The Annapurna Circuit, Nepal

Namaste!

Adam and I travelled to Nepal from Bangkok on November 9th, to start our trekking extravaganza in the Himalaya. Our first destination was the Annapurna Circuit, a 16-20 day, 300-plus kilometre loop around the Annapurna mountains to the west of Kathmandu. It took a few days in Kathmandu to get settled, get our trekking permits for the Annapurna conservation area (about $35 Cdn each), register for the required "Trekking Information Management Service" or TIMS Card (which as far as I can tell, does nothing, but you *must* have), and buy bus tickets, etc. Basically, it takes a few days to get through the red tape, get ready, and get off to the mountains.

We left Kathmandu in the early hours of November 12th on a Nepali "Express" bus to Besisahar. I'm not sure what "express" means in Nepal, other than faster-than-a-chicken-bus, but it took us 10 very uncomfortable hours to get from Kathmandu to Besisahar. The bus still stopped in every little village/hamlet/outpost to let people on and off the bus, and at times, I had people quite literally sitting on my lap. Some of the delay was caused by a truck breakdown on a mountainous, winding part of the highway, which blocked most of both lanes and resulted in miles-long line-ups in both directions to get around. The truck didn't look like it would be moved to the side of the road any time soon - the entire axle appeared to have come apart from the truck - and they don't exactly have tow trucks in Nepal. The ride might have been endurable except that I didn't fit in the seats (again, quite literally) and had to ride all 10+ hours sitting sideways in the aisles with people on/against me. It wasn't exactly a piece of cake for Adam either. But we finally arrived in Besisahar, before nightfall, and could be off on the trek.

Things are changing rapidly in Nepal, especially in the Annapurna region, and there is now a rough road that runs along much of the traditional trekking route of the Circuit. So, upon arriving in Besisahar, we could have opted to get into another bus to the next village, or even taken a jeep much further up the trail, but there was no way that you could have convinced us to get back into a moving vehicle. It was really nice to walk after that bus ride. We had the same options on the other side of the pass two-weeks later -- take a jeep or walk. But we made the same decision, to walk. The roads are so rough that the jeeps can't go quickly and it's a very bumpy, dusty ride. It just doesn't seem pleasant.

For the first 10 days, Adam and I trekked through the mountains, slowly gaining altitude, up to Thorung Phedi (literally, the "foot of the Thorung") at 4450m at the base of the famed Thorung La pass - one of the highest in the world at 5400m. We were sometimes joined in our walks and inevitably in the lodges at night by a Swede (Per) and an American (Tiago). We sort of wound up as a cobbled together foursome along the way. There was no formal arrangement, we just all enjoyed each others' company and for Per and Tiago, it's safer to trek as part of a loose group than all alone in the mountains. We had some great views of the peaks of Annapurna II, III and IV, Gangapurna, Lamjung Himal and even Manaslu during this time. The walking was generally pleasant and safe, although there were some very difficult uphill sections. Adam demonstrated what amazing fitness he has, as well as his strength (which we all knew he had), by just bounding up the mountains like a jackrabbit, regardless of the altitude. I meanwhile really suffered on some of the climbs, but I was comforted in the fact that most people (men and women) struggle on these hills, and that we saw very few women carrying their own gear. Some, yes, but most couples and groups of women had porters. [Meanwhile, Adam and I each carried our own packs, with gear, mine weighing about 12 kg with water, Adam's was probably closer to 15kg.] We also had more than one scary moment when I thought, "hmmm, I hope I don't fall and break my leg." In particular, we lost the trail once in a landslide section and had to leap over a portion of trail (or what we thought was the trail) that had fallen away. It was very, very dangerous. Adam leaped without thinking, but I baulked several times before jumping, and then very nearly started to cry on the other side thinking about how stupid that was. Then we realized that we weren't on the trail, and we had reached a dead-end, and would have to cross back over the washed out portion - which I was not about to do - or scramble up a portion of the landslide (with backpacks on, of course). We opted for the latter, which in retrospect, carried a greater chance of injury (likely a broken leg) but less chance of death, because there was a ledge we would have landed upon, rather than falling all the way down the ravine. Sounds like fun, right? Thankfully, most days the trail was fine, although narrow, and the worst injury suffered on the trek was some blisters.

