TREKKING WITH TERESA
TREK REPORT – Kali Gandaki, March 2009
Kathmandu was ‘pollution central’ as I went to
meet the mini-van in Thamel for the trip out to the
airport. The van was late, as usual, but we eventually
located each other via mobile phone with a little help
from Netra. So, March 17, Sue and Jan (to be called
Lou for the duration of the trek to avoid confusion)
were on the Singapore flight which arrived early – a
first. Then Jan, Ros and Hans arrived from Bangkok.
They were all in good shape and 20 minutes later,
somewhat culture-shocked, were all ensconced
in the annexe at the Shambala Village Resort for a
shower and feet-up. A couple of hours later we took
a stroll up to the nearby Kopan Gomba. A full hall
of monks were listening intently to the Rimpoche’s
teaching in Tibetan. We strolled around the lovely
garden and had a drink overlooking the, admittedly,
smog-filled valley. We ate by candlelight (of
necessity) at our hotel and toasted the start of our
trek. Eric, my partner, was still with us for a couple
of days and had spent the day taking Mangal to the
German Embassy to suss out the possibilities of a
work visa for Germany.
Day 2: This is our Big Day Out in Thamel. We cashed
our dollars, purchased some last-minute trekking
gear in between Danish pastries and cappuccini
at the Weizen, our usual base in town. Ros’ group
located their travel agent for Chitwan and booked a
Mountain Flight to see Everest after the trek. Mangal
took the group around town to the Assan Thole and
Indra Chowk bazaars to see the traditional markets
– so much more interesting than the backpacker’s
ghetto of Thamel. Everyone returned with armloads
of souvenirs (Amrita Craft). We had our traditional
‘farewell pizza dinner’ at the Roadhouse as we knew
we wouldn’t all be together at the end of the trip. The
Roadhouse feels as if you’ve wandered into Carlton
in Melbourne by mistake. It rained that evening
which was a huge relief as every leaf and windowsill
in Kathmandu was heavy with dust.
Day 3: We had packed by candlelight the night
before, not the most effcient, and slept a little while
waiting for the 4.45 alarm to go off. Our 6.30 bus arrived at 5.50 and it was hard to say goodbye to
Eric as he headed off to the airport for a 9 am flight
to Germany. Ramro sanga janus! (‘Travel well’ in
Nepali).
The bus to Pokhara went like a dream. Tea at the
Hamlet, lunch at the Riverside Lodge… too easy.
Student union elections were in dispute and the
road had been blockaded by angry demonstrators.
If one is to be delayed for an hour or so then the
Riverside Lodge is not a bad location. Sitting on our
rattan chairs with cool drinks to hand we read in the
warm shade till the strike was resolved. Around 2
pm we were off but five minutes down the road was
more trouble. While the blockade was offcially over
it took nearly an hour to untangle the traffic jam.
Tired and hungry we decamped at the Diamond
Lake. A hot shower and one of Sanu’s famous daal
bhats went down well.
Day 4: The next morning wasn’t clear enough for a
dawn boat ride so the group set off after a leisurely
breakfast on the terrace. I got on with some work but
began to get alarmed when the group was still not
back at 2 pm. A strong wind had blown them off -
course and a local guy had to come to their rescue,
swimming out to paddle them around the fish farm.
With the weather deteriorating rapidly it was a bit
‘hairy’ out there for a while. The ensuing storm was
a cracker. We shopped for gear as lightning crackled
overhead. When the storm finally broke there was
debris flying everywhere. The umbrella I had just
scored at the gear shop was handy but I thought I
might do a ‘Mary Poppins’ at any moment. More
candlelight packing (but perhaps the power was on
and I was the only one who didn’t realise it) and an
early night. ‘Airport at 5.15’ were the instructions.
Day 5: We needn’t have hurried. On arrival at
the Pokhara airport we had to rouse the security
guards to open the gate. Our check-in counter was
unmanned and Yeti Airlines had a solitary candle
burning on the counter.
Within ten minutes though, it all came together.
Departure tax paid, bags weighed and securityinspected.
The café owner from upstairs assured
us the view was clear. We had half an hour to kill.
He was right and we got our first proper look at
the Annapurnas as the sun illuminated first one,
then another of the peaks and bathed them all in a
glowing pink light.
We were so relaxed over our cuppa that we really
had to hotfoot it when the call came. Running fulltilt
along the edge of the tarmac we piled into our
16-seater Daunier and were quickly aloft . It was the
best flight I’ve had in ages. Clear skies to see the peaks, smooth flying (not the usual lumpy air) and
a flawless landing.
