Thin Air

After resting up in Manang we began hiking again, we spent two shorter days getting ourselves up to Throng Phedi, our last camp before our ascent over Thorong La. Thankfully with the help of some Diamox (AMS medication) our friend Ane was feeling better and we were all excited to make it over the pass.















We had decided to stay at Throng Phedi, at 14,530', because we had heard that it was not good to sleep at the higher camp, which was only about a mile up the trail but almost another 1,500 additional feet in elevation. At this elevation the nights were bitterly cold and the scenery was rocky and sparse, but offered some great views back down the valley from which we came.















We made it an early night in Throng Phedi, as we planned to start hiking at about 6 a.m. the next morning. A lot of others were going much earlier, but we didn't want to hike in the dark or in the freezing cold so we set out at 6 a.m. and were happy with our decision when we later heard about the long strings of impassable hikers that went before us. The thing is at 14,000+ feet everyone is moving slowly, some nearly shuffling, your heart races at the slightest effort and you sometimes feel like you are walking through quicksand. Ross and I were very lucky to have acclimatized quickly, I think coming from CO helped a lot. We weren't having any trouble breathing, but all around us we heard people gasping for air and I even saw a lady vomiting on her way up to the high camp the day before. With the sun just rising and lighting up the surrounding peaks, we set off.











Ross and I kept up a steady pace, happy to be in the sunshine because it was really cold in the shade, and after several false summits we happily saw the prayer flags waving, we had made it to the top of Thorong La and the highest point of our lives! We celebrated on top with photos, hot tea, and Snickers bars and basked in the accomplishment and all the excitement from the previous 10 days.













The day was hardly over though as we had a very long, knee breaking descent to our next village, Muktinath. We celebrated everyone's success that night over a few Everest beers and happily slept in the next day, sore from our efforts, but thrilled to be on the other side.







The trek continued on from there, but due to the development of a jeep road, the hiking changed quite a bit. We decided to descend down to another village, but after a dusty day of walking with the jeeps and very sore bodies we decided to grab a bus the next day down to the village of Tatopani. A day of terrifying local buses later, at points I was truly afraid our bus would topple over the cliff, we arrived. Not very rested, but very happy to rest up in Tatopani's ('hot water' in Nepali) riverside hot springs. The trek was slowly coming to a close, but we still had one big day of climbing ahead of us. We decided to start heading back up in elevation so that we could take in the awesome sunrise views from Poon Hill, which meant climbing a little over 5,000 ft in one day to get ourselves to the village of Ghorepani.







After about 2 weeks on the trail this was a very tough day, probably the hardest on the trek since we were hiking on very weary legs and we were disappointed to find on our arrival thick cloud cover preventing any views. Still hopeful that it might clear in the morning we set our alarms for the painful hour of 4:30 a.m. to make the 30 minute climb onto Poon Hill for a sunrise show, and we were really glad we did. Luckily for us the clouds moved off and we were afforded the famous Poon Hill panorama as the sun lit up the peaks. With Dhaulagiri, Annapurna I and the massive looking Annapurna South filling the sky we were happy to start our final day on the trek with such an impressive view.



































Another painfully long descent later, including 3,421 stone steps that felt like they would never end, we were thrilled to arrive in Nayapul and catch a taxi to Pokhara for a few days of rest and recovery. Pokhara was just that, rest. We slept late, ate well, and got to catch up with a few fellow hikers we had met along the trail, it was a great way to wrap up the circuit.

Ross and I both loved this hike. The views were incredible, the local people were so friendly, and all of the fellow hikers we met along the way made it such a blast. Our trip really wouldn't have been the same without our Spanish amigos Ane & Gontzal, it is so awesome to meet people from completely different places, but to have so much in common. With some plan rearranging we really hope we get the chance to visit them in Spain!

Writing this leaves a smile on my face since it reminds me of why we are on this trip, it was an experience we will never forget.

Namaste

We started out our trekking adventure in Nepal with a very long day on a bus, well 3 buses actually. Not exactly knowing what we were in for we took the tourist bus to the town of Dumre from Kathmandu and were then told to catch a local bus to BhulBule, the start of our trek. The local bus was crazy! After much haggling over the price we jumped on board with our backpacks, they then jammed the bus to the brim with people as they strapped down gear to the top of the bus, many of the locals also jumped on top to ride. With a packed bus, people on top of us, no ventilation, and bumpy roads we were in for a treat. As destiny would have it, here is where we were to meet our trekking companions for the entire circuit, Ane & Gontzal, newlyweds from the Spanish Basque country. Bonding over the crazy ride we ended up hiking with them everyday and finding teahouses together every night as well as brushing up on our Spanish and newly discovered Basque along the way :)



Another local bus and many bumps later we felt like we had put in a good day on the trails, we were beat, but happy to find a clean room and nice dinner of dal bhat at our first tea house. We couldn't wait to start our first actual day of hiking in the morning, and we made it a long one. Covering about 13 miles we climbed through the lush lowlands along terraced farmlands and got our first feel for the amazingly friendly Himilayan people who always greeted us with a 'namaste' and a smile. We rounded off our first day with some cold Everest beers and the beginning of many nights of laughs and conversation with our new hiking buddies Ane & Gontzal.
















Our days were simple: breakfast in the morning at the teahouse, hike for hours, stop for tea and lunch, continue to hike, find a teahouse and then enjoy dinner and card games of hearts as we planned out the next day. The accommodations were basic, see the attached bath below, but they were mostly clean and comfortable and all served up a good variety of food. We had our share of dal bhat, the staple lentil and rice dish of the region, but were surprised to find a wide array of food at most of the restaurants and the bakeries that popped up along the way. I hadn't imagined eating a croissant or apple pie in remote areas of Nepal! We were winding our way along, taking in the impressive waterfalls and ever changing scenery as we gained elevation with one large goal in mind, climbing over Thorong La pass.

The great thing about this trek was that every day the scenery was totally different, and on our third day we got to see our first 8,000 meter peak, Manaslu. We were stunned with how impressive the mountain backdrops were and were more impressed as we continued up. Almost looking fake at times, the snow capped peaks looked like someone had painted them in behind the quaint villages and farmland we passed through.





















































The circuit, which depending on how you hike it can take anywhere from 10 to 21 days, but the majority of people hike in a counter clockwise direction and summit the highest point, Thorong La, after about 10 days. Due to the high elevation of the pass, 17,700+ feet, you have to be careful to avoid AMS (acute mountain sickness) and must pace your daily accents and plan at least one rest day so that you can acclimatize appropriately. After about a week on the trail we had a day of rest, to acclimatize, in Manang. Rest is figurative, as we still spent the day hiking, only without the packs, we decided to trek up to a small gompa (buddhist temple) on the hillside overlooking the town of Manang. While there we were blessed by and shared tea with the 94 year old lama and his daughter who lived there. Happy to give our sore backs and weary legs a break we were starting to feel anxious for the coming days. The weather was getting colder and we knew it would be a few hard days of hiking to get over the pass. Also, our friend Ane had started to suffer some of the chronic signs of AMS, headaches, shortness of breath, and nausea, so we were worried about her and the challenge ahead.

To be continued...