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Published: June 25th 2017
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Adam's Peak closer
This picture was shot from our guest house. A little closer, and a lot more ominous. Once done hiking Horton's Plains and touring the tea estates around the beautiful valley town of Nurawa Elija, Adam's Peak was still on the to-do list, so we boarded that train again a couple of days later for the tiny town of Dalhousie, the starting point of the trek. We arrived at the White House, our pre-selected guest house, where the vibe was so chill we felt immediately that we had stepped into a time warp and were back in the sixties again, camping out at a music festival somewhere, complete with a complimentary group of local musicians playing djembe drums and singing for hours while young western girls did yoga and danced in the garden. The only thing missing was the long hair and tye dyes. The rooms were rustic indeed, setting the record for rustic on this trip, with nails on walls and bare bulbs hanging from ceilings, but the food was great, the adjoining garden scape and swimming hole totally relaxing and the food excellent. The best treat of all, however, was the owner, whose cool positive vibe made the place a very special and unique place. Loved it.
I got up and was on the road
Breathtaking View from the Peak
Breathtaking. Yes, breathtaking. by two a.m. to hike the six thousand steps up the lit pathway to the temple at the top of the mountain and watch the sunrise. People we spoke to along the way said the hike takes at least six hours. Armed with Stan's walking stick, my five toe hiking shoes, my iPod keeping me in rhythm all the way, and a whole lot of determination, I made it to the top in 2 hours forty five minutes. It was cold, windy, and crowded with a sea of pilgrims sleeping under blankets on the ground, so after ringing a sacred bell and walking to the temple tower to offer a prayer and a donation, I decided I did not have the patience to wait for the sunrise, patience being not one of my fortes. Instead, I booked it down the mountain and made it back to the guest house by 7:30. Five hours. Yes, I am proud of that little accomplishment.
Aside from the gruelling walk up, the experience was quite amazing. By far, most of the people trekking - I'm guessing 95% - were Sri Lankans on a pilgrimage. This translates to mean families, young children, women carrying
Adam's Peak, seen from a distance
We caught a shot of this the next day, from our bus, as we were en route to our next destination. babies, and sons or grandsons carrying - yes,
carrying - old or infirm grandparents, presumably, at least half of whom were either barefoot, or in flip flops. Powerful and astounding. I must share another word about the iPod and the significant role it played getting me through this very challenging hike. My music for the first part of the trek was provided by a group Tanner intoduced me to called "Slightly Stoopid", as it seemed entirely fitting. Following them, I was in the company of a wide assortment of women taking me to the top, where I turned the iPod off both because I had arrived at the temple, but also because the battery was threatening to die on me. Even so, I decided to turn it on again for one song at the start of my descent, and the song that randomly came on was Kate Bush singing about being on the top of the world. Blew me away. Still concerned about battery preservation, I listened to just that one song and turned it off again for another twenty minutes or so, but decided to turn it back on just as the sun was beginning to rise. This
White House Guest House
Here it is. I did say rustic, did I not? time Kate was singing a song about the sun rise. How does one explain that? Very trippy indeed, but not random, as I do not believe in coincidence. After that, she, and the iPod battery, stayed with me all the way home.
In closing, I must share that Stan DEARLY wanted to come and walk straight up this mountain with me, but thought it would be best to stay behind and guard our luggage cause the big padlock hanging from our door didn't seem secure enough for his liking. He regrets staying behind and sleeping until my return. A dirty job, but somebody had to do it.
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Susan
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Congrats on making that hike Bev, and to Stan for thwarting thieves. I am only a little surprised you didn't stay for sunrise;->