Experimenting with some gourds
Friday, October 29, 2010
Is Nepal a Culinary Gold Mine?
To most people that have spent any time here, the question on its face may seem like some kind of joke. When I did some travel writing on Nepal early this year the book's editor asked if I could do something on Nepali food, as all the submissions she had so far received had been mostly foreign adaptations. I explained to her that Nepal lacks the kind of culinary diversity of its neighbors like China and India, and that Nepali cuisine could for the most part be summed up in four words; dahl baht takari, mo-mos. Now to be fair there are plenty of regional and ethnic cuisines here that are good, Newari food in particular takes advantage of many different ingredients and subtle flavors. Many Nepali people are also very proud of their dahl baht, they love the stuff and often explain to me that they just don't feel right if they don't have a meal of it at least twice a day. Still in a country that has access to such an awesome array of fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs, and neighbors with such rich culinary histories one can't help but think of someone in the Louvre that is content to sit and play with an etch-a-sketch.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Day Trips from Kyanjin Gompa; Langshisha Kharka & Tsergo Ri
I've already described the basic trek up to Kyanjin Gompa in the Langtang valley in this post so I'm not going to discuss it again in detail. The main difference was that this trip was done in October, so it was drier, the scenery was much less green, and the river was flowing at about half the rate it was in July. There were also a tremendous number of people on the trail, but not so many that it detracted too much from the trip. While I enjoy this region in general, it has to be stated up front that the food on this trek is by far the worst of the three major regions. There are no meat options on any menus, and most menus are exactly the same as they are set by a local comity. What is actually available on the menu will vary greatly from guest house to guest house, as will the quality of the food produced and what the interpretation of the items description actually is. One stand out location for me was Yala Peak Guest House in Syrabru which produced a chicken chili that was soo good that I ordered two plates on my return from the trail (a place where I could order meat again). Nice people, good food, and would recommend this place to anyone passing through. So anyway let's get onto the topic at hand, two really fun trips from Kyanjin Gompa; Langshisha Kharka and Tsergo Ri.
Yaks graze in the Langtang Valley
Monday, October 25, 2010
The Road to Dunche: An Accident Waiting to Happen
I'm back from another great trip to the Langtang region, and I'll be talking about some of that trip in the following posts. Before I get to that though, I need to address something that is a very clear problem; the road to Dunche might be one of the most dangerous in the world. I do not say this in hyperbole and am not trying to be sensationalist, this road is downright dangerous, and it is only a matter of time before a number of people are killed on it. Being the only access to a major tourist area in this country makes this road even more absurd; in its precarious state it provides the lifeblood of money that sustains that region. Although the region is accessible by helicopter or very rarely by single prop planes, the cost is prohibitive and almost everyone takes the bus or 4WD into Dunche or Syrabru.
Trisuli- A typical Nepali bus scene
Monday, October 18, 2010
Silence of the Goats and Celebrating Dashain
So the holiday season is in full swing in Nepal. Someone might wonder what qualifies as a holiday season in country that has holidays every week. Well you see those holidays are only a single day, now that we're into the big ones they get entire weeks. Dashain is a a full 10 day holiday and it is followed not long after by Tihar, another multi-day extravaganza. The first few days of Dashain were rather tame, but the festivities come into full swing in the last three or four days. It reminds me in many ways of Thanksgiving back home, comprising of family get togethers and lots of food. There are plenty of other ritual and religious overtones, but the result is essentially the same, only they don't watch Football.
Nepali Goat at a Temple
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Minds Are Malleable, Trails Are Not
People often ask me what I think about when I spend twelve hours alone moving over trails in the Himalaya, and I usually don't have a good answer. For some reason though when I woke up this morning I remembered a mantra that I tell myself over and over again as I traverse the ridges of the mountains, 'my mind is malleable the trail is not'. What I mean by this is that the trail is what it is, it does not change and it does not give you a break, if the trail climbs 3,000' it means that if you're going to get from point A to point B on it you're going to have to climb 3,000'. This all seems rather simple and straight forward, but it's more complicated because we like to lie to ourselves, and make promises that we can't keep, ones that we have no control over. We excel at sabotaging our own morale. We like to pretend that things are not as they are.
After my last trek up to the everest region I met up with the two British trekkers I had spent some time with, Rob and Ian. As we were out in Thamel tossing down some well deserved fajitas Ian discussed what he thought was the hardest bit of trail. He did the whole section from Jiri up to Gokyo and then over to base camp, he had some really long days and climbed up to points over eighteen thousand feet with some rather steep sections. The hardest part though? The flat section of trail leading along the ridge that leads back to Namche Bazaar. It was a long day, and the first that they had really gotten stuck out in the rain, they had left that morning from Pheriche and were hoping to make it a little ways south of Namche. As they got onto that ridge they were wet and tired, clouds reduced visability to a mere fifty meters, and the trail consistently meandered around corners hugging the mountain on the right. Wanting to just be in Namche already Ian explained that it was just so disappointing to round each one of those bends and not be in Namche. He kept telling himself that Namche must be around the next corner, and it never was...well eventually it was but not as soon as he would have liked. It made this part of the trail unbearable for him.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Everest Trek Part 4: To Base Camp & Back Again
So when I left off, we had just spent all day trying to get to the village of Dragnag in order to prepare for crossing the Cho La pass, but complications on the trail over the Ngozumpa glacier had forced us to turn back and look for another way across. When we found the bridges also up when trying to cross to the village of Nha, we finally ended the day in Machhermo and had to plan another route around to base camp, skipping the Cho La pass. After studying the maps a bit we all decided that we would head south to Phortse Tenga and then cross the Dudh Koshi river ascending to the village of Phortse. From there we planned on taking the high trail to Pengboche and from there follow the main route up to Gorek Shep and Everest base camp. Our plan was to make for the village of Dughla, and then on to Gorek Shep.
I hate getting behind, and my thought was that if I had been able to get over the glacier and the Cho La I would have ended the day in Lobuche. In the back of my mind this is really where I wanted to end the next day, but the distance seemed to make this fairly impractical. We were on the trail early the next morning and made good time retracing our steps south and we made it to the very picturesque village of Phortse still early in the morning. After stopping here for a few photos and dodging some streams that ran down the main trails through town we made our way to the top of the ridge and headed out on to the high trail to Pengboche.
The Village of Phortse
I hate getting behind, and my thought was that if I had been able to get over the glacier and the Cho La I would have ended the day in Lobuche. In the back of my mind this is really where I wanted to end the next day, but the distance seemed to make this fairly impractical. We were on the trail early the next morning and made good time retracing our steps south and we made it to the very picturesque village of Phortse still early in the morning. After stopping here for a few photos and dodging some streams that ran down the main trails through town we made our way to the top of the ridge and headed out on to the high trail to Pengboche.
