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Published: March 31st 2019
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And we're off!
Fresh legged and full of noodles, our journey started in Nayapul as we head to the check points in Birethanti. After just over an hour and a half in the jeep travelling from Pokhara to the drop off point in Nayapul, we had finally reached our destination and I was now facing the reality of spending the next 4 days with my girlfriend and sister at the mercy of the Himalayas, a daunting prospect in itself, let alone at the bottom of a 3000m peak!
As we had typically left sorting our permits and TIMS until the very last minute, a lesson we had still not learned despite several prior hiccups, we didn't arrive in Nayapul until 12:45 and all agreed that it would be better to eat at one of the local restaurants at the beginning of the trek as opposed to going hungry and hoping we'd stumble upon something further down the way. Along with our evident hunger, we figured that a quick bite wouldn't hurt our timekeeping as the first day was an apparent 4 hour steady incline up to Ulleri and this way we would beat sunset and be well rested for the tough second day. Unfortunately, the chefs didn't share our enthusiasm for a "quick bite" and took an hour to plate up 3 servings
Perfect Pitstop!
About one hour up the mountain we came across this little cafe which was the perfect spot to buy some cold water, drop our bags and eat a packet of oreos. of basic noodles and we didn't get on the road again till near 2pm.
By 2:20 we'd had our permits and TIMS checked at the designated police stops, as well as made the compulsory 100 rupee p/p donation towards the heritage listed area, and were in the midst of walking up a mountain at the hottest part of the day. With the sun beating down on us and little to no place to hide from it, it wouldn't take long before one of us was to crack and after a series of jeeps filled with tourists passed us heading up towards Ulleri, looking at us like we're idiots as this was something we didn't realise we could have done ourselves, it wasn't long before my sister exclaimed; "why the **** didn't we do that?! ... I can't do this."
Some gentle words of encouragement later and perhaps just a pinch of guilt tripping thrown in for good measure, we had agreed to take things a bit slower for Becky's sake and myself and Faye decided to take it in turns carrying her backpack to make it just that little bit easier for her. Going a little bit slower
Hello Hille!
3 hours and 20 minutes later we arrived in Hille. 1520m above sea level. had it's benefits for the 3 of us, we could really appreciate our surroundings as there were ample photo opportunities, but we quickly realised that our chances of reaching Ulleri before 6:30 were becoming less likely and either we picked up the pace or our plans had to change.
The Ghorepani trekking route is said to be one of the simplest to follow and thus allows for adventurers to attempt the trek without a guide, one of the main reasons we decided on going for it ourselves. Looking at our pocket map, 200 rupees from a bookstore in Pokhara, we realised that our best bet would be stopping over in either Hille or Tikhedhungga depending on how we were doing for time, and how much more complaining we could bare from Becky!
It was 5:50 by the time we entered Hille and you would have been hard pushed to find 3 more relieved people than myself, Faye and Becky. The prospect of walking an extra hour to Tikhedhungga was hardly considered and Faye was as pleased as anyone to pull up a seat at a table and order some food - she'd agreed to carry the extra bag
Dal Baht
Our first and best meal of the trip. The host kept bringing out more rice and claiming it was the "Nepalese way." on the first day if I carried it on the second, more difficult day. Lucky me!
I'd read plenty of blogs that had suggested that if you ate dinner and breakfast at particular guesthouses along this route then your bed for the night was complimentary. This was not the case at our first place, Laxmi Guesthouse, however we did manage to get a triple room for just 500 rupees! The host was also more than accommodating and within half an hour we had a table full of delicious Nepalese cuisine, endless Dal Baht mainly, and some more traditional Spaghetti for the slightly less adventurous! For a guesthouse halfway up a mountain, Laxmi had put out a better spread than some places I've already visited in Asia and all for just 400 rupees per meal.
We also weren't expecting hot water and after myself and Faye had returned somewhat victorious from our cubicles, Becky was less than enthused to be last in. Surprisingly, she too had the luxury of a 5 minute hot shower and by 7:30, the 3 of us had retreated to our dorm-type room, fed, watered and washed. With our phones all placed on charge for the night, again something we had not expected, another win for Laxmi, we wrapped up in bed socks and blankets, complained about our aching muscles for a good half hour and then turned off the lights. Our first day of trekking was over.
Pokhara -----> Nayapul -----> Birethanti -----> Hille (1.5hrs) (20mins) (3hrs)
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