Trails and Treasures

After some vacillating back and forth about going up to Annapurna Base Camp or not, I decided not to go.  It usually takes about 2 hours each way.  It’s not very far (maybe two miles), and it’s not even very steep with about 1300′ of elevation gain.  But, it was going to be almost all on ice.  Now it wouldn’t be as bad going up because of the overnight freezing, but I really dreaded the coming down.  And then I would have to continue on for several more hours to get back to Deurali.  Besides, it just wasn’t going to look like this in March with all the snow still on the ground.

Since I couldn’t take any pictures when I arrived at MBC, I’m limiting this post to my early morning shots before we started down at about 7:30a.

Gurung Co-op Guest House sign

Annapurna South and the way to ABC are behind me

Tharpa Chuli or Tent Peak towers over MBC

One of the reasons we began our descent about 15 minutes after we left the lodge was that we had to wait for an event.  It began by several men shoveling some snow.  [Note the icy path in front of them.]

Shoveling snow in front of the Gurung Co-op

Soon we heard a chopper.

And it landed right beside the path.

Several of these people below climbed aboard,

and by the time we got down the path to their level, the chopper was taking off.

Deb thought probably someone in the party was suffering from altitude sickness, but I heard from someone else later in the day that they had flown up the day before, hiked to ABC, spent the night, and flown out.

My porter with the lodge and Tent Peak behind

The way to ABC

Tharpu Chuli

ABC is just over the hill

Machhapuchhare Base Camp (MBC)

The way down

I wonder how long it takes to dry

Today’s the toughest day.  We’ll start at 8,550′ and end at something over 12,000′.   (Depending on the source, MBC is at  anywhere from 12,136′ to 12, 477′.)  Since I’ve trekked to higher places both in California and Colorado, the altitude shouldn’t be a problem.

At the Tip Top in Dovan, I had to put pillows in the window which had no glass in order to cut the draft.  The rock floor meant it took a while to get my feet warm even though I had a heavy cover over my sleeping bag.  When I got up in the morning, it was 40°–a lot warmer than the 18 on a February night in Joshua Tree NP. 

Sunrise on Machhapuchhare from Dovan

The day in brief:

Dovan, 8,550’ OR 8218’, 7:23a

Himalayan Hotel  9514’ or 9318’ OR 10,1168’ OR 9580’, ar 9:11, lv 9:30

Deurali  10,597’ OR 10,398’, ar 11:20, lv 12:08

Machhapuchhare Base Camp  12,477’ or 12,139’ or 12,136’, ar abt 3

Dovan to MBC

The posted signboard times were:

Dovan to Himalaya 2 hr

Himalaya to Deurali, 1 ½ hr

Deurali to MBC 2 hr

 At Doran the trail is high above the river with thick stands of bamboo blocking the view of the rushing river and waterfalls on the other side of the river.  

The trail just outside of Dovan

Bamboo and rhododendron rainforest

Primroses, a sign of spring

The river was gaining elevation faster than we were.

The Modi Khola with the Himalaya Guest House in the distance

Approaching the Himalaya Guest House

After crossing a landslide and another avalanche track, we arrived at the Himalayan Hotel where we stopped for a cup of tea.

Boulders in the Modi Khola

Is that Annapurna III peeking out behind Machhapuchhare?

The forest disappeared opening up views of the many waterfalls.

One of many waterfalls (and avalanche chutes) in the area

Deurali is still about a 1/2 hour away at this point.  See those blue roofs in the distance?  They look so near, but there are lots of rocks between here and there.

Approaching Deurali

The first small patch of ice to be crossed

The path is narrow

Another waterfall

Waterfalls and rocks

A water crossing without a bridge

In Deurali  we stopped for lunch at the Panorama Guest House.  

Panorama Guest House in Deurali

From Deurali, we followed the flank of the river to a point where the trail crossed the river to avoid an area heavily prone to avalanches. 

The raging Modi Khola

Crossing the river involved some rock-hopping and a small bridge that could be moved as necessary.

Bridge to the east side of the Modi Khola

About this time the clouds descended.

The bridge back over the Modi Khola

Back on the west side of the river, we soon left its banks to climb up onto a terrace above the river.