The food and lodging was also very good throughout the trek. On the near side of the Thorung La, the lodges were basic to any Canadian sense of accomodation, but they were decidedly more comfortable and luxurious than when I was in Nepal eight years ago. In most places we had two wooden twin size "beds" in a room, covered with foam mattresses and a single clean, worn sheet, and often a pillow. There is invariably at least one window (with real glass) in the room and a lock on the door. Walls might be stone or concrete in the better places, or wood in more basic lodges. You roll your sleeping bag out on the bed, and viola - that's home for the night. When I was in the Everest region eight years ago, toilets were almost always outhouses some 50m from the main building, but I think we only had that once, or perhaps twice. The lodges we stayed at usually had a (squat-asian-style) toilet at the end of the building. In a few very nice lodges we stayed at, we had a toilet attached to our room. What luxury during the cold nights! Once or twice we had a double bed. However, the showers are a bit more complicated affair. Most lodges (except at the highest altitudes) have solar showers, but you shower in a concrete-block building separate from the lodge. It's quite cold and it's hard to keep your clothes dry, so most people only shower every few days or so. (It' amazing what you can do in the interim with a bucket of hot water and a washcloth.)

One of the best things we did before crossing the pass was an acclimatization hike from Braka (at 3400m) to an ice lake (really, more of an ice 'pond') at 4600m above Braka. It was overcast and snowing the morning we planned to set out, and expectations of seeing anything from the numerous viewpoints were low. But the boys (as I referred to Adam, Per and Tiago collectively) convinced me that the walk was worth doing for acclimitization anyway, so we headed out. The walk was a grueling 4-hour affair uphill, at altitude, but an amazing one. Less than an hour after we left, the skies started to clear and we got great views of the mountain panorama before us, which reached from Pisang Peak, Manaslu, Lamjung Himal, Annapurna II, Annnapurna III, Gangapurna, and into the Tilicho valley. From the main viewpoints at 4200m to 4600m, the mountains were simply spectacular. And there was no one else there. Quiet, serene, peaceful, with peaks that looked close enough to reach out and touch. It was all you could ask for from a Himalayan experience.

We crossed the Thorung La itself on Day 11 of our trek. It was undoubtedly the most difficult day. It probably would have been easier if we had spent one more day acclimatizing, but at that altitude, it's cold and bleak and you just want to get over and down on the other side into more reasonable altitudes. Also, I had picked up some mild food poisoning just two-days before, and had been feeling weak and unable to eat as much as I needed. On the hike into Thorung Phedi the day before, I had to fight the urge to toss my breakfast every few minutes. But I was feeling better the day we were to cross the pass, and as I said, we were not terribly keen to stay another day at 4450m. We left after the sun came up, about 7.15 am, which is very late compared to what other people do. For some unknown, unfathomable reason, most tour groups and independent trekkers leave before dawn, around 4 to 6 am, and do the first part of the pass in the dark. I don't know why. It seems stupid and dangerous to me to hike up there in the dark, with the ice and snow and constant possibility of falling of the trail (which could mean death). And it's waaay colder before the sun hits. But that's what people do. In any event, its an exhausting 1000m vertical up to the pass, which takes about 4 hours. I got hit with mild to moderate AMS at about 5200m -- 200m before the pass. It was the first time I had been seriously affected by altitude, and it was not pleasant. By that time, I was cold, tired, and miserable. My hands and feet, which had been so cold that they hurt terribly, were simply dumb. And now I was dizzy and coughing and wheezing, and secretly considering whether we should turn back. But Adam was a great trekking companion and walked with me all the slow, tortuous way to the pass. And we knew that Per and Tiago were just ahead, should my condition get serious. So we made it to the top. Adam and I posed for a quick picture, and he celebrated with Per and Tiago while I made a bee-line over the other side and started to go down. I literally got to the top and kept going down the other side. I knew I had to get down to get better. Fortunately, you lose altitude on the the other side even faster than you gain it getting up, and within 15 minutes I was safely down several hundred metres and feeling normal again. The boys caught up with me, and we continued down.

The hardest part is definitely getting up the pass, but getting down is no piece of cake. As I said, you're cold, tired, and exhausted. And then you have to go down 2000m vertical -- that's 2km straight down -- to the next village where you can sleep. Going down 2000m would be an exhausting physical feat any time, but after going up the pass, and being at altitude, it's simply an unending endurance marathon that breaks the spirit of almost all. (Even Adam started to whine about being tired and sore near the end.)

From the Thorung La, we took a few days to stay in the villages of Jharkot and Kagbeni, which are in the culturally significant Mustang region. The upper Mustang is a restricted area that is not open to casual trekking, but Adam and I would very much like to visit. The people are Tibetan in culture and even speak a dialect of Tibetan. They were very friendly, the food was great, and it was a nice place to rest (a few hours of hiking a day was a "rest" day) before heading down and out of the Annapurnas.

