Annapurna Circuit Training

So, two Americans, two Israelis, a German and a Canadian walk around the Annapurna Circuit- sounds like a joke- funny but no joke. We are back from an amazing 17 days of hiking through the most stunning scenery and villages filled with the nicest people. I'll try to sum up the almost 3 weeks and give you an idea of what it was like.

Our first day started by taking an early morning bus for six hours to Besi sahar and then cramming into a jeep with 14 people. The festival was still going on and our ride included views of Nepalis getting together to build swings, and many water buffaloes and goats being sacrificed or the aftermath.

Our jeep ride was bumpy but worth it as it cut off 4 hours walking on a dusty road. We were the last two on the jeep and had a view out the back. A Nepali jumped on for a free ride and was carrying a plastic bag and after a few minutes I noticed that it was dripping blood on my arm. I kindly asked him to move the bag so he put it on my foot.

We then proceeded to hike for 4 hours along a river and through lush terraced rice paddies. It was a pretty exhausting day. Due to the tough day our Israeli friends decided to hire a porter named Kamal from the local village. He turned out to be a valuable asset to the whole group. Not only as a guide but also to help us find accommodation. We never would have guessed that it would have been so busy and hard to find a bed. The first night we found the last few beds in a packed dorm room and didn't sleep very well. We regretted not bringing sleeping bags, but we were told that the fleece sleeping sacks that we have been using for the whole trip would be enough and that every tea house had blankets available. Approximately 20% of the time we got blankets but in places that were full of Nepali porters and guides they got first dibs.

We spent our 3rd Anniversary hiking from Bahundanda to Chamje. We celebrated a long day hiking along the river with some cards and Oreos with friends.

The next few days we went from a bit rainy lush area following the river and waterfalls every where to apple orchards, marijuana fields, pine forests and our first great view of the mountains. On day 4 we added a Canadian from B.C., Myanna and she endured our company for 13 days.

As we got deeper on the trek we sent Kamal ahead early with his light pack and quick walking to find us rooms ahead of the large groups. The large groups were mostly French and German tourists. When meeting them on the trail you sometimes asked yourself "How did they get here?" Most were grey haired- decked out in all the latest Euro trekking gear, trekking poles, safari gear and a large shiny camera around their necks. Their porters carried their enormous bags. They were amazing and the loads they packed up the steep hills using a band across their foreheads was unbelievable. The porters have a tough life and it appeared that they had a good time at the end of the day by drinking. It may not be typical but Kamal tended to enjoy a few drinks. Eyal once said "I love my porter when he is not drunk" It wasn't a problem and we had fun with it. He was funny while drunk and turned into a loving guy saying "This place I love, my friends I love"(a man hug followed)

Most of the days included an early start, breakfast or an early lunch, stopping for the day in the early afternoon- ordering dinner- reading, playing cards (if electricity was available) -Mostly hiking 3 to 8 hours- eat- sleep- repeat. It was great hanging out with the group, chatting it up, learning some Hebrew, German, and a bit aboot Canada.

The views were stunning and around every bend you would see a waterfall, bridge, snow capped peak or picturesque village. All of the villages had their own little charm and were full of snot nosed kids running around. The quick journal that I was making during the trek, the first line almost always was "best day yet- amazing views".

It is tough to pinpoint the best day of the trip as they all had highlights. Day 6 from Lower Pisang to Bhraka was great. We decided to take the high road- 4 hours more than the alternative but gave better views and were glad we did. After an early start and steep climb we were rewarded with warm cinnamon rolls, blue skies, and the sight of an avalanche on the frosty peaks across the valley. We enjoyed the views all day- few people- no porters and ended in a open valley, with a grey glacial river running through it and furry yaks grazing everywhere. There was a full moon that made the mountains look silver and the menu also provided some new choices like pasta, lasagna and apple pie. Can it get any better? I submit that it cannot!

The next day we took our acclimatization day around the same area and hiked above Manang- Blue skies again and views of a turquoise glacial lake. Manang was at 11,614 and we hiked above 12,000 feet to get used to the elevation and lessen the risk of Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS).