We're going to cross the snow and ice to work our way up the side valley

Another ice field to be crossed

It’s supposedly “a gentle climb to  reach Macchapuchre Base Camp” from here,  BUT–

Because it was late spring, the surface of the ice had been constantly melting and then refreezing over night.  Where no one had tread, it was hard and slick.  Where people had tread, it was slushy and slippery.  Most people’s strides were longer than mine, meaning it was difficult to get traction.  Moreover, finding holes for my poles required careful placement rather than just the usual; otherwise, they would just go sliding.  I probably should have stopped to remove the rubber tips, but by the time I figured that out, it was too late.   Moreover, it had started to precipitate, a combination of rain, sleet and snow.  

I packed my camera away in a dry bag, so I have no more pictures for the day.  Besides, it was so foggy when we arrived at MBC, I couldn’t see more than 100′ or so.

Because we were behind most arrivals for the night, Deb had to try several guesthouses before he found one with a single room—the Gurung Cooperative.  There was no electricity in the room.

 It was cold.  A put on all my layers of clothing to sit in the great room where they finally turned on the propane heater under the table at 5 p.m.   At 5 MBC was totally socked in; you couldn’t see the next guesthouse.  By 6, it was clear.

Sunrise on Annapurna South from Landruk

Across the river from Landruk is the village of Ghandruk.

Ghandruk from Landruk

We started in Landruk at 5,314’ at 7:45a and ended at Chomrong (7,119’) at 2:20p, but in the middle we descended as low as 4,400’.  One signboard said it was 5 hrs; some itineraries say 6.

 This shot gives you an idea of just how massive Annapurna South is.  To get to Macchapucchare Base Camp, we have to walk up the valley and around Hiunchuli which is just out of range to the right.

The Modi Khola valley leading to Annapurna South

Chhomrung is the highest permanent Gurung settlement in the valley.  It might be the village you can just make out on the ridge line just to the left of the denter of the photo above which I’ve cropped to make the picture below.

Is this Chomrong?

From Landruk the trail heads north along the eastern side of the Modi Khola through terraced rice fields to Himalpani.  Not far from Landruk we cross a stream on a not-so-safe-looking bridge.

Along the way to Himalpani we pass a couple of waterfalls

Waterfall between Landruk and Himalpani

and a rock-strewn stream.

At Himalpani Lodge, we crossed the river (4,396’), 

The Modi Khola at Himalpani

The Bridge over the Modi Khola

heading up

Up, up we go

 to New Bridge (Himal Qu) where there was another bridge over the Kimrong Khola.  

Crossing the Kimrong Khola

There were some huge boulders in this river; it was quite scenic.

Kimrong Khola

From here the trail started up in earnest. 

 We reached Jhinu Danda (1780m) in time for lunch (11:45-12:30) with a view.   

Paths and Steps among the Terraces

At one of the houses we passed I saw a woman weaving with a backstrap loom.

And there were more farmers plowing.

It wasn’t far distance-wise to Chomrong, but it was up, and it was extremely hot on the exposed trail.  The trekking guidebook says its 2-3 hours up from New Bridge to Chomrong.  Do it in the morning, not the afternoon.  Note the black clouds gathering in the background below.  The locals take rest stops, but they don’t drink or eat.

Chomrong is finally in sight

It's been a long way up

 When I got to the Kalpana Guest House, I was severely dehydrated.  I had a plate of French fries, tea, and a coke before going to my room.  Within an hour the sky was all black, and it started to hail pellets that varied in size, but most were about the size of mothballs, some closer to golf balls.  The storm only last 10-15 minutes, but it was a noisy 15 minutes since many of the roofs were metal.

Greens drying on a roof before the storm

Hail!

My room at the Kalpana Guest House  had a fantastic view, and the menu included a special treat–grilled chicken, which was served with fried potatoes and vegetables.  A real meal!   They probably grew their own chickens and killed them as needed, as I saw feathers in the yard.