The Vertigo Inducing High Trail to Pengboche
Monday, October 4, 2010
Everest Trek Part 3: Crossing the Ngozumpa Glacier
I love writing in this blog and I've rarely gone this many days without writing in it, especially after getting back from such a great trip in the Himalaya. The thing is that there has been numerous things conspiring against me. First I've been busy selling and making salsa for the last few days, and I've also come down with a mild head cold that has been making me quite tired. Anyway on to the story.
So After climbing up Gokyo Ri the plan was to head a little ways south, take the trail that crosses the Ngozumpa glacier and end the day at the base of the Cho La pass in the village of Dragnag. I had talked to several people who had come across the pass from the other direction and had said it was a little tricky but they had just followed the cairns and had been able to get across. The pass itself was said to have had some snow on it and to be very steep from the side we were approaching from, but to be otherwise uncomplicated.
So the three of us headed out for what we thought would be an easy couple hours of walking and made for the trail just south of the second gokyo lake that headed across the glacier. At first it seemed simple enough. Sure you were walking over some fairly large rocks and gravel and the terrain was a bit odd but the trail was well worn. Then the trail suddenly came to an end, where the stone and gravel suddenly had toppled into a pool of water that had resulted from a good deal of melting.
From here the plans got a little confusing. with the clear trail gone we looked on some of the nearby side trails. We followed some yak poop which looked fresh, but these trails also ended in similar collapsed gravel, rock and a sudden drop into water. So we took some time to survey the surroundings, as it was hard to tell which bodies of water were connected, and many large piles of rocks and boulders obscured views of what was beyond. After a good half hour of looking over where we had to go and deciding how we were going to get there we started out across the loose rocks, most of them being about the size of a basketball.
It's slow going as you have to avoid the areas that look a little unstable, avoid the water and try to stick to the more stable high ground. Eventually we made our way to the a rock that we had picked out from the first dead end and as we got on the back side of that rock pile I picked up another trail and a couple cairns on the pile to the east. Our big smiles faded immediately as we reached another dead end, which again ended in a sudden steep drop into a pool of water. From this point we again surveyed our position, and picked out a route across some increasingly sketchy terrain. At one point we had to traverse a scree slope, and descended to a very large pool of water that had water and debris falling into it on a regular basis. There was even a trekkers pole floating in this one.
On the other side of this pool we came across a large sand dune, that from across the way I had thought was snow from a distance. There were plenty of cairns on the far side of the sand and even some rocks lain out to spell something, though we couldn't read it. We made out across the sand, but my companions were uncomfortable with the cracks in the sand that showed where it had shifted due to the glacier had melted underneath. We made it over to the other side and climbed over more rocks, only to see a huge body of water. This body of water seemed to snake a couple hundred meters north of us, and connected to the large glacial wake that had formed on the glacier just to the south of us. There was no way we were getting across this. It looked like you could possibly cross a ways to the north, but the route passed over some unstable slopes that were getting ready to fall into the watery pool that was in our way.
All hopes dashed of crossing this glacier from where we were we moved back across the sand dunes, took out our coconut crunchies that had been given to us by the good folks at the Gokyo Namaste lodge and got to thinking about how we could get over to the village of Dragnag. It occurred to me that if we travel south past the end of the glacier we could cross the river at the bridge that goes to the village of Nha, and from there we could turn north and head to Dragnag. Sure it would take us at least three hours to get there from our current location, but at least it was a route that we knew would eventually get us to the destination we were headed for. We consulted our maps and trekking books to make sure I was remembering correctly and with everything looking good we set off to retrace our steps and get off the glacier.
Taking every step carefully over this terrain is a bit draining, and I was mentally and a little physically tired by the time I got back on the main trail. Happy that we were at least getting somewhere we set off with a little vigor southward toward the bridge. As we passed the end of the glacier we found the trail signs that pointed toward the crossing to the village of Nha, and we could see the village not too far ahead of us on the other side of the river. Th problem was that we couldn't see any bridge. I was a bit perplexed as we couldn't even find what looked like a bridge that had been washed out...there were trails along the high flowing river but no bridges anywhere to be seen. Some locals in Nha watched us from the far banks of the river, but they were much to far away for us to try to communicate with them in any way. Feeling thoroughly defeated and the time now closing in on 3PM I was out of suggestions.
Our options it seemed were to try and make it back up to Gokyo, at least a two hour walk when you're in a good mood and rested, or head up to the village above us, Phang. We all hemmed and hawed for a bit. In Gokyo we could get a guide to bring us across the glacier and possibly over the pass, in Phang we could rest. I voted for Gokyo and the others agreed that they thought they could make it. On the way up to the main trail we spotted the bridge to Nha, it was up and there was no crossing this river. Getting back to the main trail my companions decided they just didn't have it in them to make it back to Gokyo, and to be honest I was quite tired myself, so we turned south and made for Phang.
Once in Phang we were told that none of the lodges were open. That was about par for the day's course. So we continued south to the village of Machhermo, where we staggered into the friendly Trekker's lodge that I had stayed in previously. Once there we happily had some soup and conversed with the lodge owner about the days events. He informed us that the glacier had "broken" and that you had to cross it a ways to the north now. Increased water flow from the glacier meant that the bridge to Nha was up more often. It would be some time before people could cross that bridge, maybe another month. With this day completely shot, and not enthused at the prospect of spending another day to possibly attempt the glacier again only to stop in Dragnag before heading over the pass, we seriously looked at taking the southerly route through Phortse and on over the high trail to Pengboche.It would be a long day but it would be possible to make it as far as Dughla.
As disapointing as it was to not get to where we were trying to go, I had no regrets on the day. We had made good informed decisions, it's just that the goal we were trying to accomplish was impossible from the points that we attempted it. Later in the trek we would talk to several trekkers and guides who said the Cho La had received a good amount of snow and was very tricky at the moment. Apparently some things are blessings in disguise. Besides having another pass up that way that I haven't done gives me an excuse to go back up there! The next entry will cover the long day that took me over the high trail to Pengboche, onward to Dughla and onward to Gorek Shep, Base Camp and my one epic day that brought me from the top of Kala Patar all the way to Lukla.
Horses relax at the edge of the Ngozumpa Glacier
So After climbing up Gokyo Ri the plan was to head a little ways south, take the trail that crosses the Ngozumpa glacier and end the day at the base of the Cho La pass in the village of Dragnag. I had talked to several people who had come across the pass from the other direction and had said it was a little tricky but they had just followed the cairns and had been able to get across. The pass itself was said to have had some snow on it and to be very steep from the side we were approaching from, but to be otherwise uncomplicated.
Trail Descends Onto the Glacier
So the three of us headed out for what we thought would be an easy couple hours of walking and made for the trail just south of the second gokyo lake that headed across the glacier. At first it seemed simple enough. Sure you were walking over some fairly large rocks and gravel and the terrain was a bit odd but the trail was well worn. Then the trail suddenly came to an end, where the stone and gravel suddenly had toppled into a pool of water that had resulted from a good deal of melting.
