alright, here is a currently unedited extensive photo journal, most are courtesy of meaghan doyle as my camera was out of commission for a couple of weeks. enjoy at your leisure if you wish!
http://picasaweb.google.com/coffeewithkatie/NepalEverestRegion#
Friday, June 12, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Happy Himalaya Hiker...(grab a comfy chair)
...in fair weather! it is nearing the end of the trekking season, so the four of us amigos had the trail nearly to ourselves...well except for porters, donkeys, and yaks. just a brief side note about porters (although they deserve more): they are superhuman! i was impressed by the porters in annapurna, but these guys (and 10-15yo boys) carried awkward loads well exceeding his own weight...200+ lbs of lumber, logs, food, beer, soda, whatever supplies are needed in the region is generally carried in as porters are cheaper than flying it in. his pace is slow but steady - sweat dripping from his face and his body an obtuse angle bent at the waist by the weight of his loads - he snakes his way down thru the valleys and up over the passes. so when i say my body "was put to the test," i mean it in the most relative way possible. the load i bared was much lighter and compact.
We began hiking in the foothills at a town called Jiri. Many people fly into Lukla due to time constraints as the hike in from jiri adds an additional week. but the vegetation was lush and the hills abound with terraced fields of potatoes and barley. Incredibly, the hillsides are covered with terraces maintained by the hard working villagers. how they don't tumble down the side is one of the world's great wonders, and their contours create a 3-D version of a topo map.
the lifestyle in the mountain region is romantic in that they have a close relationship with the land: animals that they eat or milk graze until their hearts' content, they compost plants and dung to replenish the soil, and their gardens in turn flourish (in the lowlands). they seem to be living nature's intent. however, with the exposure to an increasing # of westerners, locals crave more. "U.S. is a great country. Nepal no good." televisions and satellites are appearing in remote villages. but with that, good things have come as well: schools and medicine (most notably from Sir Edmond Hillary - Everest's first summiter along with Tenzing Norgay), solar energy and hydroelectricity.
after a few days of hiking, we began to catch glimpses of the "smaller" peaks in the distance (meaning somewhere in the range of less than 24,000 ft). it was only after a week that the elusive high guys began to show themselves...given clear skies. the mornings were generally clear, and this time of year, the afternoons brought clouds hugging the necks of the peaks and sometimes rain and snow party favors. (this is when i became a less happy hiker, although the precipitate did bring much beauty: chocolate rivers flowing beneath our feet, the greens became more vivid, and in the higher elevations, blankets of snow insulated the respective peaks.)
about 2 weeks in, we spent time in Gokyo (west of everest), a village known to provide fantastic day hikes with panoramic views of everest and other impressive enormous peaks. the clouds lingered most of our 3 days here, but our stroll along the glacier left us all speechless as we listened in silence to the life of our surroundings. chunks of ice and rock peeled off tumbling down the face slowed with a splash into a nearby glacial pond or lake. this area is probably most identified by its 4 larger glacial lakes and countless other small ones, and nearby Cho Oyo peak (one of the 8,000m-ers).
after attempting a shortcut over cho la pass during the first day of a 48 hr nonstop snow/rain storm, we didn't quite make it. we actually ended up just a few hours south (rather than east) of where we began the 9 hr day. excited to see a guesthouse, our bodies cold and wet, we hobbled in presenting ourselves as quite the motley crew. meg was doubled over with abdominal pain from giardia, tim was carrying 2 packs, gary had tweaked his knee and was unable to bend it, and i was more or less just cold and crabby but hobbling from the cumulative impact of the downhills on my knees. we decided to rest the following day as our bodies told us to and the rain and snow alternated throughout the day and consistently fell...hard.
