Trekking in India in April

[bunchberry]

I met Arlene Blum (www.arleneblum.com – if you don’t know who she is, she was the first person to lead an all-American and all-women’s climb of Annapurna in 1978) at AMC’s annual meeting at the end of January (she was the keynote speaker), and through a series of emails and phone calls back and forth, talked with her about an upcoming trek to India she was planning for April. I was offered the opportunity to be her assistant trek leader, and jumped at the chance. I was ecstatic that I’d be hiking along Arlene, and hoped to hear more about her mountaineering stories and learn from her leadership. I’ve led trips for AMC, Girl Scouts, and the annual fundraiser hike “Wilderness Heals,” but I had never had any responsibility for helping to lead a group in a foreign country. This only made me more excited, however, and I figured I’d learn as I went.

The trek was from April 15-30, and we were going to be hiking in the regions of West Bengal and Sikkim, India—near the borders of Nepal to the west, Tibet to the north, and Bhutan to the east. The first week we would be staying in farm houses and doing dayhikes in the area, and during the second week were would trek toward Kanchenjunga and the Nepal border for 5 days and 4 nights. Before I left, I helped Arlene with a whole lot of logistical organization—corresponding with the 9 other trip participants and our tour company “Gurudongma Tours and Treks,” and even had to make an urgent trip to New York City to fix a mistake on my visa…but that’s a separate trip report.

My flight from Newark to Delhi was the longest I had ever taken, about 13 and a half hours to India (and more like 15 hours on the way back). But the time flew, and before I knew it I had arrived in Delhi and got to crash for the night before the final flight to Bagdogra where I would meet up with the rest of the group. Flying into Bagdogra I was worried that I hadn’t seen any mountains yet…where were the Himalaya? The weather had been hazy and hot ever since we had arrived, and I was thoroughly exhausted. In Bagdogra, Sydney and I, who had flown from Newark to Delhi together, met up with the rest of our group members—finally! But we still had to make a two and a half hour drive from the airport to the Tour operator’s home in Kalimpong, a city nestled in the hills at around 4,500 feet where we would stay for the night.

We drove through the forest for awhile, and then started gaining elevation on a narrow, twisty road that followed a steep riverbank. Looking out to the river was gorgeous, but unfortunately, the road was very dangerous with cars honking and passing each other all the time, and so I couldn’t stop to fully take in these new surroundings. The road was very steep in places, and always bumpy. And when I say bumpy I mean I was bouncing all over the place, and had to hold onto the car for safety. We saw lots of monkeys by the roadside, some of them huge, some so small they must have been newborns.

Arriving at the house, we met the guides that would be with us for the remainder of the trip. Depending on where we were hiking, we would need to hire local guides who know the trails well, because there are no maps. But Sudesh and/or his sister Catherine were the main guides that would spend the full two weeks with us. It was late afternoon when we arrived at the house, and we took about an hour walk and then came back to the house for tea before dinner. I’m not usually a tea drinker, but this Darjeeling tea was absolutely amazing. And that should have foreshadowed the incredible Indian feast that was to come that evening, but somehow I was still surprised  Dinner started with a chicken and broth soup, then came rice, a chicken dish with tomatoes (I forget what it was called), saag paneer (a spinach and cheese dish), a bean and chick pea dish (chaana masala?), gobhi something (cauliflower), chapati (Indian bread), and a rice pudding for desert. After the meal I knew I was in trouble. I was feasting already and I hadn’t even started hiking yet!

That evening I started keeping a journal…I think for the rest of this trip report I’ll just take excerpts from it, rather than try to remember things all over again. I hope those of you reading this don’t mind that hiking was really only a part of this grand adventure—I feel like the trip was so much about getting to know the local people and hearing their stories. If you actually decide to make the journey through my 301 photos up on Webshots, you’ll see what I mean.

