Nepal

0

ACT Day 15 - Kagbeni to Jomsom

ACT Index

Onwards to Jomsom

We left Kagbeni (elevation : 2800m) at 08:00, which was the latest recommended time to avoid the blistering Kali Gandaki wind that was bound to build up later that day. All we really had to do before we left the guesthouse was to repack and freshen up, as we decided to skip breakfast and instead have a much larger meal for lunch later on in Jomsom (elevation : 2720m) . The water pressure the night before had also been so low that the upper floors of the guesthouse had had no water at all. As such, we had been unable to make coffee or refill and treat the water from the taps, so the first stop that we made after leaving the guesthouse was to a safe drinking water station (NPR40/litre). Read more

0

ACT Day 14 - Ranipauwa to Kagbeni

ACT Index

Quaint Villages

We left Ranipauwa (elevation : 3700m) at 08:30, shortly after we finished our honey pancakes (NPR300/2) and tibetan bread with jam (NPR350/2). The mist had lifted slightly by then, but despite all the posters that were scattered around the town advertising the Yartung festival that was supposed to have begun that morning, the town was still sleepy and there was really not much going on. Read more

0

ACT Day 13 - Thorong La Pass

ACT Index

Ascent

We started hiking at 06:45, almost an hour later than we had originally planned. There had been rats in the walls of our room the night before, and they had been scratching and scampering around the entire night. My earplugs would normally render me impervious to distracting sounds like those made by the rats, but the thin wooden walls of the room seemed to nullify the efficacy of the earplugs and instead amplified each and every single sound those rats made. In hindsight however, it turned out that we had had plenty of time since we started the hike at High Camp (elevation : 4925m) instead of Thorong Phedi (elevation : 4450m) . Read more

0

ACT Day 12 - Yak Kharka to High Camp

ACT Index

The Valley

The morning mist was interspersed with drizzle yet again, but by then we knew that it would lift if we just waited. When the views gradually opened up after our breakfast--which was tibetan bread (NPR270) and jam (NPR60/2) once again--they revealed the two towering mountains of Annapurna III (elevation : 7555m) and Gangapurna (elevation : 7454m) way down the valley to the south. The plan was to head all the way to High Camp (elevation : 4925m) that day as it would then mean that the elevation gain the following day would be practically halved, from 1000 metres to about 500. Read more

0

ACT Day 11 - Tilicho Base Camp to Yak Kharka

ACT Index

Morning Run

The mountains finally revealed themselves as the sun rose that morning. As soon as I glanced out the window and saw the snow-covered peaks that surrounded Tilicho Base Camp (elevation : 4150m), I knew that I had to head up to the ridge above once again. My Salomon X-Ultra 3 GTX shoes were low-cut and were light enough for a trail run, so I quickly put them on and grabbed my camera before heading out to the trail head. Read more

0

ACT Day 10 - Tilicho Lake

ACT Index

The Ridge

The mist that was interspersed with bouts of drizzle permeated the morning air. We had a lot of time to play around with that day and so decided to wait until the drizzle ceased before beginning the hike to Tilicho Lake (elevation : 4920m). As such, we leisurely ate breakfast, which was jam (NPR105/2) and pancake (NPR280/2) that had been deep fried for some reason. We also ordered tibetan bread (NPR305/2) to take-away for lunch later on. By the time we set foot on the trail that began just behind our guesthouse, 'Hotel Kangsar Kang', it was already past 09:00. Read more