the clouds cleared, and the trail beckoned. so we continued on (a different route) toward everest base camp. along the way, we became an enthusiastic cheering section for the everest marathoners whose course is on insane terrain starting at about 17,000+ft (about 3,000ft higher than mt rainier). awesome! and being the end of the expedition season for summiting everest, we encountered many traffic jams of yaks carrying loads of gear including the kitchen sink...literally. we slept in a village called gorak shep where we had crisp clear days. after hiking to a viewpoint called kala pattar, we were rewarded with absolutely stunning views of nuptse (a handsome mountain that was the star of the show), a 360 degree view of the impressive range, and finally chomolungma...sagarmatha...everest! from these views, however, it is dwarfed by closer peaks that are equally as mind-blowing. as we stood at over 18,000ft, the hunks of rock that have pushed themselves up through the earth's surface still towered above us...way above us!
the following day we strolled on to everest base camp which had just a few of the 600 tents remaining from the expeditions. i imagine it to be quite a circus during the summit season, and not the place to go for solitude. despite the steep $60 grande required to even attempt a summit, the mountain is swarming with people a couple of months each year. and to complete the city, a coffee house and bakery (among other conveniences) is set up right on the glacier. we met khumbu glacier and an american guide who answered our numerous questions about the season. apparently it was a successful one.
our last stop was Chhukung valley (often a starting point for climbing island peak), which is currently on my list of favorites. the hike itself was mild and it was pleasing to the soul: cool crisp air touching my skin, my body breathing its purity; sunkissed snow-capped mountains in every direction; the solitude and serenity that only nature can bring; yaks (and the cute babies) grazing on the vegetation; a stream peacefully running through its center. it felt pretty close to a shangri-la, as i blissfully strolling through the expanse.
and finally, we cruised back to lukla where i caught a flight back to kathmandu, but not without one more wee adventure. my motion-sick prone self reintroduced itself.
i tried to focus on the beauty below, a green topographical map peppered with mini houses and water trickles, but my distraction was no longer working. sweat began pouring off my head, my own personal waterfalls. i frantically searched for a bag durable enough to hold vomit. i closed my eyes and breathed deeply until we landed. i basically fell out of the tiny plane and gasped the biggest breath of outside air that i could before i was shuffled onto...another moving vehicle. arghh! "how will i keep it in any longer?" i was thinking to myself. but i managed and was pathetically bedridden the rest of the day.
back in kathmandu for 10 days, i am in the city and ready to leave it. although my body was put to the test over the 3 weeks we spent in the everest region, my soul was filled with pure, indisputable beauty. i yearn for the fresh air and the nature the city lacks, and i am looking forward to my departure to thailand in a couple of days.
thanks for enduring. i had actually expected to keep it short as i already shared much of my wonderment of the mighty Himals and snickers and dal bhat binges of mounded rice, bloating dal, and curried veggies while hiking around annapurna, but i couldn't help it.
We began hiking in the foothills at a town called Jiri. Many people fly into Lukla due to time constraints as the hike in from jiri adds an additional week. but the vegetation was lush and the hills abound with terraced fields of potatoes and barley. Incredibly, the hillsides are covered with terraces maintained by the hard working villagers. how they don't tumble down the side is one of the world's great wonders, and their contours create a 3-D version of a topo map.
the lifestyle in the mountain region is romantic in that they have a close relationship with the land: animals that they eat or milk graze until their hearts' content, they compost plants and dung to replenish the soil, and their gardens in turn flourish (in the lowlands). they seem to be living nature's intent. however, with the exposure to an increasing # of westerners, locals crave more. "U.S. is a great country. Nepal no good." televisions and satellites are appearing in remote villages. but with that, good things have come as well: schools and medicine (most notably from Sir Edmond Hillary - Everest's first summiter along with Tenzing Norgay), solar energy and hydroelectricity.
after a few days of hiking, we began to catch glimpses of the "smaller" peaks in the distance (meaning somewhere in the range of less than 24,000 ft). it was only after a week that the elusive high guys began to show themselves...given clear skies. the mornings were generally clear, and this time of year, the afternoons brought clouds hugging the necks of the peaks and sometimes rain and snow party favors. (this is when i became a less happy hiker, although the precipitate did bring much beauty: chocolate rivers flowing beneath our feet, the greens became more vivid, and in the higher elevations, blankets of snow insulated the respective peaks.)
