LANGTANG part two

The morning I left the Buddha Guesthouse and the comfortable village of Syabru Besi I was feeling quite confident about doing the two week trek on my own (without the support of a guide) and the spring weather helped add to my good mood. It was sunny and cool, perfect for trekking in the mountains. Walking to the outer edge of the village to begin my journey, I came across a large number of other hikers starting to gather in an open field. They were all coming together, taking pictures, visiting, and slowly preparing themselves for what seemed like a group departure. I inquired about them in passing and was told they were a tour group of around 50 from Korea. As a large group they had decided on bringing their own food for the journey which meant hiring the same number of guides and porters (women and men) from surrounding villages to help pack there belongings and cook for them. A small army really!
I must admit being taken aback and somewhat disappointed hearing there was going to be such a large number of others moving along the trail at the same time as myself. This completely dispelled any romantic notion or idea that it was just going to be me and the Himalayan mountains and my initial selfish reaction was, "had I'd wanted to be in an ocean of humanity I would have stayed in Kathmandu".  I quickly snapped out of this self induced funk with another thought "I've got to start moving and try stay ahead", and this is exactly what I did for that first day out.


I followed a narrow, well used pathway that would sometimes climb up high beside the Khula River and other times stretch out right along beside the fast running water. I occasionally made crossings on iffy makeshift bridges and other times found myself wandering through jungle like forest that seemed more like something I might see back home in the dark thick forests on Vancouver Island. There were spots along the trail where the ground was filled with blankets of new light green cannabis growing like yard grass (unlike back home) and other spring growth that included an array of wild flowers popping, the lovely vibrant colors most of which I'd never seen before. Despite knowing there was a long line of trekkers behind me, I found myself becoming totally absorbed and slowing down considerably. I found a great joy in losing myself to it all including my sense of time. As it turned out I hardly saw or crossed paths with anyone on the trail that day, so my personal solitude wasn't compromised in the least. As a matter-o-fact I came to the conclusion that since I was traveling solo having people following along behind was probably a good thing.

After a good 4 hours of steady hiking I stopped at a very tiny place called Bahboo and checked myself into the Shurpa Guesthouse which was nestled down beside the very loud fast moving river. I decided to stay there for the rest of the day and night for a couple reasons! The first reason was earlier I'd spoken with a couple on the trail who told me they'd stayed there the night before and thought the food was tasty, especially the dal baht (lentils, rice and vegetables), and my other reason for not pressing on was I didn't want to be in a hurry and was wanting to ease my leg muscles back into the work of climbing again. Four hours of hiking was enough and relaxing my afternoon away just observing, journal writing, and enjoying being tucked in the mountains was the perfect way to finish off the day.

That afternoon while I was in the dining room enjoying a hot mug of Chai tea, the owners son came over and really wanted to engage in conversation. A nice enough young guy but I thought he seemed to be a little overly friendly. I didn't give it much thought as I was a stranger in a strange land and some cultures are just so different when it comes to personal space. A person just needs to travel in India to understand this. A little later I was in my room writing about the events of the day and there was a knock on my guesthouse door. It was the owner's son, Sonam again. He started warming up to me showing me his early education marks (diploma) from school, pictures of treks, friends, and his girlfriend etc. etc. I learned he was 20 years old, and still wanting to continue his education which I'm guessing would be equivalent to our high school in the west, but his family was poor and couldn't afford to send him to Kathmandu which is where his friends migrated to to finish their education. When he mustered up the courage to ask me for sponsorship I really didn't know what to say. I had no idea what the cost or logistics to do this would be and I wasn't so sure I wanted to take on the responsibility of paying a certain amount every month for the next couple years for his higher learning. I was limited financially much of the time myself but instead of saying "no" I responded with something like "I don't have much money either so I'll have to think on it". With that he thanked me profusely, (way too much) then beaming from ear to ear and with an obvious glitter of Kathmandu in his eyes he left closing the door quietly behind him. Ten minutes later he was back only this time with his father in tow and now his father was also super happy despite my saying I'd need to think about it. So much so that he gifted me a lovely white silk scarf in the traditional way of placing it in my hands then around my neck. So now the son, the father, and as I found out later, the mother were all really really happy because I said I'd need to think about it!