Tuesday April 18th
It is 6:15 in the morning and it is pouring. It rained all night long, and I was awoken several times by the immense thunder and lightening storm that passed through. I guess when I wished it would rain last night to burn off the haze and open up our Kanchenjunga view, I forgot to wish that it would stop raining by the time we woke up! It is going to be a very interesting first hike today in the rainy, muddy weather. And we are camping tonight…I definitely hope it stops raining by then!

[Disgusting story warning!!] We’ve made it to the campsite. Today we had a leech-infested hike, something that I was definitely NOT prepared for. For the first time ever, I had leeches attach themselves to my feet and suck my blood. They have got to be the most disgusting creatures ever. When leeches bite, they insert an anesthetic and an anti-coagulant into you so that you can’t feel them bite and so that your blood won’t clot up. I found the two on my feet when we started seeing them all over the place on the ground, and Sudesh suggested we check our feet. Turns out they can bite through expedition weight smartwool socks—great. I had two bloody patches on my socks, and the leeches had thoroughly engorged themselves. Ever since, I have been extremely paranoid about every little itch or twitch I feel on my skin. I feel like there are leeches all over me. Give me mosquito and black fly bites anyday—at least they take their bite and fly away!! I can hardly even think about the disgustingness of these creatures.

On a much more pleasant note, we had a fantastic hike today that started down a steep, terraced hillside walking among houses and farms, then we rock-hopped across a river, and then hiked back up the steep hillside through a very beautiful foggy forest. Truly, breathtaking. In many ways, the trees reminded me of the Pacific Northwest. It started raining pretty hard on the uphill hike, and has kept up for most of the rest of the day. We arrived at camp in time for a late lunch, and then after lunch we set off for the village of Lava. We were hoping to visit the monastery, but by the time we had arrived it had been closed for twenty minutes. The outside of the building was gorgeous—beautifully painted with bright colors, and we could sort of make out the adornments on the inside through the dingy glass. We had missed the monks chanting, and we were all soaking wet. But it’s more about the journey than the destination, right??? We decided that we could turn this failure into a success by finding some prayer flags. I really wanted to buy some, but we hadn’t seen any yet. Arlene, Sydney and I set off through the town looking in the stores, and asking people where to buy them. We had a great adventure searching from store to store, with each new villager pointing us to the next. We finally arrived at a store that was closed, and it appeared to sell prayer flags. There were some kids running around, and we were able to explain to them what we were looking for. The kids told us to stay there, and in about ten minutes, returned with a woman who could sell us the flags. After all of that work, they only had one left of the kind that we were looking for, and graciously, Arlene and Sydney let me buy them. I felt like I had really accomplished something

…

I’m writing from the tent now, and it is almost time to eat dinner. I wish I had eaten more for lunch because it is pouring again and there are leeches out there. Just waiting for me.
[yes, that was written at a pretty low moment!]

…to be continued...


a link to my 301 photos (sorry, no typo):
http://community.webshots.com/album/550157910MynlpQ

-katie

 

[sleeping bear]

HOLY CRAP! Arlene Blum!

"Anapurna A Woman's Place" is an AWESOME book!

Wow!... in India with Arlene Blum.... I'm... well... okay, not quite speachless...



oh, and the photos are okay I guess , I LOVE the pink tents!

 

[poison ivy]

Have I told you 200 times yet how incredibly jealous I am? Well now I am even more so after looking at your beautiful pictures (but not so much after reading the leech story!)

Seriously, I'm glad you had fantastic trip and I can't wait to read the next installment!

- Ivy

 

[bunchberry]

story continued

Wednesday April 19th
This morning I had to use some pretty drastic measures…after spending a night terrified of the lurking leeches, I decided to tape my rain pants to my hiking boots to keep the leeches out. Because I had somehow forgotten my duct tape (how could I??), I had to use medical tape that wasn’t very sticky, oh well. I had been wearing my gaiters yesterday but they hadn’t prevented the leeches from working their way into my boots. Gross.