It was much colder up at Jomsom where our porters
were waiting to carry our bags over to the Marco
Polo for a large porridge breakfast. Dorje and Bir
had jeeped up via Beni to meet Purna, Khaji and
Ramu. Lahar flew up with us.
We were soon off down the road. It’s almost flat here
with Nilgiri South right in front of you and in less
than an hour we were sitting in Mangal’s mum and
dad’s house sipping hot tea served by his beautiful
sister Sumitra.
An hour later we were in Marpha. Small Tibetanrun
souvenir shops line the winding narrow lane
through the middle of the village. The place is
completely sheltered from the famous local winds.
Jan succumbed to a pretty necklace and cotton
scarves were bought to keep the dust out.
There wasn’t much dust that afternoon because it
soon started to rain. It rained and rained and rained.
I discovered that my previously good waterproof
over-pants were no longer so. It was bloody cold and
wet. Ros, with an impending cold and a sore foot,
opted for a lift on a motorbike. Pity we didn’t all do
the same.
Tired and wet we slumped into the old Tukuche
Guesthouse with great relief – just a little pleased
with ourselves for having ‘done it’. The hot table was
alight and another brazier was soon set up to dry our
clothes. Members of the 2007 Annapurna Trek will
well remember what this was like. We thawed out
with the help of local rum and enjoyed the stewed
apple with custard for desert.
Day 6: On a bright sunny morning we le$ Ros at the
jeep station for a lift back to Jomsom – she wasn’t
feeling any better. The rest of us crossed the big new
bridge north of Tukuche to the eastern bank of the
Kali Gandaki river. This side is quite a different walk
on a narrow trail which wanders through pines and
junipers and apple orchards to the Tibetan refugee
camp at Chairo. From here we crossed back on a
rather wobbly old bridge just outside Marpha. We
lunched as usual at the Paradise Lodge with its
warm dining room and had a look around the large
new gompa. A climb up there affords a great view
of Marpha with its unique wind-proof layout and roof-top terraces instead of gardens. Mindful of the
weather, which was spitting rain again, we hurried
off to Jomsom. We just managed to stay ahead of
the bad weather but the wind howled at our backs,
pushing us along. This place is famous for it. They
even write songs about it. Hot showers at the Marco
Polo and feet up for some. Lou and I strolled around
the shops and had a coffee at the Xanadu. It was
a pretty quiet season so far. Nice for us but a bit
disappointing for our Nepali friends.
Day 7: Ros was no better and opted to fly back to
Pokhara. She took Khaji with her and is possibly
maxing out Hans’ credit card as I write this journal!
(Actually, this turned out not to be true, sorry Ros).
The rest of us, Hans, Sue, Jan, Lou and myself head
off in perfect weather for the short trek to Kagbeni.
This is really easy walking and the river bed is full
of interesting rocks. It doesn’t take long to turn
up some pieces of shaligram fossil. The wind was
at our backs but quite gently at first. The twisted
rock formations in this valley show all too clearly
the violent prehistoric geology that formed the
Himalayas.
It was still tee-shirt weather when we reached the
tea house at Eklai Bhatti but by the time we arrived
in Kagbeni, forty minutes later, the wind was really
pushing us along. Feeling a bit sluggish in the warm
sun-room upstairs where we had lunch we decided
on another short walk – into Upper Mustang. Until recently this ‘forbidden kingdom’ was off-limits
unless you had a $700 ($US) permit. We only went
an hour past the check-point to Thiri but it is an
interesting walk. The little village of 80 people looks
to be unchanged over the centuries with tiny donkeys
and cows wandering in the village square. We were
very welcome at Pema’s house for tea though Pema
herself was not there. We later met her on the way
back to Kagbeni. She had been for a two-hour
walk to get a few groceries. Everyone in the group
appeared to be acclimatising well so we organised
horses all round for the next day.
Day 8: We didn’t need such an early start as we were
planning to overnight up at Muktinath. At 8 am our
horses were saddled up and waiting patiently outside
the lodge. The pony-wallah looked us up and down
and allocated the horses according to size I think.
The horses were fairly quiet and none wanted to
do more than plod steadily – and who could blame
them at this altitude. After morning tea (good to
get off that horse!) we gave some of the porters a
spell in the saddle but were glad to see the horses
waiting for us a bit further on. Bir on a pony was a
tragic sight. The day was gloriously clear due to the
recent rain and so the views back down to Kagbeni
and into Upper Mustang were superb. The higher
reaches of the trail afforded spectacular views back
to Dhaulagiri and Nilgiri. The recent rain had fallen
as snow higher up and the peaks looked as if dusted
with icing sugar. Magic!
