Trek Diary - I’ve got a beautiful feeling, the weather’s all going our way!

Day 7 - Wednesday 19^th September 2012

Bamboo (2190m) to Deurali (3231m)

 

Good morning Fishtail! So nice to finally glimpse you. You are worth the wait!

No rain overnight! We woke to a cold, slightly overcast morning. Thank you – the rain has broken at least for now. Ram has been saying for the last few days that when the Women’s Festival was over the weather would clear. The festival was yesterday. Apparently it always rains for the festival.

Blue skies smiling at me!

Raj and Neil disappearing into the Bamboo Forest

Classic bridges.  These ones were a cinch!

 

The land of waterfalls!

Each one more beautiful than the last.

 



 

Today was what we have trudged five days in the rain for. The scenery was out of this world and ....... we finally got to enjoy it. The cloud lifted. The sun shone brightly. It was good trekking today but tough going in some spots. We went up another 1041 metres – slowly, slowly to make sure we got used to the altitude.

Taking time to smell the flowers

Lunch spot - Himalaya

Then back to some more beautiful scenery!

The tough spots – some doozie makeshift bridges, high, with torrents of water a long way below. One in particular had a narrow, gravel ledge that had to be negotiated both to and from it. I am not looking forward to returning that way but that is not for a few days.

 

Deurali in the distance - doesn't look too hard.

A grotto or a hanging rock?

Whatever -The view from here was special

And while we marvelled at the scenery
around the bend a 'demon' is looming!

The demon - more so the gravel approaches than the bridge. They were crumbly, slippery and narrow!

 

 I had been forewarned of the ‘two terror’ bridges by a trekker who had crawled across them. The bridges were just two parallel logs the day before us. Today bamboo branches had been placed on top. Scary enough but better than two bare slippery logs.  

Work is continually being done on the track. It is the only way up the mountain for both locals and trekkers. All goods are carried by porters to the teahouses, lodges and local homes so the track needs to be passable at all times. There are no roads here! Everything is carried in by the porters. Building supplies, gas bottles, all produced foods, all bottled drinks, linen, quilts, the list goes on - whatever is needed in this neck of the woods - the porters bring it in! The weight that the porters are able to carry is phenomenal. They don't appear to watch where they put their feet and they never hesitate.

My mountain legs have finally kicked in. I must have needed the sun. The only twinge in my knee today was fifty metres short of our accommodation.

 

 

 

Tonight we are staying at the Shangri La Guest House, an apt name for a guest house overlooking a picturesque, peaceful valley. I am sitting outside enjoying the late afternoon sun. The temperature is beginning to drop so I guess we are in for a cold night.  

 

Day 8 – Thursday 20^th September 2012

Deurali (3231m) to ABC (4130m) 

These beautiful vistas greeted us just over the ridge from Duerali

 

We woke to a clear morning. We are on a winning streak!

From Deurali it was up over the ridge and onto an alpine meadow. A river ran down the middle and the mountains flanked either side of us. In the distance we could see our destination – The Annapurna Ranges! The meadow was beautiful. Flattish walking which was  a bit of a treat and gorgeous flowers everywhere, every colour of the rainbow, all shapes and sizes.
 

My kind of track - flattish!



 

Ice cave!



Almost at Machupuchare

looking back towards the alpine meadow

From the meadow it was another climb to Machupuchare Base Camp for an early lunch. While having lunch the fog swept up the valley bringing with it a light shower.
Thankfully only short lived but the fog remained for the final two hours of our journey to ABC. 
 

View to the Annapurnas from Machupuchare Base Camp

Neil felt a little giddy with the altitude during our final climb but with rest once we arrived it turned out, thankfully, to be nothing serious. Must have been the second chapati at lunch! We had taken the final assent slowly. We were almost there, 100 metres short, when the rain commenced. Luck was on our side for once! We made the final sprint up the stairs just in time. It flogged down for the next five hours.

There are no hot showers here, just a bucket of hot water. It is wet and very cold so we have decided to give the bucket a miss. The bathing facilities also leave a lot to be desired as they are combined with starting block toilets. We are not that dirty!

At sunset the rain stopped and we all went out to marvel at the sight of the gigantic mountains. With the backdrop of a stormy sky they are still awesome – just one of their many moods.



 

 

 



At bedtime the stars were out – a good omen. We went to bed fully clothed with beanies and gloves.

Trek Diary - Down Into the Valley of Leeches

Day 5 – Monday 17^th September 2012

Tadapani (2,630m) to Chhomrong (1950m) 

The wind started to blow yesterday afternoon and we had several hours without rain. Me, the eternal optimist – is it going to fine up? No!

 

1oo metres max of flat walking to the next guest house then down, down, down into the walley of ..........

