Langtang Trek 2014

After a stopover in Hong Kong and visit to the Big Buddha, an enthusiastic group of 9 arrived in Kathmandu and spent the first 2 nights at the comfortable Nirvana Garden Hotel. We weighed the trekking bags, ate a good breakfast and boarded the bus for a 6 hour drive to Dhunche. The road winds its way over a big ridge west of the Kathmandu valley, across several rivers and after a dal bhat lunch (rice, lentils, curry veg & pickle) in Trisuli Bazaar, climbed up to 1920m and entered the Langtang National Park. We continued on to Syabru Besi as the road now is paved down to the river and to where we started our trek.

On a bright, sunny morning we headed to a check post, across the bridge over the Bhote Khosi river and east to the trails bordering the Langtang Khola (river). We made it the first 1000 meters elevation gain to Rimche the first day and stayed in a small tea house. The food was good and sleep most welcome.

The next day we gained another 1000m over 6 hours and arrived in Langtang Village mid afternoon and were greeted by Jangbu, the proprietor of Hotel Tibet Guesthouse, a newer teahouse I stayed in 3 years ago when it was first built. We had a rest day planned the next day so folks showered, did laundry and charged camera batteries. We took a walk to the Cheese factory and had tea with fresh bread with tomatoes and nak cheese (a yak is a male, nak is a female!) Delicious!

After the rest day, we hiked further up the valley to Kyanjin Gompa at 3870m. We had dal bhat at the Gompa Guesthouse with the familiar (to me) owner cooking up a nice lunch. The sun was intense and everyone feeling the altitude - slight headaches, fatigue, etc. After a visit to the 500 year old Gompa (temple) we headed back down the valley to another night at Langtang village.

By now everyone was getting into the routine of packing up the trekking bags before breakfast so the porters could lash them together and get on the trail. Breakfasts of oatmeal, or eggs and toast, pancakes, tea and coffee were consumed and we got on the trail by 8am each day. Back down the valley we stayed again in Rimche and the stars at night were amazing. We had lunch at Landslide and then a fork in the trail took us up to Thula Syabru, high on a ridge at 2250m. (Well, I am not immune to pitfalls of travel - I drank a Fanta on the way and resulted in a serious food poisoning :- (







We changed the itinerary a bit and the group went off to Sing Gompa at 3330m climbing over 1000m via Phoprang Danda. This was through farms, a beautiful forest and into warm sunshine. A few folks who wanted an additional challenge headed up to Laurebina Yak and the Gosainkunda lakes, while some stayed for a rest day in Sing Gompa. In evenings, we all learned to play Dumbal, a Nepali card game that was great fun. There was a cheese factory here too so we took advantage of it, buying cheese and taking boiled eggs and chapatis for our lunch on the hike out to Dhunche. Arriving in Dhunche brought our trekking to a close and we had a celebration beer with our guide and porters, gave them their tips and prepared ourselves for the 6 hour bus ride back to Kathmandu. Warm showers, good food and shopping were available to the group upon returning.

We took a day trip to Bhaktapur, an old walled city in the Kathmandu valley. There were 3 old kingdoms (Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur) and they each have a royal square - Durbar Square. We also toured Pashupatinath, the holy Hindu temples on the banks of the Bagmati river and on to tour Bouddhanath, the Tibetan quarter, walking around the kora and having lunch on the rooftop cafe overlooking the largest Stupa in the world.

Well, as all things must come to a close, some folks flew to Hong Kong, some by car to Chitwan park, and some off to India or home. A great group, lots of laughs and with so much culture, mountain scenery and daily experiences, we will process this all in the months to come!  Everyone remained fairly healthy in spite of a few colds, coughs and sore muscles. Thanks to this amazing group for their support, curiosity and enthusiasm for trekking in Nepal.

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Everest Base Camp 2014

 After organizing a wonderful group, we arrived in Kathmandu and got our land legs and jet lag dealt with. 

Lukla Airport

A flight to Lukla from Kathmandu is an experience most of us will remember for a long time. We began trekking to Monjo overnight in Phakding. 

The Hillary bridge

Namche Bazaar

Ama Dablam - my favorite mountain

The next day was up and up to Namche Bazaar. We stayed 2 nights to acclimatize and then on to Tengboche and wonderful views of Ama Dablam. The altitude was felt by everyone but taking it easy, not rushing the hike, drinking lots of water was super helpful for everyone to keep healthy. Diamox is also helpful for aiding the body to adjust to altitude.