The hike today was amazing…it finally cleared up after about an hour of hiking, and became warm and sunny. We visited a beautiful Gompa (Buddhist Monastery) and walked through several different villages. The people here speak Nepali and look Nepali as well. In fact, this region has a large Nepali influence due to its close proximity to the border. I have also seen some Bhutanese influence in some of the textiles and weaving. Having lived in Nepal for a portion on her life, Arlene has a wealth of knowledge about all of these various co-existing ethnicities, cultures, and religions. Walking though the villages, I noticed that one house would have a crucifix and the next a shrine to Shiva—a beautiful example of peaceful, diverse beliefs.

At one point we were walking along a wide rocky path heading toward a village when we came upon a school. It must have been mid-morning break time because little children in bright red uniforms came pouring out the school and running down the hill toward us. They were playing with a soccer ball and Therese dropped her pack and ran out on the field to join them! They were just enchanted with her. What precious children. Since most of the villages around here don’t have roads from one village to the next, their trails are their only means of getting from one place to another. So, hiking along we would pass schoolchildren, people carrying various crops, and basically anyone on their way from one place to the next. We continued on and on, and the trail’s grade was flat but very rocky as it wound downhill gradually. We crossed several streams and very rickety bridges. I could feel my pinky toes rubbing against my socks in a bad way, but I didn’t want to undo the leech protection to adjust. That was probably a mistake, since I now have two pink blisters on my toes. Catherine was a joy to talk with today about marriage, local elections, and the many interesting things and places that we trekked by.

Tonight I finally got my first view of the Himalaya. I was so afraid that it would rain the entire trip, and I would never even see these majestic mountains. Kanchenjunga was radiant in its pink twilight glow, and the mountains surrounding were equally incredible. I can hardly fathom the scale of these peaks—from so far away they almost look like 14,000 footers, but knowing their true size and majesty fills me with happiness and makes me smile. Mountains just have a way of making me happy, and these Himalayan peaks are no exception. By next week, we will be much closer to Kanchenjunga and will hopefully be able to see Everest.

…

Thursday April 20th

…

Our visit to the Shaman today was fascinating. Heather was the only one brave enough to ask him a question, and what a question she picked: “Will I ever get married?” The Shaman went into a trance for several minutes, and it looked surprisingly genuine to me—I didn’t expect that. He told her that right now, the stars are not aligned in her favor, but that within three years, she will marry. I guess I feel pretty strongly about never asking anyone who asserts they can predict the future—whether it be a Shaman, fortune teller, or anyone else—I believe that we will make our own decisions and choices about our lives, but that those decisions and choices can be influenced, either subconsciously or not, by things that people tell us to be true or will be true. I’d rather not hear anyone else’s predictions about the way my life will be.

…

Now, for some leech humor: Sydney, Therese and Heather made up a limerick about me and a leech, and I like it a lot!

There once was a leech on a cow,
Who lived his whole life in Bengal,
When Katie walked by,
Her foot caught his eye,
He feasted and Katie said “Ow!!”

Saturday April 2nd
We got a very early start this morning—breakfast was at 6, the slower group of hikers left at a little before 7, and then Sydney, Dieter, Sudesh and I left at around 7:20. It was so refreshing to hike in a small group at our own brisk pace. We got down to the river after descending about 4,000 feet in an hour and a half. We realized that the first group must have made a wrong turn because we never passed them on our way down. At the river, Sudesh and I sat on a huge rock in the shade, it was entirely refreshing. We had a delightful half hour or so just chatting and laughing, waiting for the others to arrive. When the rest of the group surfaced, two of our guides took thermos bottles out of their packs and poured us hot chai! (“Chai” means tea, so the fact that we say “chai tea” back home is pretty funny!) At first I was about to refuse, but Sudesh insisted that a hot drink on a sweltering hot day would cool me down by making me sweat more. Sort of funny logic, but I think it worked, and the tea was absolutely amazing.