We set out at 10am in the rain – couldn’t delay any longer. Down into the valley of leeches trudged the wet and bedraggled trekkers. God I hate those things. Why on earth were they put on this planet? We were continually flicking them off our shoes but still many made their mark. The ankles copped it in many places. Neil and I both got one on our backs. Ram was wearing thongs so he had them between his toes. I had two on the left ear – one a whopper because it had been there a while before discovery. Made a mess when removed, blood gushing down my face! The thrills of trekking in the rain!

Because of the weather we decided to skip lunch. Probably not a wise decision as I did not get a chance to rest my left knee. Because of the rain and needing to step ever so carefully going down wet and slippery steps there is a fair amount of pressure on the knees. About an hour from Chhomrong it started to ache. After it went on me three times I was having difficulty putting any weight on it. Ram massaged the knee to get me going again. And thank heavens for my trusty friend, Mr Walking Stick.

 

It is such a shame that it is raining. The countryside is so beautiful whlen we get a chance to see it, and Chhomrong is a little gem, perched on the side  of a hill (not a mountain – only hills over 4,000m warrant the name of mountains in Nepal). Stayed at Kalpana Lodge.

 

 

Looking down past the guesthouses to the village of Chhomrong disappearing into the fog.

 

Day 6 – Tuesday 18^th September 2012

Chhomrong (1950m) to Bamboo (2190m) 

Raining! Who’d have thought! It is OK once you have started but the thought of going out into the rain yet again is depressing.

Down, down, down to cross the river below the village. I am facing a lot of demons – suspension bridges that move is one of them, wet slippery steps, the fear of falling on them, another. Over the suspension bridge and up, up, up. Although raining there has not been as much fog today and we have been able to see beautiful valleys, many waterfalls and just as many creeks.

 

Down to the river

 

And up the other side - Chhomrong stretched up the hill on the other side. Our guesthouse towards the top on the left.

 

We dried our boots by a fire in the kitchen last night but it was not long before they were drenched again. Soooooo much rain! In many places the rain was cascading down the steps and you just can’t avoid it. You can’t avoid the mud either. Where there isn’t stone path there is mud. Cow shit can be a problem too. Cows choose the most inopportune spots to defecate.

Lunch stop - Sinuwa (top of opposite hill from Chhomrong)

Looking back to Chhomrong



 

I spoke of demons earlier. Most relate to my poor balance and a fear of slipping. We have had to cross many creeks, balancing on stepping stones, and I am improving. My confidence was also building. But ...... about ¾ hour from Bamboo I came a cropper! A creek crossing was my undoing and no stepping stones – just one large mossy rock and water streaming over it. My boots didn’t/couldn’t grip. Down I came like a sack of potatoes!  I had been going so well. No broken bones – two huge welts on my right arm, a grazed left elbow and possibly a bruised left hip – no bruising yet but tender to touch.

Staying at the Buddha Guest House. There are huge waterfalls above us and we are able to see a relatively clear snow capped mountain. False hopes again? Rain has stopped and clouds are lifting. For how long? At dinnertime we could see a SUNSET!!! It was down through the gorge towards Pokhara. The sun was streaking through the clouds.

 

Across the courtyard to the shower and western toilet

Our room with a view - forest and river 

Everyone is keen to dry clothes

Do we spy a mountain? 

Yes we do! ........... excited!

While eating dinner a kerosene heater was lit and placed in a hole beneath the main table. The heater resembles a camping stove with the gas ring alight. Wire is strung around the table so that clothes and any other wet items can be hung up to dry in the warmth. Our shoes and many others were placed underneath as well. Blankets are tacked to the top edge of the table – to warm your legs? - to keep in the smell of dirty clothes and socks drying? I have no idea but all the lodges on the mountain have adopted the technique. At one stage I lifted the blanket at one end to check on our clothes and found myself face to face with two glistening eyes.

 

Cats always know the warm spots to sit!  

Time for bed. The stars are out. Dare we hope?

 

 

Trek Diary – Never mind the weather, never mind the rain!

Day 3 - Saturday 15^th September 2012

Ghorepani (2850m) to Tadapani (2630)

 

We woke to rain. Today was to have been a very early rise to trek to Pun Hill for the sunrise view of the mountains – it was to be our first view of them. It was not to be! We farewelled Yong, Ken and John in the rain. They are heading in a different direction to us.

 

Beautiful bub at our Ghorepani Guesthouse wondering what the tourist is up to

If it stopped raining at any point during the day, it wasn’t for long. It was quite cool but it warmed up quite noticeably once we were walking. We climbed up on to a ridge straight after Ghorepani, followed it for some way then stepped down into a narrow gorge. We were now walking in the rhododendron forests. We crossed the river at the bottom and, towards lunch time, climbed once again out of the gorge.