End of the Trail
From here the plans got a little confusing. with the clear trail gone we looked on some of the nearby side trails. We followed some yak poop which looked fresh, but these trails also ended in similar collapsed gravel, rock and a sudden drop into water. So we took some time to survey the surroundings, as it was hard to tell which bodies of water were connected, and many large piles of rocks and boulders obscured views of what was beyond. After a good half hour of looking over where we had to go and deciding how we were going to get there we started out across the loose rocks, most of them being about the size of a basketball.
Ian and Rob Navigate the Glacier
It's slow going as you have to avoid the areas that look a little unstable, avoid the water and try to stick to the more stable high ground. Eventually we made our way to the a rock that we had picked out from the first dead end and as we got on the back side of that rock pile I picked up another trail and a couple cairns on the pile to the east. Our big smiles faded immediately as we reached another dead end, which again ended in a sudden steep drop into a pool of water. From this point we again surveyed our position, and picked out a route across some increasingly sketchy terrain. At one point we had to traverse a scree slope, and descended to a very large pool of water that had water and debris falling into it on a regular basis. There was even a trekkers pole floating in this one.
This Pool Even Had a Trekker's Pole Floating In It
On the other side of this pool we came across a large sand dune, that from across the way I had thought was snow from a distance. There were plenty of cairns on the far side of the sand and even some rocks lain out to spell something, though we couldn't read it. We made out across the sand, but my companions were uncomfortable with the cracks in the sand that showed where it had shifted due to the glacier had melted underneath. We made it over to the other side and climbed over more rocks, only to see a huge body of water. This body of water seemed to snake a couple hundred meters north of us, and connected to the large glacial wake that had formed on the glacier just to the south of us. There was no way we were getting across this. It looked like you could possibly cross a ways to the north, but the route passed over some unstable slopes that were getting ready to fall into the watery pool that was in our way.
Sand Deposit On the Glacier
All hopes dashed of crossing this glacier from where we were we moved back across the sand dunes, took out our coconut crunchies that had been given to us by the good folks at the Gokyo Namaste lodge and got to thinking about how we could get over to the village of Dragnag. It occurred to me that if we travel south past the end of the glacier we could cross the river at the bridge that goes to the village of Nha, and from there we could turn north and head to Dragnag. Sure it would take us at least three hours to get there from our current location, but at least it was a route that we knew would eventually get us to the destination we were headed for. We consulted our maps and trekking books to make sure I was remembering correctly and with everything looking good we set off to retrace our steps and get off the glacier.
Trail Back South
Taking every step carefully over this terrain is a bit draining, and I was mentally and a little physically tired by the time I got back on the main trail. Happy that we were at least getting somewhere we set off with a little vigor southward toward the bridge. As we passed the end of the glacier we found the trail signs that pointed toward the crossing to the village of Nha, and we could see the village not too far ahead of us on the other side of the river. Th problem was that we couldn't see any bridge. I was a bit perplexed as we couldn't even find what looked like a bridge that had been washed out...there were trails along the high flowing river but no bridges anywhere to be seen. Some locals in Nha watched us from the far banks of the river, but they were much to far away for us to try to communicate with them in any way. Feeling thoroughly defeated and the time now closing in on 3PM I was out of suggestions.
Our options it seemed were to try and make it back up to Gokyo, at least a two hour walk when you're in a good mood and rested, or head up to the village above us, Phang. We all hemmed and hawed for a bit. In Gokyo we could get a guide to bring us across the glacier and possibly over the pass, in Phang we could rest. I voted for Gokyo and the others agreed that they thought they could make it. On the way up to the main trail we spotted the bridge to Nha, it was up and there was no crossing this river. Getting back to the main trail my companions decided they just didn't have it in them to make it back to Gokyo, and to be honest I was quite tired myself, so we turned south and made for Phang.
Once in Phang we were told that none of the lodges were open. That was about par for the day's course. So we continued south to the village of Machhermo, where we staggered into the friendly Trekker's lodge that I had stayed in previously. Once there we happily had some soup and conversed with the lodge owner about the days events. He informed us that the glacier had "broken" and that you had to cross it a ways to the north now. Increased water flow from the glacier meant that the bridge to Nha was up more often. It would be some time before people could cross that bridge, maybe another month. With this day completely shot, and not enthused at the prospect of spending another day to possibly attempt the glacier again only to stop in Dragnag before heading over the pass, we seriously looked at taking the southerly route through Phortse and on over the high trail to Pengboche.It would be a long day but it would be possible to make it as far as Dughla.
As disapointing as it was to not get to where we were trying to go, I had no regrets on the day. We had made good informed decisions, it's just that the goal we were trying to accomplish was impossible from the points that we attempted it. Later in the trek we would talk to several trekkers and guides who said the Cho La had received a good amount of snow and was very tricky at the moment. Apparently some things are blessings in disguise. Besides having another pass up that way that I haven't done gives me an excuse to go back up there! The next entry will cover the long day that took me over the high trail to Pengboche, onward to Dughla and onward to Gorek Shep, Base Camp and my one epic day that brought me from the top of Kala Patar all the way to Lukla.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Everest Trek Part 2: The Gokyo Lakes
When I left off in part 1 I had settled down after a short days hike in the village of Dole and was warming myself by a fire fueled by yak poo. This part of the trek I will be a little short with. Our views were terrible due to fog, and the trekking days were very short due to the limit elevation placed on us. This combined for some uneventful days. So going in to day four we left Dole and headed to Machhermo, a nice little town tucked into a little side valley. According to Lonely Planet there was a report that a yeti killed two yaks and attacked a Sherpa woman here, but we didn't have anything that exciting happen during our stay.
This day was just a couple hours of walking so we slept in a bit and left Dole late. we still arrived before lunch though. The guest houses on the south west side of the stream that divides the town appeared to either be under construction or had out houses, and for the extra 50 rupees or so I'd rather have the indoor toilets. So we headed across the stream and stopped in the very nice Namgyal Lodge which had impressive rooms and a very well maintained courtyard, but the food prices were a bit outside of the budget we were looking to stick to, so just beyond there was the Trekkers Lodge and Restaurant where we were ended up settling and were taking care of by Dawa Sherpa and her family.
Now whether it is deserved or not, Israeli's have a very bad reputation in Nepal for taking bargaining too far. Now while my trekking companion certainly didn't mean to be rude, it was taken that way by the Sherpa running the lodge. In the exchanges that followed it was clear to that Ellie was not impressed by the way the lodge owners conducted themselves. These kind of cultural misunderstandings from both sides are painful to witness first hand and you really are powerless in many ways to stop the social mess that unfolds in front of you. Aside from this misunderstanding, the stay here was quite pleasant and the lodge owners were very gracious, first rate people in my opinion. The only thing that stops me from giving this place the highest endorsement is that the food was mediocre at best, but again the people made up for this.