After the tea, we hiked along a mellow trail through a banana plantation and ginger and corn crops. We came to a little village that for some reason had the distinct feeling of a highway rest stop for me. All of the men lined up to look at us. Sudesh told us that just 13 years ago, the villagers used to run away and hide whenever a white person came through the town. Now, everyone comes out of their houses running toward us, both adults and children, to stare. I have a very good feeling about the people I see here—just about everyone has a warm smile, gentle eyes, and we are always greeted with hands in prayer position and a “Namaste.” From all I had heard of India before arriving here, I expected to be hassled by beggars in the street and to be overwhelmed with overpopulation. While I know this is true for urban Indian cities, I feel far, far away from all of that here.

Soon after this little “rest stop” village, we crossed a huge bridge over the Teesta River and then had lunch. It was a good thing that we stopped when we did, because once we started hiking again we soon came to an enormous construction site that we would have to walk right through. They are working on building a hydro-electric dam on the Teesta River that will help power the large cities but not give an ounce of power to the small villages nearby. The construction has already been going on for two years, and Sudesh said it would take at least that long to complete. Walking through the construction site was really alarming for me—there was dust everywhere making it hard to see the path we were supposed to stick to, and there were huge trucks barreling by us left and right. We had to climb up several steep gravel embankments where I’d take one step forward and fall back about two steps. And it was hot, sweltering in fact. My face and hands felt like they were on fire, especially because of the light sunburn I got yesterday. We finally reached the end, and I was so grateful. We had “hiked” through the construction site up to a road where there were vehicles waiting for us to take us out of West Bengal and into Sikkim.

Sikkim has a tightly managed border crossing even though it is a region of India. It was independent until 1975 when it became part of India, but still maintains a fiercely independent identity. It has many restrictions even to Indians, who cannot own land in Sikkim if they are not from there or have not married into a Sikkimese family. It is also very restricted to foreigners, I had to get a special stamp on my passport indicating that I had permission to visit Sikkim for up to 15 days. It was a drive of about three hours from the construction site to our next destination, Yangsum Farm, and the border was the halfway mark. Our car ride was filled with hilarious laughter, and I am so grateful I am surrounded by such wonderful people.

...to be continued...

-katie

 

[chas]

Wow, what an adventure you had. Really enjoyed the pictures, especially of the people you met along the way. Looking forward to the rest of the story.

Chas.

 

[Roxi]

Thank you!

Katie,

I'm so glad you got to do this, and I am thoroughly enjoying reading your adventures. Thank you so much for sharing them! Like others, I am looking forward to the next installment.

 

[Artex]

What an amazing experience! Awesome you had the opportunity for this trip, good fer you! Thanks for sharing. Just skimmed over the report now, looking forward to reading it later in the day when I have more time. Very neat stuff.

 

[Chip]

Fantastic, Congratulations !

 

[marty]

What a fabulous trip report and adventure, Katie! I was hoping you would share your stories with us.

Please note that some of the ponds in Maine have leeches. The ones that I know of include Surplus Pond on the AT near Andover, Tumbledown Pond and Long Pond in the 100 Mile Wilderness, where my daughter had three attached to her. Since you are a magnet for these nasties, you might want to think twice before swimming in such ponds.

Regards,
Marty

 

[blacknblue]

Nice! I can't believe you gave up a gray New England April for this!

Great trip report and I'm looking forward to the grand finale. Was that your first time hiking/trekking/climbing internationally? Have you been to India before?

When I read the Disgusting Story Alert, I started laughing b/c international disgusting stories are the best and a dozen of them popped into my mind immediately, although none of mine involve leeches. That reminded me of the scene from "Stand By Me."

 

[bunchberry]

thanks for your responses...I will be posting the next installment later tonight!