Trail to Dingboche

Dingboche

Tengboche monastery

First views of Mt Everest and Lhotse

On to Dingboche and beautiful village above 4000m and another rest day to acclimatize. Many groups are rushed through the overall trek and get sick easily. And the legs are working very hard and the body adjusting to different temperatures and diet. Some nights are rather restless as the body gets used to the lower oxygen levels.

Looking to the Khumbu Icefall

Kala Pattar - 'black rock' actually brown

Myself at 5300m on Kala Pattar

Once we get higher to Dughla, the climbers memorials, we are so close.

Dughla - climber memorials

Arriving in Gorak Shep (5200m), the last tea house before Everest Base Camp. We have 2 nights here, one day to hike to a small trekking peak called Kala Pattar (5545m) and the next day on to EBC itself at 5364m. 

Village of Gorak Shep, hill Kala Pattar and Pumori 

This is a very challenging trek with altitude, numbers of people, dealing with cold nights and the physical and mental effort, but in the end it is satisfying! 

Yoga & Culture Tour February 2014

For the second year in a row, I have joined the Adventure Travel Company in Edmonton to guide and lead a group to Nepal for 2 weeks of daily yoga practice and walks in the local villages and cities. This year we had a wonderful group spending 12 nights in 4 amazing locations!

The first 3 nights were spent at the Vajra Hotel in Kathmandu. This is known to many Europeans as a favorite place to stay as it is away from the throngs in a quiet neighborhood within a short walking distance of the Monkey Temple (Swayambunath), the National Museum and the Military Barracks. We did our yoga early each morning in the Theatre Room in the upper part of the hotel. After breakfast we went walking to the local markets, temples and interesting quarters of Kathmandu.




















We took a short excursion to the town of Bhaktapur, one of the old Kingdoms of the valley, which is known for thanka paintings, pottery, hand-made paper products and being a walled city, it still has the old charm of the past.

We then took a 6 hour bus ride from Kathmandu to Pokhara on busy, narrow roads through the Nepal countryside. We saw banana trees, jungle, terraced farms and loads of cows, buses, cars, taxis and numerous small villages perched on the side of the road.

Here the Buddhist monks were making Losar bread for the Tibetan New Year celebrations at the refugee camp just outside Pokhara.

We spent 4 nights in Pokhara at the Gurkha Haven Hotel in damside Pokhara. Morning yoga practice was held in the top of the hotel in view of Annapurna South, Dhaulagiri, and Macchapucchre in the Annapurna range of the Himalayas. Stunning views greeted us every morning. We even got up at 5am and headed up to a local mountain (Sarankot) to watch the sunrise on the Annapurna's! Amazing experience.

The local culture was evident in the local Pokhara market, Tibetan refugee camp and walks along the lake Phewa. The food in Pokhara was great, especially at the Moondance Restaurant. Cold beer, tasty Indian and Nepali curries, naan bread, etc. topped off with a big slice of Lemon Meringue pie and local organic coffee! We also made a short trek to the International Mountaineering museum where they have a number of displays of climbing the 14 highest peaks in the world of which 8 reside in Nepal!

Then we took a short bus trip to Begnas Lake for a boat ride across the lake to the Begnas Lake Resort, where we stayed for 3 nights at this 4 star hotel in a rural area. Beautiful sunrises on the lake and morning yoga practice in the garden were amazing. We had many warm days of +20C although a bit hazy at this time of year. However, after winter in Edmonton it was heaven to walk in a t-shirt and shorts every day with the sun on your skin! Nights were still cool dropping to around +6-8C at night.

We walked to the Hindu temple on the ridge, an organic coffee plantation for delicious, fresh coffee and to a local school where we met the students, viewed their new library and saw the new community room in its finishing stages. An Ayervedic doctor is available for consultation every day at the resort and most of us booked a healing massage!

We packed up and took the boat back to the road and bused to the Pokhara airport for a 30 minute flight back to Kathmandu where we checked into the Hotel Tibet in the Lazimpat area. We had a delicious buffet dinner at the Radisson the first night back in Kathmandu.






Holy men at the Hindu temples in Pashupatinath...

The next day was spent visiting the Hindu temples at Pashupatinath, which fortunately was in full festival mode celebrating Shiva's birth. We then spent an afternoon in the Tibetan quarter of Boudhanath where the largest stupa in the world is located surrounded by 32 temples. That evening we went to UTSAV for a Nepali cultural dinner and entertainment show! This concluded our last night in Nepal. After a good night's sleep and final shopping in the markets, we had dinner at Fire and Ice for the best pizza in town before delivering everyone to the Tribhuvan international airport for the flight to Hong Kong, Vancouver and home!

 The beautiful Boudhanath Stupa above...