It turns out that the lodge owner is a two time Everest summitter and he topped Cho Oyo (the 6th highest) six times. I found this out by looking at some certificates that were hanging on the wall in the back of the dining area and then asking him as he passed by on the way to preform some chores. He affirmed that he was the one who had climbed the mountains, and in normal Sherpa humility he played it down telling me that, "Cho Oyo really wasn't that tough there is just this 50 meter vertical climb you had to get over that was tough." He showed me some pictures of the mountain taken from the Tibet side (where you do the ascent) and pointed out this difficult part. What he doesn't mention is that you are doing this and other parts at over 20,000 and exposed to whatever weather conditions come on by. Cool guy, and enjoyed talking to the people at this lodge.
In the afternoon to keep boredom at bay and get my body use to the altitude I went for a walk up the valley as far as the small village of Phang, got a look at where the river cascades down from the glacier and headed back to have dinner and settle in for the evening. Even the next day would not be a challenge. From Machhermo we planned to head up to Gokyo village, something I figured couldn't possibly take more than a couple hours and after we got rooms, walk up to the lakes further up the valley. There are six lakes in the Gokyo region, but the sixth one by most accounts is too far north to make a reasonable visit from a day hike. I figured I'd go to the fourth or fifth depending on the conditions the next day.
Day five dawned in a fog as well, and as we moved up near the Ngozumpa glacier it looked to be thicker. That said a wind would pick up from down the valley and the sun was bright through the clouds with intermittent patches of blue, leading you to believe that at any moment they might lift. Passing the village of Phang the trail starts to ascend beside the glacier, eventually climbing stone steps that rise beside a cliff on one side and a steep drop to the rapids below on the other. Once up over this you are rewarded with views of the first lake. The water, as is usual with glacial melt, was that bright aqua bluish green and the near barren fields nearby were populated with stone cairns and the odd yak that gave it an almost otherworldly feel.
As you walk beside the glacier you can't actually see it due to the huge amount of earth and rock it pushed up on its way through, so instead on that side is a hundred or so foot tall hill of rock and gravel. On the other side is the water that flows between the lakes, or the lakes themselves that are up against the ridge of rocky spires and mountains that form the west wall of the valley. Continuing between these entities on the trail we came up to and passed the second Gokyo lake, Taboche Tsho, and not long after that we reached the the village of Gokyo which sits on the shores of the third lake.
Once at the village we went to the Gokyo Namaste Lodge on the advice of some other trekkers we had talked to the day before, and I'm very glad I did. This is very likely one of the best run lodges in all of Nepal that charges as if it were just any other lodge. The food was spectacular...I would have even been happy with most of it if I had ordered in Kathmandu, let alone way up in Gokyo. The rooms were spacious, the common area was nice and heated, and was cozy with Buddhist manuscripts on display. Best of all the people were very friendly, and extremely helpful. I can't say enough good things about this lodge, suffice to say that if you plan on passing through Gokyo, go out of your way to find and stay at this lodge, you won't regret it.
Anyway, after a very good lunch we made way north without our packs and checked out the glacier and the fourth lake. The weather continued to tease, and despite receding clouds here and there they continued to cover most everything above us. Despite this we got some great views of the lakes and glaciers up here, and the mist at times even seemed to enhance the atmosphere of being someplace unique. Some might be surprised by some of the pictures that glacier doesn't appear as one giant piece of ice, but looks more like an abandoned gravel quarry. The reason for this is that the ice moves and disturbs a huge amount of earth and rock, and as it melts these deposits sit on the surface. For those back in the North East of the US just think of the once massive pile of snow in the Mall parking lot that as June rolls around is quickly melting and covered in dirt. That's essentially what the glaciers are doing, still melting from the last ice age, though they continue to get new ice and snow thanks to the massive amounts dumped on the slopes of the high peaks during the monsoon period.
Upon returning to the lodge we started talking to a pair of British guys who had attempted Gokyo Ri, the nearby viewing peak, that morning. Apparently there had been no view, as clouds covered up the top of the mountain, although apparently they had been able to make out some of the peaks on the way up. Ian had turned back due the the elevation getting to him, and Rob was quick to note that he hadn't missed out on a whole lot. They offered to have us follow them up in the morning, and we happily accepted. We set wake up time for 4AM with departure for Gokyo Ri at 4:30. After stuffing my face with a double decker yak burger, which was quite excelent I might add, I headed off to bed and quickly fell asleep.
Morning didn't come without waking up half a dozen times to roll over or deciding weather I really had to pee bad enough to justify getting up in the cold. Every time I woke up I would look out the window and see haze and could hear this constant dripping from the roof, which I assumed was from the excessive moisture outside. When the alarm went off just after 4AM I looked outside, still looked cloudy, and I could still hear dripping. Moving closer to the window I wiped away the condensation that had formed on the inside and was surprised to see that what I had taken for cloud had just been this condensation, I was also surprised to see the moon up over Gokyo Ri. A little more energetic now about the morning ascent I jumped up and got dressed. I mentioned to my trekking companions the conditions, and everyone seemed relieved. Trying to decide if I needed a jacket for the rain I went downstairs and stepped outside to see if it was rain causing that dripping noise. Nope. It was snow. About three inches had fallen at some point in the night, and what I was hearing was it slowly melting on the roof and dripping off. The skies were the clearest I had seen them.
We had a slight delay getting out of the guest house and left closer to quarter to five. Then we had to cross this stream and marshy area, which was quite tricky without trekking poles and with a headlamp that was low on batteries. I did well but eventually slipped a bit off a rock and got my right foot soaked. I don't wear heavy boots, so easily getting wet is one of the trade offs of light weight hiking. Then just as we reached the base of Gokyo Ri, I mistook a plant with some snow on it for a rock and got my left foot soaked. Oh well. Once we got to the trail we started up and slowly started to separate a bit. Just after five the sky really started to light up and for most of the climb it was quite easy to see. The new snow also made it easier to see, but a little tougher to find the proper trail at times. After a while I found myself in front of everyone and was having to blaze a trail through the snow and over the rocks. A couple times I lost it, but always managed to converge back to where it should be.
At just about 6Am I reached the top of the steep climb to Gokyo Ri, and was rewarded with an absolutely breathtaking sight. The new fallen snow covered the rocks and prayer flags, and even more fresh snow had been dumped on the nearby peaks. Still alone at the top, the sun rose up over Mt. Everest in the East at just about quarter after six, and I considered myself a very lucky human being at that moment. Shortly after I was joined by about another dozen trekkers, many of whom had already made this trip once or twice, and everyone was excited about what a great view we got that day. Gokyo and the lakes below were tiny next to the massive scar that was the Ngozumpa glacier, and all of it was dwarfed by the massive mountains that surrounded us on all sides.
After about 40 minutes at the top I decided it was time to head down, my feet were getting really cold from standing on stone and in snow after having dipped them in the water earlier. As the sun cleared the mountains, it really warmed things up quickly, and the snow on the lower slopes had already disappeared, and once out of it my feet were quite warm again. Returning to the lodge we all settled in for a celebratory breakfast before setting off for the village of Dragnag which we figured should only take a couple hours to get to and there we could prepare for the Cho La pass. It turned out that Ian and Rob had the exact same itinerary that I had so we figured we could all team up to more safely cross what people were describing as a tricky pass. Ellie however was at an end with trekking, although thrilled with what he had seen on the mountain, he decided it was time to head back to Kathmandu. We all thought he was joking at first, but after packing we exchanged e-mail addresses and he headed for Namchee Bazaar.