Marty, thanks for the leech warning--I've seen leeches in ponds throughout New England before, but never had any problem because they generally hang out in the shallow water and if you head right to the deep stuff you are generally safe. But I'm certainly going to be extra careful in the future!!

blacknblue, no, I had never been to India before and yes, I have had other international hiking/trekking experience...I hiked around La Malinche (a mountain near the volcanos) in Mexico in 2000 and I climbed Kilimanjaro about a year and a half ago.

It is interesting though--while Kilimanjaro was an absolutely incredible experience that I would never take back for anything, the trip was all about me and my husband and the rest of our group climbing the mountain and summiting. We didn't have the time to really explore Tanzania and connect the with locals in any meaningful way, aside from the guides on the trip that spoke English. In India, however, I feel like the trip was all about getting to know a little pocket of the world and the special people that live there in a very real way. Some of the people I met there are people that I genuinely care about and hope to go back and visit within the next 3-5 years if possible. I have a lot more understanding of the local cultures, polital climate, and current struggles in West Bengal and Sikkim than in Tanzania. On average, the physical exertion required for Kilimanjaro was proably much greater than for Sikkim, but as I said in my first post, this trip was about SO much more than just hiking for me. That said, the trekking was also amazing! We hiked on a huge variety of trails and terrain...more to come on that tonight.

-katie

 

[snowbird22]

Hey, Katie

Nice TR. Did you experience any altitude sickness or hypoxia? Any plans to to Everest or K2? I am interested but requires a huge financial committment. Looked like a good time, I looked at everyone of the pics.

Chris

 

[yam]

ok. i've only gotten through half the pics and so far they are great!! what a great adventure you went on!
i hope to read your report and look at the rest of your pics as soon as i can. can't wait!

 

[bunchberry]

Snowbird22, no, I did not experience any altitude sickness or hypoxia--our highest elevation was around 11,800 feet, and I have been above that elevation a few times before with no problems. And no, no plans for mountaineering on Everest and the like-- too expensive and too risky for my taste! But I am definitely up for exploring around this region some more, I'd like to spend some time in Nepal and Tibet.

-katie

 

[blacknblue]

It is interesting though--while Kilimanjaro was an absolutely incredible experience that I would never take back for anything, the trip was all about me and my husband and the rest of our group climbing the mountain and summiting. We didn't have the time to really explore Tanzania and connect the with locals in any meaningful way, aside from the guides on the trip that spoke English. In India, however, I feel like the trip was all about getting to know a little pocket of the world and the special people that live there in a very real way. Some of the people I met there are people that I genuinely care about and hope to go back and visit within the next 3-5 years if possible. I have a lot more understanding of the local cultures, polital climate, and current struggles in West Bengal and Sikkim than in Tanzania. On average, the physical exertion required for Kilimanjaro was proably much greater than for Sikkim, but as I said in my first post, this trip was about SO much more than just hiking for me.
-katie

Great observation. There is so much more to "just hiking" internationally than the hike itself. It's a shame that your experience on Kilimanjaro seems to be typical, that is, little cultural interaction.

 

[bunchberry]

the next installment

Sunday April 23rd

…

As we hiked today I talked a lot with Sudesh. We had some very thought-provoking conversations…he said that the country he most wanted to visit was New Zealand, and then after that, America. He asked me if I had ever been to any other countries besides India, and I said yes. He said I was very lucky, and asked me which ones. I answered Tanzania, England, France, Italy, Mexico, Canada…as I listed these off I began to feel terrible about myself, and I hadn’t even mentioned Germany, Austria, Belgium, and Holland. I was feeling so self-conscious about being a rich American, and at home I don’t even feel like I’m wealthy when I look at the people that surround me in day to day life. And it wasn’t Sudesh making me feel that way—I am pretty perceptive and I didn’t detect a trace of judgment coming from Sudesh…it was just that all of the sudden, I became so frustrated with the inequality in this world. Here was Sudesh, pretty wealthy for the region he lives in, and he doesn’t see being able to travel out of his country in the foreseeable future, despite how much he might want to. He told me that the difference is that I can probably buy a plane ticket to India on one month’s salary, and his salary brings him nowhere close. I want so much for him to have the opportunity to travel—he is a bird lover and would just go crazy with happiness in New Zealand. I know that I will be staying in touch with him and one day I hope that I hear that he’s made it there.

