Blogs from Annapurna, Nepal, Asia - page 37

Pratele, kamaradi, pribuzni a znamy, 15.11.2007: nase cesta zacala po obvykle snidani, coz byl caj, vajicka a tibestsky chleb, smerem Tai.Cesta mela asi 15km s prevysenim 400m, takze jsme si zacali konecne zvykat na 15 kilove klistata na zadech a bez vetsich komplikaci jsme dorazili vycerapni..))) za soumraku na misto.V hotelu nas informovali, ze mame stesti ze Maoisti opustili stanoviste prave v Tai pred nekolika dny.Takze jsme usetrili, protoze by chteli pod hrozbou nejaky dar pro stranu.Pro nazasvecene Maosti jsou ozbrojena bojuvka se silnou podporou prave v horach, ktera chce v Nepalu komunismus.Dokonce po volbach byli ve vlade, ale nejak ji opustili a stale je to s nimi takove vseljake. 16.11.2007: prochazka na 7 hodin ciste chuze z Tai do Koto, prevyseni asi 1000m, delka asi 20km.To jsou prosta fakta.Byl to ale jeden z nejkrasnejsich dnu ... read more

There are two pages of photos. We spent the last couple of weeks trekking in the Himalaya mountains. The Annapurna Circut, it is called, is somewhere between 200 and 300 kilometers long, depending on who you ask. The trail starts at about 2,700 feet and we hiked up to the tallest mountain pass in the world at about 18,000 feet. It was not easy, in fact it was super hard. The first day was kind of easy. After a four hour bus ride we had lunch with some friends we met in Pokhara, and decided to take a jeep to the end of the road, where the actual trail starts. The price was a ripoff, but it was fun passing other trekkers in a jeep with a full stomach. Everything was very green and we hiked ... read more

Well class, last time we met I had been telling you about how I had begun the ascent into the Annapurna range, tried to defy some commies (and lost), and had just gotten my first glimpses of the really really high mountains. It turns out that I had no idea how much better views can get. It's time to move onto graduate level mountain views. Day 6 (11.04.07) - Braga (3500m) - Holy Crap This was easily the most beautiful day of my life. There were two options from Pisang to Braga...the low easy route along the river, or the high not-so-easy route which supposedly has tremendous views. A cloudy morning dampened my mood a bit, but I went for the high route anyway in hopes that things would clear. This was one of the better ... read more

Somehow I managed to wake up before the sun rose. I'm still not sure how. But I did, and, my down sleeping bag and my cameras in hand, I headed out into the frigid cold to watch the show. All around, the mountains were awash in pre-dawn blue light. Though people were scattered everywhere, I found a quiet spot on my own on the edge of a deep valley carved by a glacier. Like everyone else, I waited, my cameras at the ready. Then, it happened. Suddenly, the very tips of the mountains in front of us lit up with the sun's first rays. We couldn't see the sun, but the tops of the mountains could. Slowly, the light spread down the slopes, finally illuminating the whole ridge. It was spectacular. After an hour, my toes ... read more

I quickly discovered where I had gotten the energy for the trip down to the hot springs -- it was borrowed from what I had in storage for today's hike. I was exhausted today, probably from all the ups and downs the day before, and the worst up and down of all first thing in the morning. The trail went up a steep hill, which was fine, because it was early in the day, and I knew I had to go uphill in order to get to the great views at the end of the trek. But then the trail went DOWN the hill on the other side. Looking back at it, you can see clearly where the trail could go AROUND the stupid mountain. Instead it goes straight up, and straight down. I'm guessing only ... read more