Trekking Day Four, Five, & Six: May 25 - 27

We have been told that in the regular trekking season, our autumn months, the circuit has 150 new visitors every day. So hundreds of foreign trekking enthusiasts plus porters plus guides plus the regular circuit local travelers.. it must be like being in New York City with all the traffic. However, we were the only three who started on our first day and we rarely ran into other trekkers on the trail. It was nice to have the open space, the trail to yourself, and the ability to gaze around at all of the creation.
On May 25 we woke early from Tal and headed out very early for it was a long and high ascent to Chimbe. Our route today led us out of the jungles and (deep breathe) into the cool open pine forests . Ahh (exhale) In mid morning we stopped at a police checkpoint to check in, have some buchwheat bread for breakfast, and then continued on to climb. This was the last time we saw Vesa. Again he needed a coca-cola, and the rest is history. Elise and I started to walk ahead to keep up the momentum and try to punch out the heavier part of the day before the noon sun hit us.

The forest reminded me much of Colorado. All the greens and browns and the rivers. It was beautiful and totally different then the days in the jungles we just had. Around noon we stopped for lunch in a small town. There was a lot of music and drums because of a wedding celebration that was taking place. I wanted to throw off my pack and dance with them, but instead I watched and enjoyed the energy going on around me. We threw back some veggie curry and hot tea and checked our faithful guide, the Lonely Planet, on what we to expect next. UP HILL. Oh good. So up we went, up this long winding cliff again sharing the little bit of trail with men and porter horses. My pack at this time felt very heavy and boy I was tired and sticky from the long day. The Lonely Planet warned us about the long steep uphill battle.. but I didn't expect to actually be climbing while being under attack. As we proceeded up this hill, thousands, literally, thousands of gnats swarmed our faces and our bodies.
Do you remember the dirty kid from Charlie Brown, the one where the dust storm always followed him around? That's what we looked like. I had dozen of gnats in my ears, in my eyes, in my clothes, in my mouth. I had to a bandana over my mouth. Unfortunately had lost my sunglasses in so I was experiencing how a cow or a horse feels when flies just sit in their eyes. It was awful. I couldn't see. This went on for quite some time. Once or twice I had to stop and bury my face in my shirt just to find some relief before pressing on. Everyday it was some different and some quite unexpected. Next time I'm bringing my cousin's bee keeping hat with the face net.

When we finally cleared the dark forest of the attacking gnats, we had about an hour of a straight shot to Chimbe. So we continued on and joined a crowd of school children on their way home for the day. We passed many stone villages, temples, and farms today. All really beautiful. When I finally have time to sort through them all, I will post some pictures. Prayer flags could be seen in every direction for miles on end. The forests and homes were decorated so brightly with them. As we were in the midst of the school crowd I heard a familiar voice and it was our German friends Max and Felix. Namaste! It was great to have run into them again. We entered the town together and as always headed towards the outsides of the towns for a guest house. Chimbe was very charming. It was a stone village with some shops and lots of little restaurants. It also had a beautiful river with a bridge that gave a spectacular view of the mountains. Volleyball is very popular in Nepal so we passed a few teams playing, and if I hadn't been exhausted from the days trek and the battle of the gnats, I would've asked to play. But I'm not very good as it is, and so I assumed they would've laughed at me.

So I decided to save my dignity and just go to the guest house. We cleaned up for dinner and headed into the dining room where we introduced Max and Felix to their first dinner of momos. This was a fairly newer lodge and the family managing it was very big and very nice. As we waited for our meal.. side note.. in these little guest houses they have one small wood burning stove where they cook everyone's meal. So you order and wait about an hour or more for your food especially if everyone orders something different so as we went on in the days we found it was easier and quicker to agree on the same food so we didn't have to wait until late evening to eat. Anyways as we waited for our meal we watched some Bollywood soap operas with the men of the house. They were very much into the dramatic affair unfolding before our eyes. They all sat, eyes glued to the televisions, mouths open.. and we sat behind them trying to figure out who the man really loved. Anything to pass the time. I was just relieved to be able to see again without bugs in my eyes. So we ate dinner and proceeded onto bed. No big spiders surprises this evening. A good night's sleep was sounding so sweet.

On May 26 we woke up to the sound of a heavy rain storm. It was pouring. We ran out of our rooms and met Max and Felix in the dining hall. After ordering breakfast we took a look at the route for the day. It was a fairly simple day, only about a four hour day to our next point and the ascent wasn't very high. So Elise and I decided to wait out the rain and take our time today. I went back to my room to take a nap which would be the last time I ever slept in my sleeping bag. Although I thought I packed really light, after a few days of those hills I decided I needed to go even a little lighter. So I left behind my sleeping bag and some articles of clothing. The guest house family could probably use them more then me anyways.

Late morning the rain continued but not as heavily. We packed up, threw on our rain gear, and decided to get a move on. Our path was a straight shot at the beginning leading us deep into the pine forests. We were surrounded by deep green pine trees and ferns. After about two hour of trekking we came out of the forest and into a small village. We stopped at a local tea house to get our of the wet weather for a bit. We ordered some tea and rice (24 hour power is their slogan for rice) and sat down to read. Inside the tea house we met two other young women trekkers from London. We chatted with them for a bit about trip details. As we were finishing our lunch the rain stopped and the scenery outside began to light up as the sun started to shine. We started back on the trail hoping to finish the remainder of the day's trek before more rain came. This was probably one of the best afternoons we had trekking. The lighting in the forests after the rain was absolutely stunning. The weather was cool and the water glistened off all the greens and browns. We approached a steep cliff side after some time which would circle us around the mountain. I cannot begin to describe the views. The mountains and valleys were covered in huge pine trees and you could see the blue river way below. Above was blue skies, brown peaks, and just above those brown peaks were bright white and blue white peaks of the ranges. We were finally in high enough to start to see and understand just how enormous and vast these ranges were. I had to walk backwards because I couldn't take my eyes off the scenery. It just went on forever and I wanted it to. So we surely took our time on this part of the route.