It was right during this conversation that somehow my shoelace loop from my right foot got caught on the lace-hook on my left foot, my feet were tied together, and I fell right onto my knees on the rocky path. It shocked me momentarily, but I wasn’t badly hurt and I found that I could keep walking along even though it was pretty sore. We were hiking toward another Gompa, one that I was very excited to see and I was determined to get there. We walked through the tiny village of Rinchenpong, and then took a path uphill to the monastery. It was the most beautiful one yet, primarily due to the sheer number of prayer flags draped all over the entrance pathway to the Gompa itself. I went a little camera crazy at this point, and I really hope the pictures came out well. I took some photos of the monks we tried to talk with, and there was one young boy who wanted to pose for me and then see his photo. He was a great subject and I was told later on that the owner of Yangsum Farm can get the photos I took of him to the little boy if I email them to him. Technology is amazing.

At this Gompa I could feel the tangible strength of peace and tranquility in the air. I closed my eyes for awhile and took in the feelings and the sounds. I could hear some of the monks playing in the yard, goats bleating down the road, and the wind roaring through the valley. I felt a strong spiritual peace and comfort in this place, and I treasure it.

...to be continued...

-katie

 

[una_dogger]

Great report, Katie. Sounds like you had alot of fun!

BTW, if you do get to Nepal--I recommend Annapurna Circuit and Sanctuary; or just the Sanctuary if you are pressed for time. The Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) has done an amazing job at preserving local traditional life by empowering local villages -- the impacts in Annapurna (western trekking impacts that is) are far less evident than in the Everest Trekking Routes.

You can also do Tent Peak while in Annapurna with a certified climbing Sherpa,which is considered a trekking peak -- if you want to try out some higher elevation adventure.

Annapurna Sanctuary is at about 14, 500ft and the Annapurna Circuits' highest point is the Thorong La Pass Crossing, which is approx 18,500ft; I was happy with going that high and no further!!! But, the bus rides on unmaintained mountain roads, landslides, avalanches, mule trains, suspension bridges and trailside Shakedowns all add to the element of adventure in Nepal --- its truly a wild place to visit. I hope you get to go there someday!!

I nearly went to Bhutan and Sikkim; but chose Nepal instead. Its great to see your pictures and read about what you did.

Sabrina

 

[coldmountain]

Thanks for sharing your report. (I am quite jealous. I hope to get to a point where I can be in that region someday. Take me with you next time ?, I'll carry your stuff?)
I just reread "The Snow Leopard" and have been contemplating going at least to India if not further up.
Vibrant and organic pictures to go along with your notes, too. It was fun to read and escape myself even if for only a few minutes......

 

[bunchberry]

...and the next installment

Tuesday April 25th

Yesterday night was so traumatic (yes, leeches) that I never even got around to writing in my journal…so I will start now with yesterday. Yesterday morning we started our five day trek—we left Yangsum Farm and walked back up to the village of Rinchenpong, and then headed on to Kaluk. As we entered Kaluk, there were tons of little boys and girls heading to the local government school, all in uniform. One boy was walking next to me as we hiked into town—he wanted to practice his English by asking me all sorts of questions. It was great to see his self-confidence. Just as we arrived at the school, the children were being called to order and all 433 students lined up to say their prayers and sing a song.

