No wonder Mountain People believe that the Gods live in the mountains. The majestic peaks of the Annapurna range are an incredible sight. Towering summits rise above the clouds offering tantalizing peeks of the peaks.
The Sanctuary trek is a beautiful hike along the Modi valley. It narrows the higher up you go and culminates at Annapurna Base Camp where over 10 peaks present themselves in an amphitheatre ranging from 6 – 8 thousand metres.
Armed with LJ´s much-used Annapurna map and a dodgy compass, I headed back onto the trail. The trail leads up the valleys offering different biodiversity at the altitude strata. Villages arise every couple of hours offering coca cola, varying strengths of Nescafe or even, on occasion, fresh challis for the weary hiker. I slowly meandered onwards and upwards missing the power of green capsules, but still looking not unalike Gandalf the Grey with my black hiking pole. Never again will I moan at the 270+ stone steps leading from our home to the village in McLeod Ganj! Clusters of green birds chatter in trees, glacial waterfalls some with 50 metre cascades and chimes of trekkers´ pony harnesses provide the auditory backdrop to MP3 player for I have to ration out the limited battery life carefully.
The pace of life is very different in the mountains. Up at the dawn (around 6:15am) hot drinks usually start the day for the villagers. A light breakfast might be taken at around 9.30, lunch at 1, dinner at 7 and bed by 8pm. It´s cold at night and there is not much shit to do. Interestingly, several of the villages enjoy 24 hour electricity, unlike either Kathmandu and Pokhara. My schedule fits around this. Wake at dawn, breakfast by 8am and hit the trail by 8.30. I stop at every opportunity for some type of sustenance until by 1pm I am on the lookout for lunch. I carry on until my legs tell me to and have usually “holed up” by 4pm. As the locals like to serve up before they eat, its dinner at 7 and bed by 8.
The concept of “two hours” is clearly standard for journeys varying from half an hour to three hours. Just ask any local on the trail. It really is not worth asking
Walking up-hill on stony 60 degree gradient trails for hours on end, with no respite, you feel every muscle in your body working and something not replicable in a gym. I did try and minimise my inventory, but my camera stuff weighs close to 6kgs for a start. Too uncomfortable to carry separately, it was perched at the top of my rucksack for the most of the trip. The weather patterns of the day are also consistent. Always clear for about an hour in the morning before the clouds come down with grey skies and sometimes raining during the afternoons.
At Chhomrong I stop at the International Guest House, run by the amiable proprietor, Mr D. M. Gurung. A Gurkha for thirteen years seeing service in Düsseldorf and England, he was the third guest house to open here 30 years ago and is happy to run it with a couple of helpers whilst the rest of his family live and work in Pokhara or Kathmandu.
He clearly loves his life. I asked him if he had thought of moving to England following a recent UK court ruling allowing former soldiers right of abode. “No...it´s too expensive. Anyway three years was enough”
He is relieved by the Maoist succession through parliament as he no longer “obliged” to pay monthly “donations”. All trekkers over the last 10 years were also making obligatory Rp5000 (US$20) payments. Like everyone else I have spoken to here, he is sceptical of any change. “It´s all bullshit” and Mr Gurung certainly does not use the word lightly. He tells me he turned down 9 Nepalese people from his guest house today; they requested a discount and he didn´t like their faces.
“Not international enough?” I query.
“Well...something like that”.
Calculations are made rapidly, checked and re-checked and I am unable to make it to Annapurna Base Camp and get my Indian visa rolling by the end of the week in Kathmandu. Somewhat disappointed it is time to turn back, although a Norwegian guy attempts to console me that he took a reading of - 18 degrees at ABC. The track is also covered in snow, icy in parts, and appears to vanish at times. I take a different valley down the trail which is almost entirely downhill – for me, always the best kind of hiking.
It is rare these days for me to appreciate the journey – I am always desperate to get to the destination as soon as possible. This was something completely different. I have also reached my healthiest point in several years. After a shave and shower I look like a man in his thirties. My legs don´t hurt like hell either.
Some photos from this trek are now available at http://picasaweb.google.com/aubreygroves67/annapurna
Back in Kathmandu on Thursday to sort out my new Indian visa. Stories vary from three days to a working week. Kathmandu is expensive and certainly when compared to life in McLeod Ganj.
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