SONAM, MYSELF AND THE FAMILY

I spent the rest of that day pondering this interaction and how it unfolded, and realized I wasn't comfortable with the amount of hope Sonam and his family were putting in my words. I also came to the conclusion it might not have been so much about his receiving an education as maybe the mother and father were just wanting Sonam to move on with his life, as there was nothing for him in Bahboo. This and knowing his buddies who were already living in Kathmandu were either finished or almost finished school had me questioning everything. Was it school he's interested in or getting out of Bahboo and just hanging out with the pals, all were total projections and assumptions on my part but possible realities.
I had stopped there to catch up on some writing, do a little reading, eat tasty dal baht and get rested up for my next days travel and now I was in a bit of an awkward situation. I decided to set it all aside for the time being and push off the next day continuing my trek towards the village of Langtang. I'd return through Bahboo in ten days and would know what to do then!

The Koreans closed the gap later that day arriving and literally filling up the guesthouses in Babboo, and because of their large number some had to continue on through to a few small settlements further along the river. In the days that followed I was blessed with easy uphill climbs, incredibly beautiful landscapes and vistas, balmy spring weather (at least in the day time) and the wonderful opportunity to connect directly and indirectly with the hearty colorful earth based people living on the trail.

In a few days I'll continue this story about what happened in Kyanjing Gompa, my hike out and what I decided to do around Sonam and his education. The following pictures were taken on the way in.
 

TILLING WITH YAKS AND PLANTING POTATOES

                                                         

                       

STURDY MOUNTAIN HORSE              

        TYPICAL GUESTHOUSE KITCHEN

LANGTANG

                                                       

HIMALAYAN BRILLIANCE

LANGTANG part one

After spending three weeks hiking the Himalayan Annapruna mountain range, then enjoying another week of recovery in the very beautiful town on the lake called Pokhara, I felt I'd given myself the needed pampering and rest my body had been crying for and was ready to bus it back to colorful Kathmandu. There were a few personal items left at the hotel I'd stayed in a month earlier that needed to be retrieved (hotels look after personal belongings while out trekking) and while there I could have another good look around, enjoy some of the sights and figure out what my next step would be when it came to exploring the visually delicious world of Nepal. Once back it didn't take me long to realize despite all the eye popping color and interesting hustle, Kathmandu was still a big city, one that was inundated with relentless noise and air pollution and at that particular time there were also the underlying tensions stirred up by coming elections. Just so happened the country hadn't see a vote in 6 years (or so the story went) and all parties involved were wanting/demanding their voice be heard. Large groups of Maoists, the Nepali Congress, and the Pastriya Parjatantra party were coming together on the streets and expounding on their platforms. There was some stand off protesting and fighting and the occasional bomb exploding in the city center all of which seemed to be the norm for those living there. I never felt like I was in any danger but must admit that my making the decision to hike the Langtang trail came quickly and a couple mornings after arriving in Kathmandu I acquired my hiking permit, a few things for the trek and without a guide boarded a bus that would take me the 12 hours to the village of Syabru Besi where I would start my journey.
(Gallery of Kathmandu pictures at the end)


Now for those of you who've been to Nepal and risked the perilous mountain roads by local bus you'd know about this experience. For anyone who's never been, well let me say the only way to truly understand what it's like is by direct personal experience. The bus (coffin) I took that day came equipped with bald tires, breaks that squeal far to loudly whenever applied, and was always uncomfortably packed with everything from people and 20 foot lengths of steel rebar to chickens and heavy bags of grain. There were a lot of stops and always people scrambling up and perching on the roof, and if there was no room up there they'd hang on the sides! This made for some interesting silhouette shadow play on the roadside and also had me thinking it could be the safer place to be. The road to Syabru Besi wasn't just rocky with stretches high up where it became more like a goat trail and seemed too narrow for our bloated bus, but in places it also abutted sheer drops that made me nervous and made being inside the bus very difficult at times.....