The version of the trek I took involved 12 days of hiking, and I only went as far as Machhapuchhare Base Camp.  I stayed in teahouses; no tents on this trek.  I went with a guide and one porter which were arranged through Journeys.  I enjoyed the trek, but I had problems with my guide.  I would not recommend him for a woman traveling alone (i.e., he’d never get an A in an American sexual harrassment class) or an older person who typically hikes 2 miles/hour (or less on steep sections) on the AT, needs to watch their sugar levels, and likes to keep well hydrated.  The need to keep drinking (both water and gatorade) and to eat something like trail mix or an energy bar regularly between meals just didn’t compute with him.  He had his schedule with his favorite places to stop, and it didn’t seemed to be at all flexible or adaptable to my needs.  Neither my guide or porter carried any water or snacks!

Enough said.  On to the trek.  The elevations in my narrative should be considered approximate.  None of the elevations given in the guidebooks seem to match those on the National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map.  And if you can’t cope with meters, multiple by 3.

My route different somewhat from this one

We left Pokhara at 7:30a for the drive up to Khande (1450m), which is labeled Khare (1770m) on the NG map.  On the above map, its west of Nagdanda and Phedi, which is the usual starting point for treks to ABC at an altitude of 1130m.  Whether my start was at 1450 or 1770m, it was definitely much higher than 1130m.  I had a much easier first day than the other trekkers who arrived to spend the night where I stayed.

Our starting point was this small guesthouse.

Thakali Hotel, Khande

Thakali Hotel Store

Thakali Hotel Kitchen

Note the women bending down washing vegetables with water coming from the hose attached to one of the spigots.  She is boiling water in the pan on the left.

Her little girl seemed to be more appropriately dressed for a ballet class than playing in the dirt around the hotel.  But she did have her crocs on.

 We started walking a little before 9, heading through the small settlement where one farmer was plowing his field and several other men were slaughtering a buffalo.

Path through Khande

Farmer using oxen to plow field

Slaughtering a Buffalo

As we climbed gradually up the trail we met kids walking to school.  I’m not sure where they were headed, but it wasn’t close by.

Kids on way to school

This child was obviously too young to go.

After gradually climbing for about an hour, we reached a point with a view back to the road.

The fairly open forest we passed through  was studded with red rhododendrons.

Del beneath a red rhododendron

Then we started down a rocky path.  Since this was not the usual trekking route, there were no stone steps.

As in Bhutan, most cows and buffalo are free to roam.

About 1 1/2 hrs after starting we reached the Hotel Gurans & Devkota Camping Place where I bought water to replace the liter I had already consumed.  There were several guesthouses here, but I’m not sure where “here” was.  Clearly they all used the same sign painter or English spelling source.

Gurans means "rhododendron"

Unlike Bhutan where dogs ran lose all over the place, most dogs in Nepal seemed to be family pets.

A playful puppy

I found this flower along the way.

About 2 1/2 hours after leaving Khande we arrived in Pothana (1990m), just in time for lunch.  Yet for some reason Pothana turned out to be our destination for the day.  (It would have been nice if Del had told me that’s all the further we were going for the day and why.  Maybe he thought I needed an easy start.)

Pothana

Trekker's Check Post in Pothana

We stayed at the Fish Tail Hotel. 

Fish Tail Hotel, Pothana

For lunch I had the vegetable curry which tasted more like sweet and sour to me.

Diners at the Fish Tail talking to my guide

All the lodges had snacks and a few basic supplies for sale. Those at lower elevations like this one had more variety than those further from the supply source.  Note the bag of TP.  I ended up having to buy some towards the end of my trek even though I brought along several rolls.

Across the flagstone paved path there was one of several other guest houses in the village.  But this one had what looked to be a fantastic view from its lawn.

I couldn’t figure out what the diamond-shaped object was in the trees.  If you look hard  you can see a man in a white shirt standing  in it, and there’s another man standing right behind the pole in the center of the picture.

Many porters used a basket to carry supplies to the lodges or trekking gear for groups, but since I was a party of one, my guide just carried my duffel in a similar manner with rope and a fabric strip for the head.

My porter

After lunch we walked up into a park-like area to go birding.  Without a knowledgeable birding guide, I didn’t identify many of the birds, but I did capture a couple of crude, long-distance shots.

Grey Wagtail

Grey Bushchat