 

Ginger tea time at Gurung Hill in the midst of the Rhodedenron Forest - still raining!

Lunch at Banthanti - still raining!

After lunch we had our most treacherous stretch. Downhill mud! The stone path had disappeared. It was non existent. I guess the distance wasn’t that great but we had a tough time of it. Thank goodness for walking sticks and Ram, ready to catch me should I slip. Ram guided me through the worst section. The horror stretch ended at another river crossing and it was then into our last climb of the day.

We stayed at the Super View. The shower, although outside and across a wet courtyard, was hot and the fire in the dining hall warm and inviting. Late afternoon the weather looked to be clearing. We glimpsed the hills in the distance and the valley below. Fingers crossed for a break in the rain. Today we trekked for six hours, six hours in the rain and covered between 8 to 10 kilometres. Can’t be more accurate than that – guide opinions vary. 

 

 

The hills are emerging - there are mountains behind them but we can't see them yet - still raining!



Day 4 – Sunday 16^th September

Another day in Tadapani

 

The rain bucketed down all night. The owner of our lodge claims that the gods are angry and hence the bad weather. We have a spare day in our itinerary and we have opted for a rest day. Can’t face another day of being wet, cold and sloshing through mud, It is supposed to start clearing tomorrow if you can believe long range weather forecasts. The prayers are being sent out. Hope to dry out some of our gear and rest the muscles.

 

Trek Diary - Bright Eyed and Bushy Tailed

Day 1 – Thursday 13^th September 2012

Naya pul (1,070m) to Tikedhunga (1,577m) 

It was lightly raining as we left Pokara but thankfully after a one and a half hour taxi ride it remained overcast but dry when we reached Naya Pul. Naya Pul was our trek launching point.  We left the main road, crossed a suspension bridge and were on our way. Our trekking passports were arranged prior to the trek so Ram signed us in at the tourist checkpoint. Let the slow climb begin! 

Today was an ‘easy’ day – four hours of trekking up a steady incline. I hope the mountain legs kick in soon. The climb up to our lunch spot was a tiring one. I felt like the ‘Little Engine’ – I think I can, I think I can.

After lunch we both used our umbrellas for protection against the sun. The scenery was beautiful in the hill land we had been walking in, so very green and fertile and picturesque villages.

  

Rule no. 1 when passing a donkey train - stay close to the hill side, never on the edge. Why? If you are in their way they just knock you down or over the side. They don't veer from their course. And when you are hugging the hill side pray it is a wide path or you get shoved into the rocks. I learnt from experience later the first day, just past the landslide.

 

My two downfalls today – negotiating, terrified, a crumbling landslide with a very narrow ledge and a creek crossing. The creek was approximately four metres wide, the water knee deep and surging, the mode of crossing – rocks towered one on top of the other and wobbling precariously. NO, I did not have the balance needed for this obstacle. The easiest way to cross? Take off the shoes and socks and wade through. No dramas!

 

Our first night – Chandra Guesthouse in the beautiful little village of Tikedhunga. We arrived in glorious sunshine but by nightfall it was raining.

 

 

Day 2 – Friday 14^th September 2012

Tikedhunga (1,577m) to Ghorepani (2,850m) 

The pressure is on! The real trekking has kicked in – saw more steps today than I have ever seen in my life and, today, all of them uphill.

Early breakfast and hit the trail at 7.30am in the fog. A beautiful cascading river gurgled behind our lodge and it wasn’t long before we crossed it.

A bit of headbutting in the morning mist

Then the steps started! A flight of 3,280 in the first hour! No I didn’t count them – it was a statistic that Ram gleefully announced as we mounted the first step. They were the worst. There wasn’t a break, just one after the other, going up and up. Once conquered it was Red Bull and Ginger Tea time.

We continued to climb for the rest of the day. The views would have been spectacular but we didn’t see them. The fog was replaced by rain. The rain continued with varying intensity for the remainder of the day.

As we trekked higher we entered the rhododendron forest. Water streamed across the path in many places but the path was rocky and, although our shoes got very wet, we walked through very little mud.

For the last two days we have been trekking with one Thai, Yong, an American Thai, Ken, and Samma, an Egyptian from Cairo. By trekking with, I really mean that we have been keeping company with them at the same guesthouses and trekking with them on and off during the days. We are all trekking at our own pace so we all separate at different stages along the path. Today we met another Australian, John, from Northern Queensland. He is a Queenslander sooooo ...... enough said!

Staying at Kamali Lodge. The hamstrings are a little bit tight tonight and the muscle down the outside of my left knee is complaining seriously. It would have been nice to only have to climb one flight of stairs to our room but no such luck. There is a much appreciated fire burning downstairs – time to dry out the shoes, lounge in its warmth and chat for a while.

A wet Ghorepani