So Rob, Ian and I departed the Gokyo Namaste Lodge, each with a pack of coconut crunchies courtesy of our gracious hosts and made our way south to cross the Ngozumpa glacier and find our way to Dragnag. This section of the trip really should get its own post, as it was quite a day, and this is getting long enough at this point. So next time I'll discuss the adventures that is crossing a melting glacier and how you can spend a 12 hour day, be exhausted and end up a two hour walk from where you started.
Stupa on the way to Machhermo
This day was just a couple hours of walking so we slept in a bit and left Dole late. we still arrived before lunch though. The guest houses on the south west side of the stream that divides the town appeared to either be under construction or had out houses, and for the extra 50 rupees or so I'd rather have the indoor toilets. So we headed across the stream and stopped in the very nice Namgyal Lodge which had impressive rooms and a very well maintained courtyard, but the food prices were a bit outside of the budget we were looking to stick to, so just beyond there was the Trekkers Lodge and Restaurant where we were ended up settling and were taking care of by Dawa Sherpa and her family.
Yak out Back of Trekker's Lodge in Machhermo
Now whether it is deserved or not, Israeli's have a very bad reputation in Nepal for taking bargaining too far. Now while my trekking companion certainly didn't mean to be rude, it was taken that way by the Sherpa running the lodge. In the exchanges that followed it was clear to that Ellie was not impressed by the way the lodge owners conducted themselves. These kind of cultural misunderstandings from both sides are painful to witness first hand and you really are powerless in many ways to stop the social mess that unfolds in front of you. Aside from this misunderstanding, the stay here was quite pleasant and the lodge owners were very gracious, first rate people in my opinion. The only thing that stops me from giving this place the highest endorsement is that the food was mediocre at best, but again the people made up for this.
Verification that Mr. Sherpa had been on top of Everest and Cho Oyo.
It turns out that the lodge owner is a two time Everest summitter and he topped Cho Oyo (the 6th highest) six times. I found this out by looking at some certificates that were hanging on the wall in the back of the dining area and then asking him as he passed by on the way to preform some chores. He affirmed that he was the one who had climbed the mountains, and in normal Sherpa humility he played it down telling me that, "Cho Oyo really wasn't that tough there is just this 50 meter vertical climb you had to get over that was tough." He showed me some pictures of the mountain taken from the Tibet side (where you do the ascent) and pointed out this difficult part. What he doesn't mention is that you are doing this and other parts at over 20,000 and exposed to whatever weather conditions come on by. Cool guy, and enjoyed talking to the people at this lodge.
Village of Phang
In the afternoon to keep boredom at bay and get my body use to the altitude I went for a walk up the valley as far as the small village of Phang, got a look at where the river cascades down from the glacier and headed back to have dinner and settle in for the evening. Even the next day would not be a challenge. From Machhermo we planned to head up to Gokyo village, something I figured couldn't possibly take more than a couple hours and after we got rooms, walk up to the lakes further up the valley. There are six lakes in the Gokyo region, but the sixth one by most accounts is too far north to make a reasonable visit from a day hike. I figured I'd go to the fourth or fifth depending on the conditions the next day.
Following the Trail Along Glacial Streams
Day five dawned in a fog as well, and as we moved up near the Ngozumpa glacier it looked to be thicker. That said a wind would pick up from down the valley and the sun was bright through the clouds with intermittent patches of blue, leading you to believe that at any moment they might lift. Passing the village of Phang the trail starts to ascend beside the glacier, eventually climbing stone steps that rise beside a cliff on one side and a steep drop to the rapids below on the other. Once up over this you are rewarded with views of the first lake. The water, as is usual with glacial melt, was that bright aqua bluish green and the near barren fields nearby were populated with stone cairns and the odd yak that gave it an almost otherworldly feel.
Yak Near the Shores of the First Lake
As you walk beside the glacier you can't actually see it due to the huge amount of earth and rock it pushed up on its way through, so instead on that side is a hundred or so foot tall hill of rock and gravel. On the other side is the water that flows between the lakes, or the lakes themselves that are up against the ridge of rocky spires and mountains that form the west wall of the valley. Continuing between these entities on the trail we came up to and passed the second Gokyo lake, Taboche Tsho, and not long after that we reached the the village of Gokyo which sits on the shores of the third lake.
Approaching the Third Lake and the Village of Gokyo
Once at the village we went to the Gokyo Namaste Lodge on the advice of some other trekkers we had talked to the day before, and I'm very glad I did. This is very likely one of the best run lodges in all of Nepal that charges as if it were just any other lodge. The food was spectacular...I would have even been happy with most of it if I had ordered in Kathmandu, let alone way up in Gokyo. The rooms were spacious, the common area was nice and heated, and was cozy with Buddhist manuscripts on display. Best of all the people were very friendly, and extremely helpful. I can't say enough good things about this lodge, suffice to say that if you plan on passing through Gokyo, go out of your way to find and stay at this lodge, you won't regret it.
Surface of the Ngozumpa Glacier
Anyway, after a very good lunch we made way north without our packs and checked out the glacier and the fourth lake. The weather continued to tease, and despite receding clouds here and there they continued to cover most everything above us. Despite this we got some great views of the lakes and glaciers up here, and the mist at times even seemed to enhance the atmosphere of being someplace unique. Some might be surprised by some of the pictures that glacier doesn't appear as one giant piece of ice, but looks more like an abandoned gravel quarry. The reason for this is that the ice moves and disturbs a huge amount of earth and rock, and as it melts these deposits sit on the surface. For those back in the North East of the US just think of the once massive pile of snow in the Mall parking lot that as June rolls around is quickly melting and covered in dirt. That's essentially what the glaciers are doing, still melting from the last ice age, though they continue to get new ice and snow thanks to the massive amounts dumped on the slopes of the high peaks during the monsoon period.
View of the Fourth Lake
Upon returning to the lodge we started talking to a pair of British guys who had attempted Gokyo Ri, the nearby viewing peak, that morning. Apparently there had been no view, as clouds covered up the top of the mountain, although apparently they had been able to make out some of the peaks on the way up. Ian had turned back due the the elevation getting to him, and Rob was quick to note that he hadn't missed out on a whole lot. They offered to have us follow them up in the morning, and we happily accepted. We set wake up time for 4AM with departure for Gokyo Ri at 4:30. After stuffing my face with a double decker yak burger, which was quite excelent I might add, I headed off to bed and quickly fell asleep.
Morning Climb: Looking up toward the top of Gokyo Ri.