We got rooms at the Royal Mustang. While it is
nothing special it is a lot better than the others
we’ve tried over the years. After lunch we all walked
up to the holy temple at Muktinath. I always take
enormous pleasure in this visit, as does most of our
staff. The strange little gompa with its famous ‘fire
and water’ flickering and gurgling under the alter is
an intriguing place, cared for by nuns. The Buddha
statue here has a profoundly gentle aspect which I
find touching. Spiritually renewed, we descended
happily back to our digs in Rani Pawa. This group
especially likes downhill – remind me not to take
them to Everest. Oh, that’s right, Sue, you’ve already
done it!! The hot table was a bit slow to fire up but, once it did, we persuaded Jan (not feeling crash hot)
to bring her quilt with her into the dining room. Hans
(feeling even worse) decided to skip dinner and stay
in his cocoon of sleeping bags and blankets.
Lahar, Sue, Dorje and Bir on the way back to Jomsom
Day 9: Next day broke exceptionally clear and Jan and
Hans are feeling almost human again. The medication
works. Descending makes everyone feel better too.
The mountains sparkled and the whole group were
in a happy mood. Trekking gently downhill on a
lovely day, this scenery is achingly beautiful. Rugged
yes but perhaps Australians in particular identify
with this enormous sweep of ‘wide brown land’.
We were in good spirits as we trooped back into
the Asia Lodge. Hot showers (again, what kind of
trekking is this??) and the last of our clean clothes.
We got stuck into tomato and mushroom lasagne
and a couple of Kukri Rum and colas later we were
ready to party. There were 25 Nepali porters in the
big kitchen/dining room, five of them girls from the
Three Sisters trekking company which specialises in
female porters for female customers. Dorje found a
madal (drum) and, with the others all singing and
clapping, there was soon very little space left on the
dance-floor. Dancing with one Nepali who looked
kind of familiar I soon discovered that it was Khaji’s
younger brother. It was a cold night and I heard a bit
of rain on the roof which didn’t bode well.
Day 10: This morning we awoke to a winter
wonderland. The sky appeared to be just a few
metres away but, as the sun rose, the clouds receded
to the highest peaks. I was out taking photos at
6.30 (even before Lahar brought the bed tea). As
we walked back to Jomsom I couldn’t take the
grin off my face; it was just beautiful. The amazing
erosion lines on the ridges around us were all clearly
defined with snow. Nilgiri positively shone at us as
we rounded the corner from Eklai Bhatti. It was the
best I had ever seen it (and I know I have said that
before). Dawdling into Jomsom, trying to make the
final day last a bit longer, we were delighted to run
into Mangal. He had flown in with his Godparent’s
group earlier in the day. I wrote this on a very bleak
afternoon indeed. The rain was almost snowing and
the wind was howling but brief, incandescent bursts
of sunshine lit up the shrouded peaks of Nilgiri. We
hoped for better weather the next day
 |
 Khaji’s brother – uncanny! |
Day 11: First flight, hopefully. Of course our flight was delayed. A rumour went around that our plane was coming all the way from Kathmandu. Our original 6.30 departure had been amended the previous evening to 8.30, but it was nearer 10 am when Man Kumar phoned to say he had just seen our plane take off and was still waiting patiently for us at the Pokhara Airport. Standing around in the brilliant morning sun (far too cold in the shade) with Nilgiri shining above us, it wasn’t too much trouble to wait though we regretted our ‘ultra-light’ breakfast somewhat.
A pilgrim on route to Muktinath
The flight took off to the north
into a light breeze, made a huge
banking turn half-way back up-river
to Kagbeni, and gave us glorious
views of the previous couple of day’s
trekking, now defined on every ridge
with fresh snow. It was one of the
clearest flights I had ever seen. We
could see way beyond Dhaulagiri and
Damphus Peak on the starboard side.
On the port side the Annapurnas
were perfectly clear in every snowcapped
detail. Pokhara was warm
and sultry on arrival. Watching the It was great to be reunited with Ros, who had made
a good recovery, and Khaji, who had been taking
Ros sightseeing a little, as she gradually felt better.
Having risen so early, unnecessarily as it turned out,
we were only too happy to bail out early; sleeping
with sheets and blankets instead of bloody sleeping
bags! Luxury.
Day 12: It just wasn’t clear enough today to warrant
an early-morning trip up to the view point at
Sarangkot so we took our time over breakfast and
then made a long walk out along the lakeside. It was
wonderfully warm but a good breeze picked up by
lunchtime and kept the walk pleasant. After more
serious shopping we visited Lahar at home with his
wife Loyan and their kids Sopana (11), Sagar (8)
and the adorable little Sunchok (4) who is already
at pre-school. We just had time to visit Purna across
the road where his wife showed us great hospitality
in their tiny room which they share with two kids.
