Another short day of walking through the rhododendrons. On the other hand, most of the day was spent gaining altitude. Banthanti was at 8,268′, Ghorepani at 9,022′, and in between was a pass at 9800′.
Since the Hungry Eye sat at the base of a cliff, I have no pictures of the sunrise on the mountains.
Rhododendrons at first light
Starting at the base of a cliff, the trail headed up through a glen with numerous little waterfalls.
Waterfall near Banthanti
We passed a point where a child died, but I cannot find any further information than what was on the sign. This was the only place along the entire trail that I saw something like this.
Saranga Riv, son of trekking guide Ganga Bahadur Ghale and Jacqueline Doens
Prayer flags for Saranga Riv Ghale
There were more primroses
and some rare pine trees near Deurali and the top of the pass.
Annapurna South through the rhododendrons
These rhododendron were much reder than most
Annapurna South
We were approaching civilization.
Ghorepani Medical Post, 1 hr
Up to this point, we had seen few large groups of trekkers. But from here on down to the road, we saw many. It was the end of March and clearly a lot of college students from all over the world were on holiday. There were also groups of older folks.
A group heading up to the Sanctuary
Our mountain views now included Dhaulagiri, the world’s 7th highest mountain,
Dhaulagiri
and Machhapuchhare was disappearing behind the mountains we’d crossed.
Machhapuchhare is disappearing from sight
A rest stop
The rhododendron were mostly in various shades of pink
Dhaulagiri
We arrived in Ghorepani before lunch time and checked into the Nice View Lodge in the upper part of town.
Nice Viewpoint Lodge, Ghorepani
Being back in “civilization”, I had my own bathroom–the nicest I had on the trek.
Shower and sink
A western toilet!
But somehow, they forgot about the ceiling.
Bathroom ceiling
The lodge had a huge dining area with fantastic views,
View from Nice Viewpoint
and it served chicken!
When we’d passed through the lower town, I had spied an internet sign, so after lunch and a shower, I went hunting for it.
"Downtown" Ghorepani
The "central square"
Unfortunately, the service was down. I gathered that the land-line telephone service was rather spotty, but there also seemed to be problems with the electricity. I left my camera battery charging for hours and the light never turned green.