Friday 14 January 2011

Beginning the Trek

Namaste

Day 2 was an early rise in order to leave the hotel at 6am to catch a flight to Lukla. The flight was an experience in itself! We were in a 20-seater plane which meant that we felt every single bump and bit of turbulence. The views of the Himalayas were spectacular and we even caught a glimpse of Everest along the way. After flying to Lukla, I have huge amounts of respect for the pilots on these planes and the skilled way in which they manoeuvre around the mountains. Lukla is a very small airport and the runway is only 200 metres long, with one end 60 metres higher than the other! I have no idea how our pilot managed to land this thing but he did and so very smoothly as well.

We got off the plane and pretty much began trekking! After maybe half an hour or so, we stopped for lunch and then headed to Phak Ding, where we would be spending our first night. At first, I found the pace ridiculously slow, but I soon found out that this was for our benefit, both to help us acclimatise and ensure that we don’t burn ourselves out. After 4 hours of trekking we arrived into Phak Ding and the tea lodge that we would be staying at. We were already at an altitude of 2,600m and many individuals could feel the effects. The trek had certainly tired me out but all in all, I felt good.

It was in Phak Ding that Maski spoke to us about eating and drinking throughout the trek. It was firstly advised to always ask for things to be well cooked and to avoid heavy spices and anything that might upset our stomachs. It was suggested that we should avoid eating meat. In the mountains, the only foods grown are spinach and potatoes so everything else has to be transported from Kathmandu by plane to Lukla and then on foot by porters. This firstly explains why things tend to cost more the higher up you climb, but it also demonstrated why steering clear of meat may not be a bad idea, since its freshness would be questionable. We were told that we should be drinking 3-4 litres of water per day to reduce the likelihood of altitude sickness as well as dehydration. Since we’re Westerners and our bodies are not adapted to the local water we had three options: Buying bottles of mineral water, buying boiled tap water, or using regular tap water and adding water purification tablets. I made a decision to simply drink the tap water just like the locals do. In the Philippines, we were told that the local tap water might upset your stomach but after drinking it for a few days, your body adapts to it. I hadn’t encountered any problems with the water, so I decided to do the same here and 2 days later, I’m happy to report that I have had no issues!

The first night was pretty chilly and I was very thankful for the sleeping bag I had decided to rent. Day 3 was a pretty early wake-up again. After eating breakfast, we began our 8-hour trek to Namche Bazaar, the next night stop. The trek provided some beautiful views of the Himalayan Mountains and along the way I was able to speak to the local guides and learn a bit more about the people who live on the mountains. I was curious to know why people chose to live up here if receiving food and resources was so difficult. I was told that many years ago there was a wide spread of malaria in the lower parts of Nepal, which led to people settling in the mountains, since the mosquitoes were not found in these areas. Malaria is no longer an issue in Nepal and as a result many people are moving away from the mountains, however, the mountain folk live a surprisingly luxurious lifestyle. During the summer they collect herbal plants and sell these lower down in the winter. From what I was told, they’re able to make quite a bit of money from this and live well. With the increase of tourism in the Himalayas, the local people have also managed to make quite a bit of money off running tea lodgings, restaurants and stores.

Half way through our trek, we stopped for lunch, where I decided to order the same dish that I had eaten the previous night, a traditional Nepalese dish called Dal Bhat. It consists of rice, fried spinach leaves in herbs and spices, vegetable curry, pickle (sort of like salsa) and boiled lentil soup. You basically mix it all together and enjoy this delicious feast. It’s healthy and rice is a great source of carbohydrate, which gives you energy to continue trekking. However, what I love the most about this dish is that the waiters will continue to serve you until you’re completely full, making it the best value for money, all you can eat buffet that I’ve ever experienced. So far it’s yet to cost me more than 350 rupees (£3 approx).

We arrived at Namche Bazaar by 5:30pm and were all pretty tired. We were now at 3,440 metres above sea level, which meant that we had climbed 800 metres that day. We spent the evening enjoying dinner, playing cards and getting an early night’s sleep (I think this will be a running theme for the trek).

Day 4 was an acclimatisation day in Namche Bazaar having climbed a fair amount in the previous day. Already, some of the group were starting to feel a little bit sick, unable to stomach food and suffering from headaches. Thankfully, I still felt good and was pretty pleased with my trekking ability during the days. Compared to the rest of the group I have very little mountain trekking experience, but I seemed to be one of the fittest, which surprised me. However, now that I think about it, I spent a month in New Zealand hiking almost every day, I did a lot of walking in Australia, I spent two months in the Philippines during which, I visited the gym 4-times a week for conditioning and I then completed three weeks of intense karate training in Japan, so really I shouldn’t be surprised that I’m coping well.

Though it was an acclimatisation day, we had the option of completing a 4-hour hike, firstly to Syangboche, the second highest airplane runway in the world and then to a further lookout point which provided a panoramic view of many Himalayan peaks including Everest’s. That hike saw us ascending 440 metres to reach an altitude of 3880 metres. The height is an exciting element for me because prior to coming to Nepal, I don’t think I’d ever been more than 2,000 metres above sea level. It’s pretty exhilarating to know that with each day that passes I’m reaching altitudes higher and higher than I’ve ever experienced before. The lookout point was magnificent. It was so peacefully quiet and the peaks were so clear to view. I realise that I’m going to spend the next 10 days in constant view of the Himalayas and their beautiful snow-capped peaks and winding valleys but I don’t think I’ll ever get bored of admiring the sheer vastness and natural magnificence of it all.

It’s now 6pm which means I should have a big helping of spaghetti waiting for me! Tomorrow, we continue our trek of course and I will look forward to filling you in on it all soon.

Much love!


Sam

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