After passing through Kaluk we got off the main road and onto a trail that would lead us to the village where we would be having lunch and where we would be seeing a performance by the children in the village. This sounded hokey to me at first, but boy, was I ever wrong. As we neared the village, we saw that people from the village had set up an archway of bamboo and they were doing a dance in front of it to welcome us to their village. They had set up a random assortment of tattered chairs in their “town square” area, probably the only ten chairs their village had, for us to sit in. Pretty soon, someone put on some Nepali music on a radio, and the first young girl started dancing. Her movements were fluid and graceful, and the maturity she displayed impressed me. She was intuitive with her movement and eye contact. She was beautiful to watch. After her, several more “acts” followed…but she was my favorite.

As we sat around watching the show, people from the village kept appearing and sitting down to watch us, more than to watch the show. I have never felt so on display before. I found out later that we were the first group of Westerners to have ever trekked through their village, and our arrival was like a holiday for them. Everything was rearranged for our arrival and for this show. I was absolutely shocked to find this out, and even more so when I really understood what this meant…how was it even possible to be in a place so isolated and so looked-over by the seasonal tourists that visit Sikkim? Sudesh told me that because of Nepal’s current political unrest, the usual trekking route they use had been re-routed because it followed along the Nepal border and was no longer allowed, or even safe. This new route had been put together and the village of Hi-Barmiok was just ecstatic to have visitors. After the show ended, the primary leader in the town gave us a little tour and told us in pretty good English about how he wanted to bring tourism to his village. He pointed to the site where he would someday like to build a hotel. What mixed feelings I had about this…I shared his excitement but couldn’t push away my doubt of a successful project.

Upon leaving the village it was time to hike up the final stretch of trail to our campsite. On our way, Sydney and I were absolutely taken with this beautiful old woman who kept giggling at us…she had a solid gold nose ring pierced through the center of her nose (ouch!) and her skin was a sea of wrinkles. Sudesh stopped to help us talk to her, and soon he was giggling too. We finally understood from him that she wanted us to stay with her…I didn’t understand…then there was more giggling and hearty laughter…Sudesh told us that she had many grandsons

When we finally got to camp we settled in and played Uno and everything was happy until we discovered that leeches were everywhere—and I was sick of being leeched. As we played cards that night, Arlene kept having me shine the flashlight on her feet to check for leeches and each time I found one or two. I wish I could say that I have gotten over my leech-phobia, but I haven’t. Sydney and I did a very thorough leech check in the tent before we got into our sleeping bags, and we found many. We used her pen cap to get rid of them, and when the last leech wouldn’t let go of the pen cap, we threw that out of the tent also (yes, we got it later)! Thank goodness for our vigilance—others were not so vigilant and got bites in the night.

That brings me to today. Today we had our toughest hike yet but truthfully, it was no harder than a day in the Whites, although we did have the leech factor to deal with. The trail was our leechiest yet, and during the course of the morning I probably had to get about 30 of them off of me. The hike was a nice, hard, steep uphill—it actually felt great. The first half of the trail (until our lunch break) was really new and therefore not cut very well. The guide in front even had to carry a sickle to chop out the overgrowth. It had a jungle/rainforest feeling, and I kept thinking that the snakes probably love to hang out in a habitat just like that one. After our lunch stop, the trail got a lot better—this one had obviously been used a lot before. But the best news, as we climbed above 8,500 – 9,000 or so feet, there were no more leeches! Too high and too cold for them! I really enjoyed the hiking…I was hiking just with Heather, and we had some great conversation. As we hiked up above 9,500 feet or so, we entered the rhododendron forest. The rhododendron trees were huge, somewhere around 40 feet tall. Some were in full bloom, and some were past bloom. Our camp is right in the rhododendron forest, and it smells beautifully. I love a leech-free camp!! After today’s rain, hopefully the mountains will reappear tomorrow.

...to be continued...