Morning didn't come without waking up half a dozen times to roll over or deciding weather I really had to pee bad enough to justify getting up in the cold. Every time I woke up I would look out the window and see haze and could hear this constant dripping from the roof, which I assumed was from the excessive moisture outside. When the alarm went off just after 4AM I looked outside, still looked cloudy, and I could still hear dripping. Moving closer to the window I wiped away the condensation that had formed on the inside and was surprised to see that what I had taken for cloud had just been this condensation, I was also surprised to see the moon up over Gokyo Ri. A little more energetic now about the morning ascent I jumped up and got dressed. I mentioned to my trekking companions the conditions, and everyone seemed relieved. Trying to decide if I needed a jacket for the rain I went downstairs and stepped outside to see if it was rain causing that dripping noise. Nope. It was snow. About three inches had fallen at some point in the night, and what I was hearing was it slowly melting on the roof and dripping off. The skies were the clearest I had seen them.
Breath Taking Pre-Dawn View on Gokyo Ri.
We had a slight delay getting out of the guest house and left closer to quarter to five. Then we had to cross this stream and marshy area, which was quite tricky without trekking poles and with a headlamp that was low on batteries. I did well but eventually slipped a bit off a rock and got my right foot soaked. I don't wear heavy boots, so easily getting wet is one of the trade offs of light weight hiking. Then just as we reached the base of Gokyo Ri, I mistook a plant with some snow on it for a rock and got my left foot soaked. Oh well. Once we got to the trail we started up and slowly started to separate a bit. Just after five the sky really started to light up and for most of the climb it was quite easy to see. The new snow also made it easier to see, but a little tougher to find the proper trail at times. After a while I found myself in front of everyone and was having to blaze a trail through the snow and over the rocks. A couple times I lost it, but always managed to converge back to where it should be.
Yours Truly Enjoying the Morning on Gokyo Ri
At just about 6Am I reached the top of the steep climb to Gokyo Ri, and was rewarded with an absolutely breathtaking sight. The new fallen snow covered the rocks and prayer flags, and even more fresh snow had been dumped on the nearby peaks. Still alone at the top, the sun rose up over Mt. Everest in the East at just about quarter after six, and I considered myself a very lucky human being at that moment. Shortly after I was joined by about another dozen trekkers, many of whom had already made this trip once or twice, and everyone was excited about what a great view we got that day. Gokyo and the lakes below were tiny next to the massive scar that was the Ngozumpa glacier, and all of it was dwarfed by the massive mountains that surrounded us on all sides.
View on the Way Down
After about 40 minutes at the top I decided it was time to head down, my feet were getting really cold from standing on stone and in snow after having dipped them in the water earlier. As the sun cleared the mountains, it really warmed things up quickly, and the snow on the lower slopes had already disappeared, and once out of it my feet were quite warm again. Returning to the lodge we all settled in for a celebratory breakfast before setting off for the village of Dragnag which we figured should only take a couple hours to get to and there we could prepare for the Cho La pass. It turned out that Ian and Rob had the exact same itinerary that I had so we figured we could all team up to more safely cross what people were describing as a tricky pass. Ellie however was at an end with trekking, although thrilled with what he had seen on the mountain, he decided it was time to head back to Kathmandu. We all thought he was joking at first, but after packing we exchanged e-mail addresses and he headed for Namchee Bazaar.
Saying farewell to the Gokyo Namaste Lodge with Mountains in the Backdrop
So Rob, Ian and I departed the Gokyo Namaste Lodge, each with a pack of coconut crunchies courtesy of our gracious hosts and made our way south to cross the Ngozumpa glacier and find our way to Dragnag. This section of the trip really should get its own post, as it was quite a day, and this is getting long enough at this point. So next time I'll discuss the adventures that is crossing a melting glacier and how you can spend a 12 hour day, be exhausted and end up a two hour walk from where you started.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Harilo In the News Again
This article about Harilo was posted in print and online in Republica's The Week last Friday. It's great to see how supportive other Nepali businesses have been to the idea of online shopping, and teaming up with companies that offer a means of electronic payment such as Payway and others in Nepal is a win-win situation for everyone.
Two new Nepali websites-and one old favorite... JIGGY GATON Both these sites share two important traits: they are both simple in design and rich in usefulness. Harilo, an online “shop-in-America” site, was reviewed in this paper back in April, but just in the past month or so has started to catch on(line). Harilo.com is now getting over 3,000 visits each day, and as for the shopping activity, well, just see for yourself by going here: www.harilo.com/latest. Folks are buying laptops, guitars, phones, and even furniture. This is how it works: you order anything you want from America by just finding the online sales link (URL) for a product. For example, go to Amazon.com and pick out a product, and then paste that URL into Harilo. Your account is created instantly, as well as a promise of a quote that gives you the total price of the product in Nepali Rupees and is shipped to your door here in Nepal. I tried it out for a fancy USB microphone I need for my podcasting work (USA price: Rs 7,674), and within 17 minutes, I got back a quote from Harilo for a total cost of Rs 9,250, which reflects no domestic shipping charge (as you can pick up shipments at their Kanti Path office) and just Rs 512 for international shipping + Rs 1,064 VAT. Payment options included using a PayPal, Google, or Amazon account, as well as a VISA/MasterCard. Heck, you can even pay by old-fashioned cash or check!  Harilo shipping costs vary by weight, of course, and Customs may slap duty on certain items (for shoes, it could be as high as 20%) and some items can’t be ordered at all (firearms, drugs, etc.) but this has to be the best way to get products from America to Kathmandu – short of having cousin-brother Samir fill his carryon bags on the way home. Two thumbs up for this site on usefulness, and for a clean uncluttered website design – complete with social networking features (connection to Facebook, avatars, and all of that). Another new site worth praising is Payway.com.np. This is the Nepali version of the famous Paypal.com, which allows users to send and receive money online, shop online, and to also create a Nepali gateway for their own online store. There are very moderate fees associated with transactions, but compared to PayPal, they are very reasonable. Having a Pay Way account is a way to pay for goods at any website incorporating the Pay Way gateway (the list of merchants is rather small right now, but sure to grow as more merchants discover this service). Pay Way says they will soon offer other services, like a debit card for department store shopping and connections to dozens of international banks. So stay tuned on that front. Important to note: This is a BIG leap in tech here at home as now Nepal’s merchants can easily jump on the online bandwagon, and accept Pay Way payments from Nepali customers who want to shop from their living rooms and offices (like everyone else in the free world is doing). After finding this site, I began to feel like I was living in the year 2010, instead of 1950. And like Harilo.com, Payway.com.np is designed clean and clutter-free, with an interface that your hajurama could understand – if only she could master the mouse and keyboard. Besides these two new sites, there is one favorite of mine that I want to share, and this site is for the coffee lovers here who want fresh roast at a great price, delivered right to your front door. Topoftheworldcoffee.com is not a fancy nor perfectly designed website (reminds me of a typical NGO website), but its lack of glitz and polish is made up by owner Dale Nafziger’s dedication to service and quality. They deliver over 1,000 kg of fresh coffee each year to Valley denizens, and you can get beans of any type – even organic. You also get great prices, compared to the local market (trust me, I drink alotta joe). And on my last order, I even got a free coffee cup! You pay when the delivery arrives, often to Dale himself, and if there is ever a problem with your order, this company will bend over backwards to make it right. But what I really find right about Topoftheworldcoffee.com is that you can have the best organic homebrew – without ever leaving your front gate. YES! Now when merchants like Topoftheworldcoffee and Harilo get together with payment gateway providers like Pay Way, you are going to see a radical change in the way that we shop here in the Doo. Instead of slogging through monsoon mud to get our necessities and niceties, someone else will be doing the slogging and delivering those items to our homes and offices. Our personal accounting will be online and accessible, and we will truly be part of the consumer revolution taking place elsewhere in the world, where consumers are discussing their purchases, rating their experiences with vendors, and overall becoming better and even more intelligent shoppers. The Original article can be read HERE at Republica.com. You can visit the Harilo website HERE. |
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Everest Trek Part 1: Flights, Acclimatization, & Namche Bazaar
I'll start this series of posts with the usual disclaimer; this is a recounting of my experience, and I do not recommend this as an itinerary for most people. I am rarely bothered at all by elevation and thus I ascend a little faster than what some people with medical experience consider ideal. I also tend to walk a little faster than average and carry a light pack, so some distances may be a bit long for the average person attempting their first trip in the Himalaya. This will apply to all posts about this trip, especially my last day which was roughly a 34 mile marathon from the top of Kala Patar all the way back to Lukla.