about 2 weeks in, we spent time in Gokyo (west of everest), a village known to provide fantastic day hikes with panoramic views of everest and other impressive enormous peaks. the clouds lingered most of our 3 days here, but our stroll along the glacier left us all speechless as we listened in silence to the life of our surroundings. chunks of ice and rock peeled off tumbling down the face slowed with a splash into a nearby glacial pond or lake. this area is probably most identified by its 4 larger glacial lakes and countless other small ones, and nearby Cho Oyo peak (one of the 8,000m-ers).
after attempting a shortcut over cho la pass during the first day of a 48 hr nonstop snow/rain storm, we didn't quite make it. we actually ended up just a few hours south (rather than east) of where we began the 9 hr day. excited to see a guesthouse, our bodies cold and wet, we hobbled in presenting ourselves as quite the motley crew. meg was doubled over with abdominal pain from giardia, tim was carrying 2 packs, gary had tweaked his knee and was unable to bend it, and i was more or less just cold and crabby but hobbling from the cumulative impact of the downhills on my knees. we decided to rest the following day as our bodies told us to and the rain and snow alternated throughout the day and consistently fell...hard.
the clouds cleared, and the trail beckoned. so we continued on (a different route) toward everest base camp. along the way, we became an enthusiastic cheering section for the everest marathoners whose course is on insane terrain starting at about 17,000+ft (about 3,000ft higher than mt rainier). awesome! and being the end of the expedition season for summiting everest, we encountered many traffic jams of yaks carrying loads of gear including the kitchen sink...literally. we slept in a village called gorak shep where we had crisp clear days. after hiking to a viewpoint called kala pattar, we were rewarded with absolutely stunning views of nuptse (a handsome mountain that was the star of the show), a 360 degree view of the impressive range, and finally chomolungma...sagarmatha...everest! from these views, however, it is dwarfed by closer peaks that are equally as mind-blowing. as we stood at over 18,000ft, the hunks of rock that have pushed themselves up through the earth's surface still towered above us...way above us!
the following day we strolled on to everest base camp which had just a few of the 600 tents remaining from the expeditions. i imagine it to be quite a circus during the summit season, and not the place to go for solitude. despite the steep $60 grande required to even attempt a summit, the mountain is swarming with people a couple of months each year. and to complete the city, a coffee house and bakery (among other conveniences) is set up right on the glacier. we met khumbu glacier and an american guide who answered our numerous questions about the season. apparently it was a successful one.
our last stop was Chhukung valley (often a starting point for climbing island peak), which is currently on my list of favorites. the hike itself was mild and it was pleasing to the soul: cool crisp air touching my skin, my body breathing its purity; sunkissed snow-capped mountains in every direction; the solitude and serenity that only nature can bring; yaks (and the cute babies) grazing on the vegetation; a stream peacefully running through its center. it felt pretty close to a shangri-la, as i blissfully strolling through the expanse.
and finally, we cruised back to lukla where i caught a flight back to kathmandu, but not without one more wee adventure. my motion-sick prone self reintroduced itself.
i tried to focus on the beauty below, a green topographical map peppered with mini houses and water trickles, but my distraction was no longer working. sweat began pouring off my head, my own personal waterfalls. i frantically searched for a bag durable enough to hold vomit. i closed my eyes and breathed deeply until we landed. i basically fell out of the tiny plane and gasped the biggest breath of outside air that i could before i was shuffled onto...another moving vehicle. arghh! "how will i keep it in any longer?" i was thinking to myself. but i managed and was pathetically bedridden the rest of the day.
back in kathmandu for 10 days, i am in the city and ready to leave it. although my body was put to the test over the 3 weeks we spent in the everest region, my soul was filled with pure, indisputable beauty. i yearn for the fresh air and the nature the city lacks, and i am looking forward to my departure to thailand in a couple of days.
thanks for enduring. i had actually expected to keep it short as i already shared much of my wonderment of the mighty Himals and snickers and dal bhat binges of mounded rice, bloating dal, and curried veggies while hiking around annapurna, but i couldn't help it.
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