TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN: -190m
Today was totally exhausting. I think if we go ahead this way for eight days more there will be nothing of my knees left.
I woke up today to an absolutely stunning view of Machhapuchre and Annapurna I and II. After a continuous downpour last night, the skies cleared up and we could see the mountains. I went out to take some pictures of the entire range as this was probably a rare shot. Alexi (as we began calling the Chilean after the footballer; that's not his real name) was already out with his camera, excitedly clicking away. He really seemed like a jolly chap.
We ate a plain breakfast of bread and omelet and a very interesting Tibetan (or Gurung) bread. It was similar to the Ladakhi bread we'd eaten in Leh, except sweeter and deep fried.
Within twenty minutes our room was transformed rom a spread of mess to five neat bags. We said bye to Deepa (who, by the way, told us she lives in Goa half the year after seeing Mama's Goa River Marathon tee; she told us we're a very unusual family (we get that a lot) before adding "In a good way, of course!") and "See you later!" to Alexi who we were bound to meet on the trail as he too was doing ABC.
We got our ACAPs approved at the tourist check post office right outside Pothana and resumed our course. For the first half an hour, the terrain was much flatter than yesterday and very pretty. The sun was out, and the golden rays of light only add to the beauty of the mountains. The path, at times, had purple wild flowers hugging it. The path forked off at quite a few places, which needed us to stop for Tirtha to show us the way.
Soon we reached the top of the hill (or close to the top, at least) and began our descent the other side down the mountain. Now it began to get tricky The downpour of the previous night began to reveal it's effects on the trail.
Slippery. That one word captures the next two hours. And leeches. We suddenly had to be a lot more careful on the way down. The walking sticks were indispensable. Thank you Mikhail! I would have broken my bum if it weren't for the sticks. To stone steps were really difficult to get a grip on. Each of us slipped at least twice, including Dada! The trees were dripping with water. It was a lot wetter than yesterday. We met Alexi, who caught up with us on the way down. He slipped too, I think. Midway, the trees parted to give us a breathtaking view of Annapurna South. I was stunned by the closeness of the mountain. After about an hour and a half of careful trekking, we came to a motorway and continued on it for about half an hour. We stopped at Tolka for a short break and bought a bottle of water for ₹100. We weren't going to have any cash left by the end of the trek...
We trekked downhill until we came to a bridge over a small river (I can't tell you how tempted I was to write 'Bridge Over Troubled Waters'). Crossing bridges would become a common occurrence today.
At 12:30pm, we stopped at Landruk for lunch. It was a relief to put the rucksack down for a bit. I was carrying the heaviest one today. We had to wait about forty minutes for lunch. Apparently they begin to make food only once you've given the order. From scratch. The concept of readymade quickly served food hasn't reached the mountains. Our lunch was very similar to that of yesterdays. Dal Bhat and Veggie Curry, only more expensive. Tirtha told us food would only get more expensive as we trekked on and reached places more remote.
We began trekking from Landruk at 1:40pm. We could see Jhinudanda, our days destination some three mountains away - a small cluster of blue shed houses sitting peacefully on the mountain slope. After about forty minutes of easy but careful walking we reached Himal Pani. A quick break later, we trekked to New Bridge, when we crossed a long bridge over a gushing river (okay, can I use the phrase 'Bridge Over Troubled Waters' here?). The valleys on either sides of the rive were so wonderful - one in the shadows and one draped in sunlight.
The next part of the trek was so draining. We went up and down and up again. I'm so tired that I want to sleep not. I'll try to recount all I can when I next write.
Dinner - a Thali of Dal Bhat and Chicken Curry. It felt good to get some meat into my system.
[Edit (09.10.2016): The last part of the day's account reflects how tired we were. The sheer physical strength demanded of us did sometimes become too much. I shall here attempt to recall some aspects of the trail and Jhinu that I was too tired to that day.
*Before reaching Himal Pani, Dada, Mama, Varun and I had left Tirtha behind. The road forked off and we were a little puzzled. Which turn to take? We used our natural navigation sense and chose the path that made most sense. The path soon rapidly narrowed down until to came to a forceful stream that we seemed to need to cross. Uh oh. It didn't look very easy. After Dada first crossed and showed us where the grip was good, it wasn't so challenging. I did look on anxiously as Mama crossed, though. She has a funny way of placing her feet, almost a though she has no sense of natural balance. (Note: She did improve in the coming days though, just in case she reads this.) Anyways, hail the water proof boots!
*Jhinu was a pretty place. The first lodge Tirtha took us to wasn't great. It was empty. It didn't meet Mama's standards as she came out of the rooms looking pretty grumpy. We asked Tirtha if we could go to another lodge (there were plenty) to which he didn't look too happy (the owners were his acquaintances I believe). We found a nice busy lodge after walking up a few steps, and planted ourselves there for the night. This time our room had no attached bathroom. It wasn't really a problem. The toilets were clean and the bathrooms were decent enough. We got running warm water, which put us back into a good mood. Warm water on sore muscles is soothing, you know. There was a large Italian group chattering away (Varun insists they were Spanish. Apparently he caught some words. Ha!) and many more small groups of trekkers. It was nice to finally see some activity after the lonely trek. Alexi was in the lodge next to ours. Varun and I spotter him peering into his camera. Our lodge had a nice large square terrace from where we could look into the valley and beyond. It was late evening and no peaks were visible, but looking at the mist stealthily creeping in over a mug of steaming chai was a joy in itself.]
