Day 13 ( Kagbeni to Marpha via Jomsom)
We spent the morning wandering around Kagbeni, a very traditional Nepali town with livestock and children roaming everywhere. Kagbeni can boast having Nepal’s only Yac Donald’s restaurant. We spotted a few yak/cow crosses, so I’m not sure if you’d call that a yaw or a cak, but they are unusual looking animals. After exploring, we hit the dusty trail.
About 10 am the winds really start to pick up and we are faced with a headwind in the vicinity of 30 mph. Dust is flying everywhere and good sunglasses are a must to try to keep dirt out of your eyes. I secure my hat with my wool muffler and try to cover my face, but it’s just too hot and instead I endure a gritty mouthful of dust and dirt.
We stop in Jomsom for lunch, where no one working at the restaurant seems to be in any kind of hurry. As we set out again, the clouds roll in and we have to face the raindrops in addition to the wind and dust. After following the road for a few hours, we finish on a rocky dirt trail, mostly downhill, and the rain really picks up. Upon arriving in Marpha, the entire group is fairly fatigued, and everyone turns in early. Tomorrow is an early start, with no latte machine in sight.
Day 14 (Marpha to Ghasa)
It rained all of last night, but true to form, the day greets us with bright, welcoming sunshine. However, what starts out as a beautiful day turns grim: we see the rescue helicopter on the launch pad ready to take off. A helicopter like this in Nepal is either going to the hospital, or to the morgue. We hear the news of a nearby plane crash with a small passenger plane bound for Jomson. The wicked winds which we experienced over the past few days, ever-present in this part of Nepal, have caused the plane to go down. Of the twenty one people on board, fifteen have perished. Once again we are reminded that we are in a part of the world where life can be taken in a flash, and Mother Nature writes her own rules.
With this sobering news hanging over us, we trek another two hours to our tea break, and then another three hours to lunch. I’m completely starving by the time we reach Kalopani. Back on the onward trail, it’s mostly easy downhill through a lot of rocky riverbeds. We are starting to see more and more traffic along the road, not something that we find pleasant. The group seems to keep separating today. We lost one person before lunch (and found her, of course), and then Anne and I overshoot the turnoff at Ghasa, but luckily figured it out before we got too far off track.
The mood is as soggy as the weather, and the hail spits out a final unkind ending to the day. At least the shower is remarkably hot and I get to wash my filthy hair and watch all the unpleasant memories of the day go down the drain.
Day 15 (Ghasa to Tatopani)
The trail today was sold to us as “mostly downhill,” but there seemed to be an abnormal amount of uphills for a downhill day. We are leaving the wind-plagued Mustang district and entering the Myagdi district. Gone are the snow-capped mountains as the terrain gets decidedly more lush and green. Plant life dots the landscape as foliage becomes more abundant, lining the trail on both sides. There is a strange, sweet scent in the air, and I take a closer look at some of the plant life surrounding us. The seven-leafed plants look like…”Are those marijuana plants?” I ask no one in particular. Sure enough, we are surrounded by pot plants that go on for miles. To my knowledge, no one filled up a backpack with weed…
We stop for tea at one of the sorriest little tea houses in Nepal. The new road that was constructed has rerouted many hikers, workers, and locals, and the part of the route that we decided to take today does not see the traffic it once did. Lunch is late today, and again takes forever. I begin to wonder what a day without eating dal bat will be like. The road to Tatopani is not too much longer but the heat makes it harder for everyone. The rains greet us just as we get to our final destination for the night.
Tatopani is famous for its hot springs, and a few of us indulge. It’s an odd feeling parading around in a swimsuit in such an ultraconservative country, but the steamy water on my tired limbs feels amazing.
We’ve also heard today that there is a looming transportation strike in Nepal and that we are going to have to combine the last three days into two. It’s uncertain and unlikely that the cabs and busses will be running in the next few days, leaving us wondering if we can get back to Pokhara, and if we do, will we be walking with all of our luggage to the airport. The Nepalis shrug it off. After all, they say, it is just a three day walk from the end of the trail back to Pokhara. Let’s hope not.
Day 16 (Tatopani to Ghorepani)
This morning started with our first Nepali traffic jam – a truck wedged in between the rocky mountain and the embankment on the side of the road. Cars, bikes, busses and people backed up on both sides of the road, curiously studying the dilemma without offering any solutions. We took a sharp left and headed out on the dirt trail, leaving the hordes of stranded passengers to figure it out.
It’s already hot when we start out on what will be the most demanding uphill day outside of crossing the pass. We will be gaining over a mile of elevation, all on rocky, steep steps. It feels like it’s never going to end, we just keep going up, and up, and up. All total, we will have about 9 miles of really challenging hiking today. It seems like it’s a bit of a cruel irony, we are so close to the end, and yet so far. We’ve also received confirmation that we will need to combine the last two days into one. The transportation strike is on and our return shuttle, including getting to our ongoing flights, remains a mystery.
As elated as we were on summit day, we’re all a little defeated now. Banged up and bruised, everyone can smell the end, but it is just far enough out of reach to taunt us. The rain starts in again and it’s a steady stream. After hours and hours, we get to the outskirts of Ghorepani, but I stop to make some adjustments and lose the group ahead of me. The road forks, and not wanting to be stranded alone or lost in this uphill purgatory, I wait for Seru to catch up with me. I ask her, outwardly wearing my exhaustion, if we are near the end. I sense she wants to say something uplifting to raise my spirits, but after struggling with how to answer, she just says, “No, it’s still far.”
We carry on in the rain, and I follow her like an obedient little pup. Every twist and turn brings a new gravel staircase, every time I give her that “Is it over?” look, she avoids eye contact and finds a new uphill path. Finally, finally, finally we are at the end of the road and the tea house we get to call home for the night.
Day 17 (Ghorepani to Pokhara)
After surviving the most emotionally and physically draining day of the route, a small group of us rise before the sun to hike to Poon Hill for the sunrise. The temptation to stay in my warm bed and avoid another hour plus of uphill is crushing, but I shake off the exhaustion and head out with only a few others. The morning is cold and crisp as we wind our way to the top in the dark. The sun slowly peeks out from behind the mountain, painting the sky in streaks of pink and white. The fog is thick today, so the views aren’t as spectacular as they might be on a clear day, but the clouds give the morning a softer look.
We head down to breakfast and meet up with the rest of the group as we start our decent that will last all day long. I’m grateful that the uphills are over, but the continual downhill trek proves equally challenging. We make it back to Nayapul right before the rain and get the news that our shuttle is on the way. A few hikers we’ve met over the course of the circuit are also back in Nayapul and are desperate for rides back to Pokhara since the taxis are not making it through. A few ask if they can ride on the roof of our vehicle. We manage to fit a few people in, but our guides have to turn the rest of them away.
Back in Pokhara we are elated to have our own rooms, hot showers, and a huge accomplishment behind us. We celebrate that evening with more Nepali food, beers and camaraderie. In the morning we will all go our separate ways, back to our lives, our homes, our friends and families, but I’m already trying to figure out a way to get to Everest Base Camp. That’s just me…
Restless Passport "Dancing in the Rain" Tour 