As we got closer to the pass finding a bed was harder than ever - one night we found ourselves in a dirty storage room with no light and a small window. That same night we warmed up in the dining room heated by a smokey yak dung fire. The night before crossing the pass we (all 6 of us) slept on 5 beds in what we affectionately named the stable- as it looked like they kicked out the horses and threw in a few beds. The dirt floor, musty smell and rodents just added to ambiance and needless to say- with a cold night at 14,599' none of us slept well. At around 4:30 a.m. we headed out with the aid of head lamps and a fairly full moon. We started the steep climb to the pass and our long day. We stopped for some tea and snacks at high camp, I hiked to a view point to see the panorama. It was probably the most amazing I will ever see. We pushed on to the pass and it was a tough pull. We took the group photo and pushed on to the other side- a very steep descent of around 5,500 feet in 3-4 hours. A few of us had headaches and I had some nausea due to the altitude. The Bob Marley hotel was a nice refuge after a long day. We celebrated crossing the world's highest pass with a Yak burger and bean and cheese enchilada. Dorit and Eyal rode into town on horses and showed up exhausted but in good spirits. The group was still together.

The food got better over the pass. We first thought every night would be Dal Baht(plain rice, lentil soup and curried veggies) but it turned out to be the most expensive thing on most menus- we usually ate fried rice with veggies or fried potatoes with veggies, some Tibetan bread and noodles also made their way to our plate. Over the pass we moved into veggie burgers, pizza, pasta and more western fare. German bakeries could be found in most towns and one place even had a Yak Donald's (I can't make this stuff up) I even heard someone call it the apple pie trail because at almost every guesthouse you could get some version of apple pie. One of the best treats was in Manang where we snacked on the best shortbread jam cookies. On day 12 we arrived in Jonsom, where Eyal and Dorit had a flight back to Pokhara on the 20th- This meant Kamal the porter's job was finished- he was a great guy and fun to spend time with (sans drinking). He teared up as he left and gave us each a colorful string around our necks as a going away present- He gave us some last advice in his broken English "Friends stay together, this you find out" and he was off. The next day we moved on as Eyal and Dorit stayed for their flight back to Pokhara and eventually to Thailand and home. It was hard to believe we had been traveling with them in some fashion for around 20 days - we had some fun times and realized that they knew more American movies, music and pop culture than we did and enjoyed joking with them as they did with us.

After Jonsom most of the trek was down hill- literally and figuratively. Most of the hiking was on a dusty road with an occasional jeep, motorcycle, or mule train lumbering down it. The views were still good but not like we had seen. We followed the Kali Gandaki river and made some good distances down hill one day going 23km.

At Tatapani we climbed back towards the clouds (3500 feet gained and 16 km) a long day back through terraced rice paddies and what seemed like a never ending stair stepper workout to chitre and the Dhalagiri Lodge which had a nice view of the Mt. Dhalagiri- we came to call this Mt. Dougandlarry.

Our last full day on the circuit was a nice relaxing day after a one our session of Himalayan high knees that took us to Ghorepani. Here we dropped our stuff at the guest house, grabbed some yak cheese, bread and other snacks for lunch at the top of poon hill. A roughly one hour hike took us to a fire type lookout and 360 degree views of the Annapurna range and surrounds- A great way to wrap up an amazing 2 plus weeks.

On our last day we were ready to get back to some comforts and R and R. We got an early start and took a 6 hour hike down 3280 stone steps (we didn't check their numbers) and we met some people having a tough day going up. Then a 2 hour bus ride on a squeaky local bus with a goat in the isle we were done.

Looking back the hike was a blur and a lot of the places blend together, view points roughly the same and never ending trails- What we will take away from the trek is that the Nepali people are great and full of smiles and a simpler and still happy way of life exists outside of places where electricity, vehicles, commercialism and things rule. Additionally, spending 17 days with people you just met- learning about them and gaining friendships was more important that the picture you took of a mountain vista.

Some figures for the trip, not that they mattered but looking back it is good to give it some scope: Crossing the highest pass in the world at 17,768', hiked through the deepest river valley in the world, total kilometers hiked was around 210 (130 miles), nothing but tea and water for 17 days, no Internet/fantasy football for 17 days.

We are now just taking it easy for a few days. Putting some pounds back on, laundry, extending the visa and trying to secure volunteer work for the next month.