Today was totally exhausting. I think if we go ahead this way for eight days more there will be nothing of my knees left.
I woke up today to an absolutely stunning view of Machhapuchre and Annapurna I and II. After a continuous downpour last night, the skies cleared up and we could see the mountains. I went out to take some pictures of the entire range as this was probably a rare shot. Alexi (as we began calling the Chilean after the footballer; that's not his real name) was already out with his camera, excitedly clicking away. He really seemed like a jolly chap.
We ate a plain breakfast of bread and omelet and a very interesting Tibetan (or Gurung) bread. It was similar to the Ladakhi bread we'd eaten in Leh, except sweeter and deep fried.
Within twenty minutes our room was transformed rom a spread of mess to five neat bags. We said bye to Deepa (who, by the way, told us she lives in Goa half the year after seeing Mama's Goa River Marathon tee; she told us we're a very unusual family (we get that a lot) before adding "In a good way, of course!") and "See you later!" to Alexi who we were bound to meet on the trail as he too was doing ABC.
We got our ACAPs approved at the tourist check post office right outside Pothana and resumed our course. For the first half an hour, the terrain was much flatter than yesterday and very pretty. The sun was out, and the golden rays of light only add to the beauty of the mountains. The path, at times, had purple wild flowers hugging it. The path forked off at quite a few places, which needed us to stop for Tirtha to show us the way.
Soon we reached the top of the hill (or close to the top, at least) and began our descent the other side down the mountain. Now it began to get tricky The downpour of the previous night began to reveal it's effects on the trail.
Slippery. That one word captures the next two hours. And leeches. We suddenly had to be a lot more careful on the way down. The walking sticks were indispensable. Thank you Mikhail! I would have broken my bum if it weren't for the sticks. To stone steps were really difficult to get a grip on. Each of us slipped at least twice, including Dada! The trees were dripping with water. It was a lot wetter than yesterday. We met Alexi, who caught up with us on the way down. He slipped too, I think. Midway, the trees parted to give us a breathtaking view of Annapurna South. I was stunned by the closeness of the mountain. After about an hour and a half of careful trekking, we came to a motorway and continued on it for about half an hour. We stopped at Tolka for a short break and bought a bottle of water for ₹100. We weren't going to have any cash left by the end of the trek...
We trekked downhill until we came to a bridge over a small river (I can't tell you how tempted I was to write 'Bridge Over Troubled Waters'). Crossing bridges would become a common occurrence today.
At 12:30pm, we stopped at Landruk for lunch. It was a relief to put the rucksack down for a bit. I was carrying the heaviest one today. We had to wait about forty minutes for lunch. Apparently they begin to make food only once you've given the order. From scratch. The concept of readymade quickly served food hasn't reached the mountains. Our lunch was very similar to that of yesterdays. Dal Bhat and Veggie Curry, only more expensive. Tirtha told us food would only get more expensive as we trekked on and reached places more remote.
We began trekking from Landruk at 1:40pm. We could see Jhinudanda, our days destination some three mountains away - a small cluster of blue shed houses sitting peacefully on the mountain slope. After about forty minutes of easy but careful walking we reached Himal Pani. A quick break later, we trekked to New Bridge, when we crossed a long bridge over a gushing river (okay, can I use the phrase 'Bridge Over Troubled Waters' here?). The valleys on either sides of the rive were so wonderful - one in the shadows and one draped in sunlight.
The next part of the trek was so draining. We went up and down and up again. I'm so tired that I want to sleep not. I'll try to recount all I can when I next write.
Dinner - a Thali of Dal Bhat and Chicken Curry. It felt good to get some meat into my system.
[Edit (09.10.2016): The last part of the day's account reflects how tired we were. The sheer physical strength demanded of us did sometimes become too much. I shall here attempt to recall some aspects of the trail and Jhinu that I was too tired to that day.
*Before reaching Himal Pani, Dada, Mama, Varun and I had left Tirtha behind. The road forked off and we were a little puzzled. Which turn to take? We used our natural navigation sense and chose the path that made most sense. The path soon rapidly narrowed down until to came to a forceful stream that we seemed to need to cross. Uh oh. It didn't look very easy. After Dada first crossed and showed us where the grip was good, it wasn't so challenging. I did look on anxiously as Mama crossed, though. She has a funny way of placing her feet, almost a though she has no sense of natural balance. (Note: She did improve in the coming days though, just in case she reads this.) Anyways, hail the water proof boots!
*Jhinu was a pretty place. The first lodge Tirtha took us to wasn't great. It was empty. It didn't meet Mama's standards as she came out of the rooms looking pretty grumpy. We asked Tirtha if we could go to another lodge (there were plenty) to which he didn't look too happy (the owners were his acquaintances I believe). We found a nice busy lodge after walking up a few steps, and planted ourselves there for the night. This time our room had no attached bathroom. It wasn't really a problem. The toilets were clean and the bathrooms were decent enough. We got running warm water, which put us back into a good mood. Warm water on sore muscles is soothing, you know. There was a large Italian group chattering away (Varun insists they were Spanish. Apparently he caught some words. Ha!) and many more small groups of trekkers. It was nice to finally see some activity after the lonely trek. Alexi was in the lodge next to ours. Varun and I spotter him peering into his camera. Our lodge had a nice large square terrace from where we could look into the valley and beyond. It was late evening and no peaks were visible, but looking at the mist stealthily creeping in over a mug of steaming chai was a joy in itself.]
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