From Kagbeni, Adam and I made a bee-line out of the mountains to the jungle-esque village of Tatopani (at 1190m) in just two days. It was a solid 7 hours or so of hiking each day, but the weather wasn't great, as clouds moved in during late morning, so there wasn't much to see. Also, the villages on this side of Thorung La see many more tourists and trekkers. As a result, the facilities were better (luxurious sit-down toilets attached to the rooms, and even a shower in our own room!) but the people are more jaded and its just not as friendly, warm or welcoming. It's a difference that's hard to describe, but you can feel. We intentionally stayed in Larjung, a very small village, about halfway between Kagbeni and Tatopani, at a comparatively 'basic' place rather than in the bigger, fancier lodges in nearby villages, because we were the only tourists there, and really had a window on a Nepali family going about their day. It was quite extraordinary. We arrived to a strange banging noise inside the lodge, which I thought was construction, but turned out to be the final throws of the family slaughtering a yak! I grew up on a cattle farm, and immediately knew what was going on. Adam was amused as well. But everyone turned around and were very concerned that we would be shocked or upset or put off by what was happening. But not at all. We went out and got a room, and they continued on with butchering their yak. It was a unique evening.

In Tatopani, you really feel like you've left the mountains. The road has made food, lodging, beer and other treats fairly cheap here. There is also a decent hot springs by the river, so many people stop for an extra day to rest - us included. After several big days trekking, it was nice to take a break, relax, read, and eat, eat, eat. Adam and I had eaten huge amounts of food while trekking, but both (inevitably) still lost a significant amount of weight. (Which we need to replace before heading to the Khumbu-Everest region.)

From Tatopani, trekkers can walk or take a bus out to Beni and then Pokhara, the major city in this area of Nepal, or trek the traditional route up to Ghorepani and Poon Hill then down to Birethanti to catch a bus to Pokhara. The views from Poon Hill are legendary, so it seems foolish to come all this way and not go to Ghorepani and Poon Hill. The catch is, that from Tatopani (1190m) its a long arduous hike up to Ghorepani (2800m) and then an equally if not more arduous hike back down to Birethani (~1000m) the next day. It's a very challenging two-day walk. In particular, the hike down involves a series of over 3,400 stone stairs down between two villages. It's a drop of about 500m in an hour. It doesn't sound too awful, but there's something about the constant, relentless stepping down, without any flat portions to stretch your legs, that leaves you literally weak in the legs. It was the only part of the two-day affair that was really that horrid. But you couldn't pay me to do it again, now that I know what it's like. Two days later, my calves are still painfully sore. The views from Poon Hill really were great, but you share them with several hundred other tourists, so it lacked the atmosphere and feeling of our hike to the ice pond on the other side of the pass. Both viewpoints are worthwhile, however, and you see different parts of the Annapurna range. From Poon Hill, we finally got a good look at Annapurna I - the deadliest 8000m mountain in the world.

Once we got out of the mountains, trekkers can get a bus or taxi to Pokhara. It's only 41km away from Birethani/Naya Pul, so we thought we'd save a little money and get a bus. In retrospect, we should have got the taxi. I'll save all the horrible details (which involve a bizarre bus driver, another truck breakdown, teetering over the edge of a ravine thinking, "this isn't the day I want to die", and many many stops), but it took almost 3 hours to drive 41km. Torture. Pure torture.

We've spent the last two days here in relatively-quiet Pokhara reading email, trying to make sense of the world (i.e. Mumbai and Bangkok) and eating way, way too much. We are on another bus (hopefully the last one in Nepal) from Pokhara to Kathmandu tomorrow, where we will spend a few days fighting red tape to get permits etc. to do a quick version of the trek to Everest Base Camp in the Khumbu region. This is the trek that I did eight years ago, but Adam has never been, and has been talking about it since the day we met (literally). The EBC trek is higher altitude, so colder, but I think it's less physically demanding. This is what I remember, anyhow, and sometimes, ignorance is bliss. Adam simply has to go, and I'd rather do it all again than sit in Kathmandu for 10 days.

We are scheduled to go back to Thailand on December 22nd. We're watching the Bangkok situation closely, and will re-examine/re-consider when we return from the Khumbu in about two weeks. A lot can change in two weeks, so we will see what happens.

I'm going to try very hard to post at least one picture, very soon. It all depends on power. The power goes out at least once a day in Pokhara, like all parts of Nepal, and often several times. Bear with us. But check back often in the next couple of days if you're not signed up for email updates.

Namaste (Peace).
Robin (& Adam)