As we entered back into the forests we walked through a section that was decorated with all kinds of memorials and prayer flags. There was something to breathtaking, peaceful, and magical about this site. I just felt the need to walk slowly, breath deeply, and appreciate the moment. It was really spiritual as were a lot of moments along the trek. We approached another small town where we met a young man from India. He said he had been sitting in the town for an hour now.. an hour for what I asked.. and he pointed up towards the sky. There she was! The peak of Annapurna II in all her glory. He had been waiting for the clouds to clear so he could see the jagged cone shaped peak. We all sat in amazement and excitement. It was captivating! After about an hour of just talking and admiring beautiful mother nature, Elise and I pressed on to finish the day's route. We ended in Lower Pisang, a wonderful old stone village almost untouched by western civilization. The Tibetan community here was so friendly and greeted you with the biggest smiles. We stayed in a log cabin guest house along with one other French couple.

I forgot to mention we had passed this huge rock face, a great barrier they call it. They say it is the gateway to heaven. Everyone who dies, their souls go into this wide and tall rock slab. It was mighty, smooth, and the further up we climbed the higher it rose. You felt so small next to it. All of nature seemed to bow to its glory. Again I need to post pictures and you will (hopefully) understand the magnificence I am trying to describe. Well tonight we ended in Lower Pisang. It was a beautiful day and we were feeling great.

The next morning, May 27, we woke up and enjoyed our favorite Tibetian breakfast, Tsampa Porridge and instant coffee. We decided to take a longer higher route together because it offered more remote villages and better views. We started off climbing up to Upper Pisang which is the extension of the first village, just a steeper climb up the hill. On our way out of all village we would pass prayer wheels which were columns that spun and was a practice of the Buddhist faith. You were suppose to spin the wheels as you prayed and walked around them. They were about 10 to 12 feet long. I stopped to listen to the songs and prayers of some of the older women in town. I just enjoy the passion and peace of their faith. We left Pisang, one of my favorite villages, and headed north. After some time we crossed another high bridge and found our trail. It was leading around and around straight up this steep hill. Talk about false summits. Every time I looked up I thought for sure, one more traverse and we're there.. I was mistaken. It went on for miles and just kept getting steeper. However I think I function much better at high altitudes because I was much stronger and faster at this steeper climb then I was at the climbs lower in the jungles. When I reached the top I found some rock stairs that led me into this medieval stone Tibetan village, only a few small houses and a guest house. I was instantly swarmed by four or five old Tibetan villagers all grabbing at me and shouting and smiling. I didn't know what to do! I was surrounded and I couldn't understand a word of what they were saying.. I think it had been a while since they had seen white skin. Elise was still far back on the trail climbing so she wasn't helpful at the moment. Another older woman came running out of her home shouting and pushing them off of me. Thank goodness for her rescue! She was so beautiful and so sweet. She invited me up to sit and brought me some green tea as I waited for Elise. She ran the guest house, which was certainly one of the oldest ones I had seen along the trip. It even showcased a furry large yak head. From her home you could see mountains for miles! We sat and watched them, trying to study and store to memory all the details of the ever rising rocks before we began to trek on again. At this point we were about 11,000 ft or more, so we had gained about 9,000 ft in six days. We descended from the high villages to pick up the remainder of the route heading to Manang. We stopped at a wooden bridge to acquire some water from the river when I met a new friend. He was carrying a dead rabbit in his mouth and he was a weasel of sorts. He dropped the rabbit when he spotted me and began to run a muck around and around, circling me in every direction. It was hilarious. In and out of bushes, following me over the bridge and up the trail. I don't think he had seen white skin in a while either, he wasn't sure what to make of us but he followed us to be sure we left town so he could feast on his victory rabbit without judgement.

We had to travel through two or three small yak farming villages before reaching Manang. They were wide open field, surrounded by the mountains and buckwheat pastures. Manang was a half way point in which you could decided to go off to other side trips or just press on up to the pass. It was also a place to restock on supplies and gear. The town offered many guest houses, bakeries, shops, and even a "movie theater" that showed movies like Into Thin Air, Touching the Void, 27 Years in Tibet. Very unique place indeed. So this marked day six of our journey. From Manang we will take a side trip before pressing on to the pass. The weather was much colder up here at night but the stars were so bright and clear. I put on my yak hat and ended my day star gazing and dreaming about what has been and what is yet to come.

Special Note: As I'm writing these blogs, I'm also spending my days enjoying much the life and people of Pokhara. I have met some new wonderful friends who live here in Pokhara and I was able to spend a day with them at a local university practicing English. We also have spent some time and meals together since hanging out in town, exchanging life stories, and enjoying good friendship. One young beautiful woman, Neelam, told me she's been reading my blog so I want to say to her, you are a brilliant woman and a great new friend! Our time together has been so precious and fun and I am excited for your future opportunities. Thank you so much for your kindness and for your help in my Nepali language :) See you in New York!