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A big day yesterday with a 5.00am start for the journey up to Sarangkot to see the sun rise over the Annapurnas.
A large number of people had the same idea & we joined a convoy of vehicles, motorcycles and intrepid walkers (it's 1,592 metres above sea level).
In 1991 the trip involved a 30 minute dirt road taxi ride plus another hour's very steep walk to a ruined 'kot' (fort) at the top.
The real keen types who wanted to get in some practice before a trek would walk the whole distance from the lake.
Note: What's the point of evolution if one still chooses to do that much extra work for no significant improvement?
Now the road has been sort of improved with bitumen but ends at a different spot lower than the old one - it still provides a top vantage point though.
Lots of photo's and videos were taken and all were treated to the madness of some micro-flight types buzzing around above us - man that would be fantastic. If I wasn't a coward I would seriously think about joining in.
As an anecdote: When Des & I took the long way to the top in 1991 it was clouded in and we did not see the mountains at all (I did though, the following day).
For something to do we decided to walk back down to lakeside in Pokhara. It took us 4.5 hours and involved, at one point, walking down the middle of a stream. We hadn't lost the trail, quite a few locals splashed past us on the way.
Imagine what the walk up would have been like in 30 degree heat.
Back to the Hotel for Breakfast and then off to visit the Ghurka Museum that is sited in Pokhara. An interesting place, but in the end it's all very sad when you realise how many have died over the years fighting other peoples wars.
Later in the day we visited a Tibetan Gompa - as usual the Lama's are content to let you wander around and are not perturbed at all by strangers in their home.
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