visas, and took care of some
shopping. We hung out with the guys from New Zealand who taught us about
rugby and how to be obnxious. Based on the women's suggestion we changed
our flight from Delhi to Varnassi. That is where we are now. But India
must wait for a story of its own...
Sue and Eric
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