Day 3: Ghasa - Tatopani

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My body's hit the wall today. A hard bed has provided little relief from the aching muscles in my legs and shoulders. After a hearty breakfast (try muesli with hot milk folks) we set off. My head was in the clouds but on we must go. Much of the day's route has been along the banks of the Gandaki river and has felt rather like walking through a quarry, our footing uncertain on the gravel as we unnervingly pass the locals hammering away at the rocks above us.

We make good speed and stop for lunch: pumpkin soup, chapati and vegetable momo (tasty boiled dumplings). Such a fine feed keeps us fueled for the rest of the day as we complete our 1,000 metre descent to Tatopani where we jump in the hot spring for a bit of rest and relaxation. It certainly has the desired effect of relieving the muscle strain at what is our halfway point. We'll need it for tomorrow's climb which takes us 1.8km higher than our location today! Some people don't walk that distance in a day - we've gotta go up that far and cover a fair few kilometres to boot. Two plates of daal bhat and maybe a slice of chocolate cake should just about set us up for the task ahead.

Footnote: our guide, Babu, slurps more than Stace and I do (and that's going some). He made quite a sound at lunch today. Nice to see that noisy eating in Nepal is seen as a compliment to the cook - we'll use that as our defence back in Blightey.

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Photos

Donkeys know no fear...
...happily finding their way across the steel bridges