At least if outside a person had the opportunity to make that leap of faith if they had too. It's a very nerve raking experience bouncing along not being in control and knowing full well if something/anything goes sideways you and a bus load of others could easily slip over and plunge thousands of feet straight down to what would be a very ugly demise. At one point during the journey the bus broke down, something to do with the steering which in itself was a little unsettling. In truth this break down came at a good time as I really had to pee and I wasn't the only one, seemed everyone was scrambling to get out and run for the nearest stand of trees. A 12 hour day of very few pee breaks and a lunch that lasted maybe 25 minutes is a lengthy stretch for anyone, but on those bumpy roads it was unbearable. There's no question that traveling by local bus on the mountain roads of Nepal can be taxing on the nervous system, definitely not for the faint of heart but I'm glad I did it this way. Not so sure I'd do it this way again, maybe next time I'd take the time to hire a vehicle and driver just for the comfort and to be able to stop when I wanted.

THE PICTURE ABOVE IS LOOKING OUT FROM THE BUS WINDOW

     AND IF YOU LOOK CLOSE ENOUGH YOU CAN SEE THE TINY HOUSES BELOW              

There really was so much packed into the trip from Kathmandu to my destination Syabru Besi, more then I could ever try to write about. I went through the complete range of emotions that included my exhilaration of witnessing the beauty of another culture, the land, smells and sounds, to my occasional nervous fear that occasionally screamed we're all going to die, to experiencing my incredible joy and complete exhaustion of finishing up and arriving at the start of my next mountain adventure.

Didn't take me long to find and check into a guesthouse after arriving."The Buddha Guesthouse" was clean, and the owners super nice and friendly. The showers had hot water which isn't always the case and my bed was comfortable which again isn't always the case. I suppose after a twelve hour ride on the rough roads through the mountains anything resembling a bed would be amazing and welcome. I'll leave you with a few more pictures I took from the road trip to Syabru Besi and begin the second part of this story in a few days.

                                     

BROKEN DOWN AND PATIENTLY WAITING

                           

                                                            

ON A NICE DAY BEING ON THE TOP HAS GOT TO BE THE BEST WAY TO RIDE ON A BUS
                                                      MIGHT EVEN BE THE SAFEST AS WELL

RELAXED AND CAREFREE

                                                                   

                                             

JUST IN PASSING

LOVE THE TERRACING

THESE NEXT FEW PICTURES WERE TAKEN OF LIFE ON THE STREETS OF KATHMANDU

LOCAL PUBLIC MARKET 

BICYCLE TAXI DRIVER WEARING A TRADITIONAL NEPALESE HAT

HONING HIS CRAFT                                                            WHERE I STAYED

                                 

JUST LIKE THE CITY WORKERS BACK HOME

       INFRASTRUCTURE OF KATHMANDU









































I DON'T BELIEVE ANY OF THESE CHILDREN GO TO SCHOOL,
SEEMS EVERYONE HAS TO WORK TO EXSIST,  FOR THEM IT'S A TOUGH GO
DAY TO DAY EVERYDAY

