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Published: December 20th 2005
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Dinner at Tsoka
There was quite a crowd at the Tsoka trekkers' hut. Uli sits at front left, looking away. As I mentioned in the previous entry, the first day of hiking was some 10 miles from Yuksom to Tsoka (10,000 ft.). We walked straight out of town from the guest house we had stayed at the night before and were soon into dense forest. There was a well worn, rocky trail leading to Tsoka (one substantial enough to herd yaks through). On all sides of us were ferns, bamboo, moss covered trees, hanging vines . . . and of course, never far from the trail were steep plunges into the valleys below.
Far off on a distant hilltop, we could vaguely discern the handful of trekkers' huts that comprise Tsoka soon after we started walking. Still, it took us nearly six hours to make the journey. Early on, the path fell as much as it rose, as we crossed rivers over suspension bridges (some of which were not in great condition at all). From the last river crossing, it was two and a half hours of uninterrupted climbing to Tsoka, and in some places very steep climbing. Uli and I followed right behind our porters, who we were at times hard pressed to keep up with despite the fact
Mountain Lodging
This is the most luxurious accomodation I had on the trip. Uli and I got very well acquainted sleeping in such close proximity. that they were carrying loads of 60-70 pounds. The strength and stamina of these so seemingly diminuitive fellows is really incredible.
That first night, there was quite a group at the trekkers' cabin. About ten other hikers arrived after Uli and I, and at Tsoka there is the luxury of a table and chairs, where people can sit and talk, play cards, etc. Dinners were quite extravagant considering our circumstances. Every night we had soup, cooked vegetables, a rice or noodle dish, desert, and lots of coffee and tea to keep warm. And our cook never repeated a meal in all the days we were with him. While hiking during the day, I had worn only a lightweight longsleeved shirt, and still I had sweated profusely. It did, of course, get much colder at night, but my sleeping bag was very adequate, and I never had a problem snoozing. On the whole, cold was never really a big problem, so we were lucky with the weather.
The next day our group stayed in Tsoka for rest and acclimatisation. I would have rather kept moving, but reminded myself that I still had a week to go. There was no
Uli's Big Idea
There wasn't a lot of litter on the trail, but there was some. This photo was taken at the exact moment Uli was explaining his clean-up program to our guides. He offerred 50 rupees for each 20 ounce bottle filled with trash. The guys took to the offer with enthusiasm. sense tiring myself out on the front end of the trip. Tsoka is a village compared to the other overnight stops, where there was never more than a single rest hut. A small group of Tibetans live in Tsoka during the trekking season, catering to hikers. I would say Uli and I must have broken all local records for tea drinking during our day of idling, as there wasn't a lot else to do.
The hike from Tsoka to our next stop, Dzongri, was only about half the distance we covered the first day, but it was a much steeper climb. In four hours or so, we ascended another 3,000 feet. We reached a point where the vegetation changed from trees to mostly just shrub-like rhododendrons. By the end of the day, at 13,000 feet, there wasn't nearly so much plant life as there had been at lower elevations. We were, however, above the clouds by that time, so we had great views of the nearby peaks that had previously been hidden.
The next morning, I made what I now view as a critical error. I opted to get up at 4:30 a.m. and make the hour climb
En Route to Tangshing
A phenomenal view on the way to Thangshing. This photo was taken just above where the steep descent that gave me such trouble began. Seated are one of our porters, and in front, the yak man. No one, not even our other guides, knew yak man's name until the last day of the trip. He pretty much just talked to the yaks. to an observation point near Dzongri to watch the sunrise light up the mountains. The climb proved to be much more difficult than I had anticipated, especially in the dark, and I must have consumed some ill humours in those pre-dawn hours, as my appetite and overall health began to deteriorate somewhat from that point. The views were incredible, with the mountains lit up pink and red and orange as the sun rose, but I still had a half day of hiking ahead of me.
The hike from Dzongri to Tangshing took us through the most spectacular natural scenery I had ever seen. The Dzongri trekkers' hut is in a sort of bowl shaped depression. Once we climbed out though, there was a pleasant, rolling path through a sort of meadow. Although we were at some altitude by that time, the meadow was actually in a valley, with snowy peaks soaring up on either side. The hike became much more difficult once we came to a long, steep descent to a river crossing far below that would take us to Tangshing. The path was strewn with loose gravel, and every few minutes one or both of my feet would
Samiti
The very beautiful Samiti Lake. slide out from under me, depositing me on my rump. Exhausted, I made it to Tangshing.
The next day we were to make our attempt at climbing to Goecha La, a mountain pass at just under 16,000 feet of elevation, where we would be face to face with Kanchenjunga. The hiking that day, at such an altitude, was the most difficult thing I've ever done physically. Our path followed a river through a valley between ridges of massive peaks on either side. At about the halfway point to Goecha La, we came to Samiti Lake. Along the banks of the breathtakingly blue water, wild yaks and mountain sheep grazed, making quite a picturesque scene.
The valley we were climbing through acted as a sort of wind tunnel, with cold air screaming down from the mountains. The previous night, the wind had been so strong it blew the wooden outhouse at Tangshing away completely. Only splinters remained in the morning. Not far past Samiti, we had to cross a sort of high altitude desert--a vast expanse of loose gravel. The wind kicked up so much dust that I was all but blinded until I could locate my sunglasses in
Almost to Goecha La
Although the scenery is great in this shot, I think I took the picture mostly to have an excuse to rest. Seated are our cook and one of the porters. my pack.
Past the desert, and a descent that had me scrambling downward on all fours, we began climbing in earnest. I had the least experience with such altitude among the members of our small party, so I set the (unbelievably slow) pace. Even the slightest incline was difficult to walk up. It seemed like every two or three minutes I had to stop and sit down, but maybe it wasn't quite that often. Once seated, I could always breathe fine. I never had any headaches; my problem was air. Within seconds of beginning to walk again, I'd start looking ahead for the next rock I could rest on.
After about 5 hours of hiking, prayer flags came into sight on a ridge above--Goecha La was in sight. With the end seemingly so near, I pushed on, and reached the top. Hugs were exchanged, triumphant hero shots taken. The views were absolutely stunning. Close by on either side were towering, jagged massifs. Just below where I sat was another lake of brilliant aqua. And of course, Kanchenjunga loomed dead ahead, still quite a ways off, but gargantuan in appearance nonetheless.
I couldn't savor my accomplishment for long,
The Conquering Heroes
Our small party from the Goecha La day atop our summit. In the background, the much more serious summit of Kanchenjunga. as I still had hours of hiking ahead for the return journey to Tangshing. Past Tangshing over the course of the next days, as we dropped to lower altitudes with each step, I could feel my strength returning. It was somewhat reassuring to whatever physical self-confidence I grant myself that my difficulty with the last days of the climb had to do with the altitude rather than my fitness. The last two days, I was at times almost literally jogging downhill, bounding from rock to rock.
If I never make it back to the Himalayas, I still will have crossed a big achievement off of my life's to do list. I had made a big trek through the most spectacular mountain range on the planet. But hopefully, I'll be back.
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ps
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ps071@truman.edu
i am from gangtok, currently in the u.s. i am glad the place has given you so much pleasure. i miss it.