-katie

 

[bunchberry]

the last installment, finally

Wednesday April 26th

…

I found out today that yesterday’s hike was about 10 miles—that feels about right. Because there are no maps of the trails we’ve been hiking on, I have no idea what kind of mileage we’ve done each day, but I guess, based on our pace and the time, that our hikes have ranged from about 5 to 11-12 miles on a given day. Today was a fairly easy hiking day, probably about 5 miles. We wandered through the rhododendron forest and the trees were towering over us like guardians of a very sacred place. I appreciated their presence. We were hiking in and out of the clouds which made the environment seem even more mysterious and dramatic. Therese, Heather, Sydney and I hiked together all day which was a lot of fun—we are each so different and are in very different places in life, but have had so much to offer each other. It’s funny though—I feel like it has taken us awhile to really form genuine friendships, and we will all be leaving each other in three days. It never ceases to amaze me how close I can feel to “strangers” after I spend some time on a trip with them…I think this trip has been powerful for everyone, and no one else can really understand the things we’ve seen besides our little group of ten.

On another note, we have finally seen yaks. When we saw the first one it was far away and I took about 15 photos of it in case we never saw another…little did I know I’d see many more throughout the day, and we will be seeing them everyday until the end. We are up in yak elevation now (and above leech elevation!!), so they are pretty common. At first I though that they were wild, but I found out that they have “owners” that let them wander free for days, but then round them up every once in awhile. All of the yaks wear bells, and I just love the sound they make. It is fun to be hiking along, hear the yak bell, but not see the yak. The trails were COVERED with yak dung today—those piles are huge! You have to step very carefully in this terrain…

Thursday April 27th

Tonight was incredibly special and will hopefully remain a strong memory for me for the rest of my life. As we neared camp up at 11,300 feet or so, the temperature plummeted and the fog settled in. We entered an above tree line region that almost reminded me of the Whites, though perhaps that was just because of the cold wind and the foggy, viewless surroundings? I’m certainly no stranger to foggy hikes through beautiful terrain back home! Anyway, when we got into camp some of the guides lit a bonfire for us to huddle around, and it was just amazing how fast the front of my body started to feel like it was on fire! I had to turn around to cool my front and warm my freezing backside, and I felt like a hot dog on a grill. Tonight was another night of laughter, singing, and unbelievable mountain views. I feel like these mountains and this culture have become a part of me—and I am really going to miss this place when I leave, just as I have with every beautiful, inspiring place I have had the good fortune to visit. The beauty in this world is simply astonishing…as is the number of pure, kind, unselfish people in it—too easy to forget in day to day life.

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Friday April 28th

Well this is fun—I kept my journal very accessible in my daypack for the first time today, and it seems I’ve chosen the perfect day to do so. The group has spread out a lot this morning, and I probably have about 30 minutes to write before the rest catch up. We have come down to about 9,600 feet or so, and I am sitting in bright sunshine in a meadow that feels like it could be somewhere in the Pacific Northwest, minus the yak dung and all. This morning was magical—a group of us got up at 4:30am to pack up and left camp at 5 to head up to around 11,800 feet or so to a highpoint on the India/Nepal border. At this highpoint, we were told that if it was clear we’d be able to see Everest. Thankfully, when we got up this morning it looked pretty clear so we all had high hopes for amazing views toward Nepal. When we reach the top of the hill, a whole new panorama stretched out before us…it was hazy, but we could see Makalu, Lhotse, Nuptse, and the very hazy shadow of Everest behind. Wow…I can’t believe I have glimpsed the highest mountain in the world…I can’t even believe I am really here. I took photo after photo…I couldn’t stop. I feel so lucky to have been given this opportunity…Arlene will never know what she has done for me by offering me this “chance of a lifetime”—yes a cliché, but a reality in this instance.

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[The End, at least for the part I am choosing to share!]

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Well that was a lengthy trip report…thanks for bearing with me! I think that these excerpts from my journal, along with my photos, illustrate this whole experience just about as well as is possible over the internet. For those of you who know me or will someday know me, feel free to ask me more…I am happy to share. And in case you haven’t taken this away yet, yes, this is a place to be explored and cherished should you ever have the opportunity!!

thanks,
katie