|
 |
| Trekking
in the Himalayas!!! |
|
Rating:
 (4.4)
Pokhara, Nepal
Apr 01, 2003 19:40
Pros: adventurous trekking of the Himalayas,
friendly locals, spectacular views
Cons:
none
We have just returned from 3 days of trekking around the Anapurna
range of the Himalayas. It was simply wonderful. It was so nice
in fact, that during the first 3-1/2 hours of trekking we only made
it a few kilometers down the trail ... we were stopping every five
feet to take pictures. It was very different from any hiking we
have done in the Rockies at home or anywhere else. Many people live
up high in the mountains here along the trails and every few kilometers
you come along another little village. Life there is slow paced,
tranquil and idyllic and the locals are very charming and sweet.
Especially the little ones ... yelling "I love you" and
blowing kisses to us as we passed. Everything along the way is made
from slabs of slate stone ... the trail, all the houses and miles
and miles of walls supporting the terraced slopes that the villagers
farm. The quaint little stone lodges we stayed in were beautiful
and cost just over one Canadian dollar a night(and come with furry
gigantic spiders the size of my palm). The views we saw were spectacular.
Wide, steep, sweeping slopes abruptly ending at cliffs that plunged
straight down into river gorges below. There was a great variety
of huge, tall trees in every hue of green, orange, red and yellow
and interestingly we saw bamboo, cactus and lemon trees! Every now
and then while trekking we had to yield right of way to little packs
of donkeys carrying heavy loads of supplies up to the mountain villages.
All of them had big cow bells around their necks and many wore brightly
colored head-dresses ... very cute. Other than that we didn't see
any animals, except that we caught a glimpse of what looked like
the Abominal Snow Man!!! He was pretty quick though so we didn't
get any pictures ;> Three days was only enough time to see a
small fraction of the trails available for trekking and it has wetted
our appetite for more. Next time we will go for at least a few weeks!!!
Besides trekking we have spent the last couple of weeks enjoying
the town of Pokhara, it's lake and the surrounding area. Jayne did
some fantastic yoga and meditation while I enjoyed some alone time.
A couple of days we rented a little wooden boat and paddled around
Phewa lake. Another day we hired a small sail boat to take us across
the lake and then hiked up to a lovely temple called the Peace Pagoda.
Other than that we just did a lot of relaxing ... reading, writing
and taking pictures in the flower garden of the hotel we stayed
at.
We posted pictures for this entry in Pokhara and are now back in
Kathmandu after a six hour bus ride today. In five or six days we
will leave Nepal and start the journey home. We will leave Nepal
still totally in love with it's people and it's natural beauty and
are already planning to return ... often. |
|
|
|