We had dinner that night with the remaining boys,
Khaji, Lahar, Purna and Ramu at the Moondance.
The spinach lasagne was a winner and the white wine was an Australian chardonnay (not a good
one but, hey, this is Nepal). We nipped across to the
Boomerang for the cultural programme which had
just started with singing and dancing from the many
different cultures of Nepal. The performers got most
of us up to dance with them for the final number,
which had to re-start at one point due to a power
cut – typical! Only Lou and I had enough energy
left for the Busy Bee so we took Lahar for a beer. It
was well-worth the effort as Vishnu, an amazingly
talented local guitarist with his own unique style,
was playing that night and a couple of Westerners
put on a great blues number to finish of the night.
Day 13: Our return bus trip was comparatively
uneventful. Ros, Hans and Jan had left us for a
trip to Chitwan National Park to see the rhinos,
elephants and crocodiles and, if they are very lucky,
a tiger. Lou and Sue enjoyed their front row seats.
It’s a great way to see Nepal and joyfully effortless
after trekking. Dorje was a friendly face to greet us
in Kathmandu and we were soon under hot showers
at the Shambala. Suitably spruced-up we walked into Boda. This deeply spiritual place never fails to
touch people, especially if one can visit around dusk
when the local Tibetan population are out in their
hundreds doing their ‘kora’ (circulating around the
great stupa) while chanting the ancient mantra ‘Om
Mani Padme Hum’ or ‘Hail to the Jewel in the Lotus’
(the Buddha).
We got the front table at Flavours in order to watch
the people going around the stupa and the sound and
light show put on my Mother Nature’s impending
thunderstorm was awesome. Power failed, the
candles blew out so in the dark we sipped our wine
and watched as flashes of lightning illuminated those
famous ‘all-seeing eyes’ of the Buddha. Wonderful.
 Boudhanath Stupa, Kathmandu |
Day 14: After a morning visit to Swayambu, the socalled ‘monkey-temple’ we hit the shopping area of Thamel once again. We were in the old tourist region of Durbar Marg when a thunderstorm hit at almost exactly the same time as the day before. It was easier to retire to the Namlo Restaurant than battle the rain and peak-hour traffic in a taxi. Now that the group was reduced to me and two enthusiastic clients, transport was much easier. We all fitted into one taxi. Well into our cups we hailed a taxi with flashing lights, dubbed it the ‘disco taxi’ and had a pretty lively trip home. There is now at least one Kathmandu cabbie who knows that Australians are good fun.
Waiting for a jeep in Jomsom?
Should have gone Trekking with Teresa!
Day 15: But wait, there’s more… Rounding up my
friend Julie once more we taxied up to Nagarkot.
Dorje took us to a fabulous big resort hotel for a
coffee. Given the impending monsoon build-up we
felt pretty lucky to get a great view of the Himalayan
range, Ganesh Himal being the nearest. We walked
down to Changu Narayan, descending through farms
and villages, seeing lots of baby goats, chicks and
puppies. It is Spring after all. Over a long sunny ridge
of pines then a few scattered rhododendrons it was
3pm by the time we sat (slumped) for lunch. Changu
Narayan is the oldest temple in the Kathmandu
Valley, founded in the 4th Century. Exquisite lattice
work on the windows and carved wooden supports
on the pagoda roofs. The rain came bucketing down
as we sat in the local bus waiting to go down to
Bhaktapur, rendering a visit to that lovely old city
a bit pointless – something to do next time? Dinner
by candlelight at the Shambala. Not enough light to
pack so we got a bottle of wine instead.
Day 16: Our last day together was a bit sad. A teary
farewell to Lou; we had become good mates on our
little expedition in the mountains. I am sure Lou
will come back to Nepal. Sue was only moving up
to the Benchen Monastery so I would be seeing her
again in a few days.
As I finish this diary, having had a lovely day off, lying
on the bed half the day, nibbling Swiss chocolate,
I marvel a bit at all the wonderful people I get to
meet in this job. First arrivals for Everest tomorrow,
wonder what they will be like…???
Cheers & Namaste
Teresa
PS: Though we left Ros, Hans and Jan at Pokhara, I’ve since heard that they had a great time in the jungles of Chitwan and their Big Day Out with Dorje today was a success. Cheers folks. T.
Acknowledgements: Frank Jones, Desktop Dynamics, Geelong (editing & layout).