This trek started with a flight out of Tribhuvan airport in Kathmandu. Not the international terminal, but the domestic one, just a little ways to the north. I arrived early, just around 6AM with a flight time of 7:30. The scene was one of a mob clambering at a tiny set of booths, and since "the line" does not seem to have been invented in Asia yet it was chaotic and a bit of a mess. The early flights got out, but the later flights were put on standby as clouds seem to have moved in to Lukla that morning, something that is not all that uncommon. I figured I'd stay a while to see if things cleared up, but went as far as to call Kim and let her know that I would most likely be around for another day. At 9:30 good news of clear weather came in from Lukla and passengers eagerly filled the planes.
The flight to Lukla takes about 45 minutes or so, and our flight was in a twin otter. We flew high enough to clear the middle hills outside of Kathmandu, but low enough to be below the cloud cover that morning, and this put us not too high above some of the passes that we flew over. This gives some great views of the hills and mountains as you fly over the region, and this time of year you get to spot some really spectacular waterfalls. Landing at Lukla is a bit scary as the plane banks into the mountain and then lands on the sloping runway, coming to a stop just as you reach the top of the slope. To be fair, our pilots that day did a wonderful job and I had a very smooth flight.
Once off the plane I grabbed my bag which weighed in at 8.5 KG full with 4 liters of water, not too shabby for a two week hike. The delay in take off time meant that I didn't get out of the airport until about 10:30 in the morning, and I wasn't sure how long it would take to get to Namche Bazaar, the spot I was planning to spend my first night. Plenty of want to be guides and porters hawked their services at the gate outside the airport, but I just tried to separate myself from the crowds and made for the trail. One man asked me where I was headed, and when I said I was going to try for Namche, he replied by shaking his head and pointing to the sky, "Too late to get to Namche."
Still I'm a goal orientated person, and I'm not a slow hiker, so I kept a consistent pace determined to make Namche by evening. Within an hour or so of leaving Lukla I started passing the package groups that had gotten out on the early flights. I've read that during the busiest seasons you can wait up to 20 minutes to cross some of these suspension bridges due to the number of tourists on them. I passed by a group that was wide eyed on such a bridge snapping pictures of where the stream below joined the Dudh Koshi just beyond. It seemed there was a good chance the rumors were true.
The trail through this portion of the trek is cluttered with stones that have Buddhist carvings, well positioned chortens, and small stupas set here and there. Waterfalls cascade down from the high Himalaya above and you are still low enough that everything is quite green. While some of the villages seem to exist for reasons other than tourism, most of the structures you pass in this area are well stocked with cold drinks, pringles, candy bars and other commodities that trekkers may be craving. Most also advertise their willingness to serve tea, lunch dinner or rooms for a nights stay. You also pass a number of gompas, most set off the main trail a bit, but there are often signs posted to point the way for those who want to visit.
For those that come trekking and do not get their park entrance permit ahead of time, the office to get it in is at the village of Monjo. Somehow I completely missed it though, maybe because I was just concentrating on getting to Namche. Not far after that village is Jorsale where an army post checks your paperwork, and since I missed the post at Monjo I was without a permit. The army post however was convinced that the only place I could get a permit was in Kathmandu, and since I didn't see the post on my way through Monjo I thought maybe they removed it (it's there, I saw it on my way out). Anyway, they let me pass but the price of not getting the permit meant explaining this to every post I would pass a much bigger hassle than just forking over the thousand rupees.
After this point it was across the last suspension bridge and up the final rise to Namche Bazaar, a climb I remember as being particularly brutal as I had done it at the end of a ten hour trekking day last time. The climb is one of the more sustained on the trek going from Lukla to base camp, being surpassed only by the climb up to Tengboche. After making it up the climb I arrived in what must be the wealthiest town in Nepal, Namche Bazaar around 3:30. If Thamel was to be done right, it would look like Namche; paving stones, no trash, no traffic, good looking shops and friendly vendors. It was amazing to me how much Namche had changed since my last visit just over eight years ago. It continues to grow too, as the sound of people chipping away at building stones is a constant reminder.
Upon arrival I found accommodation on the west side of town at the friendly and well equipped Yak Hotel. As most trekking groups take two days to get to Namche from Lukla and no flights had gone out the day before, the town was relatively empty aside from some that were on their return or those who had walked in from Jiri. I spent my afternoon munching on baked goods from one of the nearby bakeries and reading my Kindle. I also spent a little time mapping out my route from this point forward, looking over the maps and reading some details of the trails ahead. The next day would be an acclimatization day in order to adjust to the rising elevation, and I would use it to explore the other Sherpa towns and villages around Namche.
Unfortunately the weather was quite cloudy on my rest day so the sprawling views of Ama Dablam and as far as Everest from the hill near the National Park headquarters was non-existent. As I strolled through the hills though the clouds cleared here and there offering up some nice scenery around me. I watched school kids make their way to the school that Sir Edmund Hillary founded and walked past the famous Everest View Hotel. Upon returning to Namche following lunch I started to see a trickle of trekkers arriving from points south, and got to talk to a few of the people who I had shared a flight or time in the airport with the day before. I also bumped into an Israeli guy who had walked in from Jiri named Elie, and he was thinking about calling it quits and heading back to Lukla as the weather and solitude were starting to get to him. I told him to at least try to make it to Temboche where there was the potential for fantastic views and also a very interesting monastery.
