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Published: March 31st 2012
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Our first guest house
Getting started at dawn with our guide and porter Day 2 Shyaphuru Bensi to Kangjim We spent a pleasant night in the Trekkers Hotel recovering from the bus ride and were ready to go at sunrise. 1st stop was the National Park checkpoint were our trekking permits were checked. in the group waiting was a young German couple sporting a Hockey Canada hat, an Isrealie couple, and two groups of young female trekkers from various points in Europe. The one thing we noticed throughout the trek was the majority of trekker were either couples, or young women. Guess the young men at staying at home exploring virtual worlds while the women are out exploring the real world.
Once through the checkpoint we crossed the river via suspension bridge and stared up the mountain. The first hour was a gental climb through meadows and terraced gardens. Then we really started up continuing to wind through the gardens in an endless siries of switchbacks. We climbed 600 metres that morning and were exhausted by the time we reached Kangjim, a very small village high on the hillside. Felt like we had done the Grouse Grind twice!
Along the way we passed many small farm houses. We were
On our way
Heading out of town welcomed by a number of small children and elderly folk. Very few middle aged people. The soil and growing season is very good so they get many crops off each year, from rice to wheat, to spinach to potatoes. All very manual labour though including using an ox or yak to pull the plow. The very hilly nature of mountains limits the about of farm equipment that can be used. Couldn't imagine a modern prairie thrasher operating up here.
Thankfully Kalu had planned for us to spend the night here as we were too tired to go on. We spent the day eploring the village and Gopa (a small shrine or church).
One of the great aspect of trekking is you meet all sorts of people over dinner. Tonight was a French women in her late 60's travelling by herself with a guide and porter. She had been trekking for 21 days and still had 7 to go. while she loves her Parisian life style she comes back to Nepal every year to "rejuvenate". We met many people with similiar views who come back year after year.
Day Three - Kanghim to Rimchie On the trail
Some local wildlife A typical day of trekking starts at sunrise with breakfast, either variuos types of porridge or omlets with Tibetan bread. We trek from 7 through to 3 or 4, stopping for tea and lunch at the many guesthouses along the way. Dinner is 6, choices of various noodle or rice dishes. Dinner is in a small wood stove heated common room where you chat with other trekkers. Usually in bed by 8, so there is lots of opportunity for sleep.
We immediatly started climing again for anther 600 metres eventually reaching the pine and roderdendrum forest. All of a sudden we broke out of the forest and were standing on a very high ridge with our first real look at the high peaks of the Himalayan Mountains. Breathtaking!
We spent the rest of the morning walking along the side of the mountain with the river far below in the valley. No place for those with a fear of heights.
We stopped in the village of Sherpagon for lunch. (Everyplace has the same menu so you get to try all kinds of variations; spaghetti with goat cheese, spaghetti with vegetables, spaghetti with ketchup, mixed spaghetti , plain
Local children
Lots of little kids at the various farm houses along the way. Once they get older they go to school, and once they graduate they usually head off to Kathmandu. As in Canada the local farms are being left to the older generation. spaghetti etc, repeat with chow-main noodles, macaroni, rice etc). That said, the food was good and plentiful. With no power, which means no refrigeration, there was no meat, other then the occasional donation from the local chickens. Meals were around $2 to $4 each.
We continued along the ridge gradually dropping to meet the river. We stopped in Upper Rimche, not so much a village as two guest houses. Again we meet another French mother and daughter couple. The daughter,44 has been coming back to Nepal every year and sometimes twice a year since as far back as she could remember. This time she convinced her 70 year old mother to come. Saddly we meet them numerous times throughthe trek, and every time the mom went past us leaving us in her wake.
A typical guesthouse has anywhere from 2 to 10 rooms. The rooms are very small with just a couple of single beds with a thin and hard mattress and pillow. The rooms are seperated with a sheet of plywood or planks so the is very little semblance of privacy. The toilet, Asian style squat with a bucket of water for the flush and a box
Local ladies in need of medical aid
When we stopped to catch our breath, we were approached by these lovely ladies who were complaining of very sore shoulders. We gave them each some Advil. for used toilet paper is down the hall or outside. The is no power in the hill villages so most have a basic solar panel light system and passive solar heater water for showers. Cost is from $2.50 per night to $7.00 at the highest location.
Day 4 Rimchie to Langtang We are now at 2400 metres and have to climb to 3400 at Langtang, one of our longest days.
Up early as usual, and with the perfect weather that we enjoyed throughout the trek, we are on our way.
We followed the river all the way up winding through the forest for most of the morning, then breaking into the sub alpine after lunch.
Langtang is a rather large settlement, with about a dozen guest houses. It serves mostly the trekking crowd, but also services a number of the smaller hillside villages in the area.
We checked into one of the larger guest houses and had the place mostly to ourselves. We found we were about 4 days ahead of the crowds as when we started down, the guest houses were much more crowded.
(See the full video of our trek at
Up we go
Up and up and up. Trekking in Nepal is nothing but a series of straight up and straight down. )
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