THIS ONE SPEAKS FOR ITSELF

ANNAPRUNA CIRCUIT part three

Going over the Thorung la Pass was magical, it was literally like being on another planet or in a Frank Herbert novel. The dense mountain energy, and the deep layers of silence had a quality that was quite simply exquisite! The only sounds at 5416 meters were my shallow breathing, a cold wind blowing over the snow and rocks, and the flutter of tattered prayer flags holding their earth grip and reaching out for the heavens. I'm so thankful that I made the choice to push ahead of everyone and move through this stretch on my own. It wouldn't have been the same had I been with the group. The lack of oxygen at that height was very noticeable, I was lightheaded, slightly sick to my stomach, breathing was difficult, and my balance seemed to be a little off, I felt a little like I had been drinking. Despite the lack of oxygen and the slow intense climb up, this undertaking turned out to be much easier than the going down. After three hours of brutal downhill travel my leg muscles, knees, and hips were completely gone, I was weak and wobbling big time. When I eventually walked (stumbled) into the village of Muktinath at around noon that day I certainly wasn't walking with a spring in my step feeling like the King of Kensington, no I probably looked more like a scotty hound with its tail tucked between its legs. I was utterly depleted, completely fried physically. I was also overjoyed to be able to sit in the warmth of the sun, rest my weary bones, sip on a pepsi, slurp back hot noodle soup and most importantly enjoy being able to get a full expansive breath again. I'd just spent 8 hours hiking from High Camp at 4850 meters to 5416 then back down to 3760, and was well deserving of this heightened state of euphoria! Robin, Emily and a number of others from that early morning starting line made it to the village 90 minutes later all completely spent, super happy and looking forward to doing exactly what I was doing, resting up and licking their wounds.

The days following our Thorung la Pass summit we spent working out the deep rooted fatigue and muscle stiffness that had settled in and healing up the nasty blisters from the pass. We traveled through completely different terrain of wind blown rocky expanses and brown flat land where the only other splashes of color came from the sky and occasional strings of prayer flags we'd see along the way.
Although I've never been, I thought this side of the pass is what Tibet might look like! We had made it through the hardest part of our journey and pushed on delighted that our final days on the Annapruna Circuit would be spent on an slow easy decline. There was also a growing tickle of excitement in knowing we would be finishing up at the beautiful lakeside town of Pokerha where we'd be able to access the internet, sip morning cups of good strong coffee, and eat toasted baguettes with butter and jam which I must admit I'd been craving and was ready for.

A SMALL VILLAGE IN A VALLEY MAYBE CHHYONKHAR?

The days and nights slipped by as did the villages, from Jomsom to Kalopani, Dana and Tatopani to Sikha, our walking dream was always photo rich with stunning views and wonderful people we'd meet along the way. We enjoyed a much needed soak in the hot springs in Tatopai, hung out for a day with other trekkers that had converged in the village of Sikha, and while in Ghorepani we climbed up Poon Hill in the early morning hours in time to watch the sunrise. Seemed the closer to the end of our trek we got the more trekkers we'd meet and socialize with. Even though we were all from different parts of the globe and everyone had their own reason for being there, adventure is adventure and camaraderie has a way of becoming a part of the experience. 

SPRINGTIME AND THINGS ARE POPPIN

GOTTA LOVE THE GREEN

MY KINDA VILLAGE, NO STREET LIGHTS

GHORAPANI AND VIEWS FROM POONHILL

THE MORNING SUN RISE AND INCREDIBLE PANORAMIC VIEW WAS TOTALLY WORTH GETTING UP AND WORKING FOR.





                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

THE LAST FEW PICTURES ARE THE END OF AN EXTRAORDINARY JOURNEY

THE LARGE RHODODENDRON TREES WERE EVERYWHERE

ONCE THERE WE STAYED THE NIGHT IN THIS LITTLE

VILLAGE APPROPRIATELY CALLED, "HILLY'

CLOSE TO THE END NOW

                                                                                     

THE BEAUTIFUL RESTFUL POKHARA

VIEW FROM THE DECK OF THE GUESTHOUSE I STAYED IN

             

THEY ROAM THE STREETS AND SIDEWALKS AND ENTER SHOPS

AND ARE ALWAYS TREATED WITH THE UTMOST OF RESPECT

                                             
I'll finish this story by saying even though it's been a number of years since hiking the Annapruna Circuit, the mountains and earth based people living there continue to call me to return for another adventure. I'm still good for another nomadic wander in the Himalayas, anyone want to join me?