The next morning I looked out my window to see clear skies and jumped out of bed got dressed and headed up top the viewing point above the town. Many of the mountains around Namche were quite clear, but the one I wanted to see most in Ama Dablam was wreathed with a thin layer of clouds. As the sun came up though it burned off the last clouds around Ama Dablam and I got the view I had been waiting for. On return to the town I ran into Elie again and he asked if I'd mind if he joined me, and I told him I'd be happy to have the company. So we set out toward the town of Dole which is just a few hours beyond the turn off toward the Gokyo lakes. The views all morning were spectacular, and Elie especially was thrilled to finally see the mountains he had been hiking under all this time.
As we moved toward noon the clouds moved back in and we arrived at the small village of Dole and got a room at the quaint Juniper Guest House. Now that we were in the National park and the elevation was starting to creep up, fires are stoked not by wood but dried yak poo. Yup, yak shit in place of wood. Of course the fires are not open, it's like a coal stove and surprisingly it doesn't smell or burn out too quickly, it actually works quite well. Still it strikes one a bit funny that you can say, "Hey my friend, can you throw some more shit on the fire?" and mean it in all seriousness. On that note I'll bring this post to a close. In part two I'll discuss the trail leading up to the Gokyo lakes and discuss at length the problems with crossing the Ngozumpa Glacier.
Waiting for Take Off: The Twin Otter in this Picture is Identical to the Plane I was On.
This trek started with a flight out of Tribhuvan airport in Kathmandu. Not the international terminal, but the domestic one, just a little ways to the north. I arrived early, just around 6AM with a flight time of 7:30. The scene was one of a mob clambering at a tiny set of booths, and since "the line" does not seem to have been invented in Asia yet it was chaotic and a bit of a mess. The early flights got out, but the later flights were put on standby as clouds seem to have moved in to Lukla that morning, something that is not all that uncommon. I figured I'd stay a while to see if things cleared up, but went as far as to call Kim and let her know that I would most likely be around for another day. At 9:30 good news of clear weather came in from Lukla and passengers eagerly filled the planes.
View During The Flight
The flight to Lukla takes about 45 minutes or so, and our flight was in a twin otter. We flew high enough to clear the middle hills outside of Kathmandu, but low enough to be below the cloud cover that morning, and this put us not too high above some of the passes that we flew over. This gives some great views of the hills and mountains as you fly over the region, and this time of year you get to spot some really spectacular waterfalls. Landing at Lukla is a bit scary as the plane banks into the mountain and then lands on the sloping runway, coming to a stop just as you reach the top of the slope. To be fair, our pilots that day did a wonderful job and I had a very smooth flight.
Buddhist Monuments Line the Trail
Once off the plane I grabbed my bag which weighed in at 8.5 KG full with 4 liters of water, not too shabby for a two week hike. The delay in take off time meant that I didn't get out of the airport until about 10:30 in the morning, and I wasn't sure how long it would take to get to Namche Bazaar, the spot I was planning to spend my first night. Plenty of want to be guides and porters hawked their services at the gate outside the airport, but I just tried to separate myself from the crowds and made for the trail. One man asked me where I was headed, and when I said I was going to try for Namche, he replied by shaking his head and pointing to the sky, "Too late to get to Namche."
I Soon Pass Other Trekkers Heading North From Lukla
Still I'm a goal orientated person, and I'm not a slow hiker, so I kept a consistent pace determined to make Namche by evening. Within an hour or so of leaving Lukla I started passing the package groups that had gotten out on the early flights. I've read that during the busiest seasons you can wait up to 20 minutes to cross some of these suspension bridges due to the number of tourists on them. I passed by a group that was wide eyed on such a bridge snapping pictures of where the stream below joined the Dudh Koshi just beyond. It seemed there was a good chance the rumors were true.
Waterfall Near Toktok
The trail through this portion of the trek is cluttered with stones that have Buddhist carvings, well positioned chortens, and small stupas set here and there. Waterfalls cascade down from the high Himalaya above and you are still low enough that everything is quite green. While some of the villages seem to exist for reasons other than tourism, most of the structures you pass in this area are well stocked with cold drinks, pringles, candy bars and other commodities that trekkers may be craving. Most also advertise their willingness to serve tea, lunch dinner or rooms for a nights stay. You also pass a number of gompas, most set off the main trail a bit, but there are often signs posted to point the way for those who want to visit.
For those that come trekking and do not get their park entrance permit ahead of time, the office to get it in is at the village of Monjo. Somehow I completely missed it though, maybe because I was just concentrating on getting to Namche. Not far after that village is Jorsale where an army post checks your paperwork, and since I missed the post at Monjo I was without a permit. The army post however was convinced that the only place I could get a permit was in Kathmandu, and since I didn't see the post on my way through Monjo I thought maybe they removed it (it's there, I saw it on my way out). Anyway, they let me pass but the price of not getting the permit meant explaining this to every post I would pass a much bigger hassle than just forking over the thousand rupees.
View from the Bridge Crossing Over to the Ridge Below Namche Bazaar
Streets of Namche
Upon arrival I found accommodation on the west side of town at the friendly and well equipped Yak Hotel. As most trekking groups take two days to get to Namche from Lukla and no flights had gone out the day before, the town was relatively empty aside from some that were on their return or those who had walked in from Jiri. I spent my afternoon munching on baked goods from one of the nearby bakeries and reading my Kindle. I also spent a little time mapping out my route from this point forward, looking over the maps and reading some details of the trails ahead. The next day would be an acclimatization day in order to adjust to the rising elevation, and I would use it to explore the other Sherpa towns and villages around Namche.
Walking Through the Hills North of Namche
Unfortunately the weather was quite cloudy on my rest day so the sprawling views of Ama Dablam and as far as Everest from the hill near the National Park headquarters was non-existent. As I strolled through the hills though the clouds cleared here and there offering up some nice scenery around me. I watched school kids make their way to the school that Sir Edmund Hillary founded and walked past the famous Everest View Hotel. Upon returning to Namche following lunch I started to see a trickle of trekkers arriving from points south, and got to talk to a few of the people who I had shared a flight or time in the airport with the day before. I also bumped into an Israeli guy who had walked in from Jiri named Elie, and he was thinking about calling it quits and heading back to Lukla as the weather and solitude were starting to get to him. I told him to at least try to make it to Temboche where there was the potential for fantastic views and also a very interesting monastery.
Morning Views of Ama Dablam
Yak Poo Dries in a Field; Later to be Used to Keep Trekkers Warm
As we moved toward noon the clouds moved back in and we arrived at the small village of Dole and got a room at the quaint Juniper Guest House. Now that we were in the National park and the elevation was starting to creep up, fires are stoked not by wood but dried yak poo. Yup, yak shit in place of wood. Of course the fires are not open, it's like a coal stove and surprisingly it doesn't smell or burn out too quickly, it actually works quite well. Still it strikes one a bit funny that you can say, "Hey my friend, can you throw some more shit on the fire?" and mean it in all seriousness. On that note I'll bring this post to a close. In part two I'll discuss the trail leading up to the Gokyo lakes and discuss at length the problems with crossing the Ngozumpa Glacier.
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