Annapurna Circuit April 2013

My first trek to Nepal was in 2004 completing the Annapurna Circuit, known as one of the top 10 treks in the world. I had joined a wonderful group (mostly Kiwi's) and enjoyed the challenges of Kathmandu pollution, crazy roads and drivers, and back country trekking in the Himalayas.

But, I also fell for the amazing people, landscape, delicious vegetarian diet, and mostly the opportunity to experience treks in the Himalayas. The Annapurna range is in the central part of Nepal, which borders Tibet on the north and India to the south.

Having been back to Nepal now for the 9th time, I enjoy returning to organize treks to Nepal and introduce folks to Nepal's Hindu and Buddhist cultures as well as to the mountain regions. In addition, our treks provide some cash for the porter's and for the owners of tea houses while trekking. I have been privileged to lead 3 trekking groups into the Langtang Valley and 2 to the Annapurna Base camp (also known as the Annapurna Sanctuary). It is always rewarding but after having been to the ABC and sanctuary, I was increasingly curious to revisit the Circuit which goes all around the Annapurna range and over Thorung La pass into the Kali Gandaki valley.

Landslide area

Urba, one of our strongest porters

Finally this year, 9 others joined me in Kathmandu and headed out by bus to Besisahar, to the end of the paved road. We began our trek from Bhulebule to Bahundanda and when I saw Himalchuli and Manaslu, knew I was in for another great trek. The group was fun, experienced and very self sufficient, seven of whom had been with me on previous Nepal treks. Their experience ensured smooth departures and arrivals with no dramas. Their eyes were like mine - wider each day we gained altitude with the incredible views!


We began trekking at around 850 meters altitude and over 12 days went as high as 5416 meters over the Thorung La Pass. Each day's trek was from 4 to 6 hours of walking on narrow trails, crossing suspension bridges, through small villages and farms, and on new roads. Yes, roads! This was one of the changes I heard was happening in the 9 years since being there. Construction was continuing slowly destroying trails while we walked. It is an unfortunate consequence of villagers (like any one of us) wanting easier access to health care, supplies and speed in travel. In the old days, many had to walk for days to see a doctor. Now they can call a jeep or 4 X 4 and be out to medical attention in a day. There is no road from Manang over the pass to Muktinath at the other end of the trail. However, at that end they have also built roads on the old trails. This is discouraging trekkers as few want to walk on roads with dust, dirt, exhaust, etc. in their faces. Now I have heard many villages are building new trails on the other side of the valley to retain the trekking business so critical to those who run tea houses and other amenities.

'Kani' near Bahundanda

 As you can see in the photos, weather was stellar. We had only a few days of cloud/rain in Manang, and a thunderstorm on a couple of afternoons. The higher altitude we gained, the colder the nights with frost. The final 2 nights before the pass were about minus 5 to minus 10C. The days above 3500 meters were generally warm when the sun shone to temps about +18C while trekking.

The big day! On April 13 we got up at 4 am, after a restless and cold sleep at High Camp (4925 meters), packed our bags, ate some porridge with tea and began to trek at 5 am with the light of our headlamps under the stars. The sun started to touch the tops of the 6000 and 7000 meter peaks around 6:15am and then daylight lit our way. It was truly a feeling of being on top of the world!

5am heading up

Final approach to Thorung La

A few other groups were strung out on the trail and the warmth of the sun was most welcome. The intensity of the sun was extreme. Out came sunscreen, brimmed hats replaced toques and polarized sunglasses were absolutely necessary to deal with the reflected light of the sun. We arrived at the top of the Thorung La pass around 8am. It was a celebration of success and also April 13 was Nepali New Year's eve. It was also one year since my knee surgery and I was feeling pretty good. I hung some prayer flags for my father who passed away in December. I felt so thankful and my tears were of gratitude for this incredible journey, now complete for the second time and I was also thankful that all my group made it safely over the pass!

Gyanu and me on Thorung La at 5416 meters

This photo of the sign shows us standing on snow at the height of the sign, whereas in 2004 I stood beside it with my elbow on the top of the sign. Two meters of snow packed the pass this time!

We paused for photos, and began the long 1700 meter descent through snow and icy sections, then back on the steep, narrow rocky trails to Muktinath where we enjoyed a wonderful celebration. It clouded up and snowed in Muktinath that afternoon and evening. We heard that folks crossing the pass the next day saw nothing as it had clouded up over the pass, it snowed and visibility was reduced to mere meters. What luck for us! Thanks to our wonderful porters and our guide Gyanu - they were the best support team we could ever hope for. My thanks, too, to all the participants in the trek - their enthusiasm, energy, humour and curiosity were so enjoyable!

Nilgiri North