There are many reasons why one should consider a high altitude trip to the mountains. Whether it is a small day hike, or a longer trek or a mountaineering expedition depends largely on your interest and fitness. But the reasons remain the same.
Some do it for the thrill and adventure of getting to a place not easily accessible. Others do it as a test of mental and physical endurance and strength. A few others are driven by a sense of accomplishment that reaching the destination often provides. Many want to get closer to nature and absorb the beauty and the solitude.
I was never a trekker when younger. Why someone would pay money and spend time to get to a place where physical discomfort is guaranteed was beyond my understanding then. Even today, I sometimes have doubts.
But I have come around to the conclusion that getting close to the surreal beauty of nature only seen after a particular altitude and meeting people very different from those we see in everyday life are enough compensation for the aches and pains.
In my recent trek to Annapurna Base Camp which I completed in April, my experiences were similar. The astounding beauty of the Annapurna region in Nepal, the mind-boggling views of the mountains up close, and the chance to see Nepali village life and its people were opportunities that made the trek a memorable one.
The trek is a moderate to difficult one – no two ways about it. It is not just about the views and the forests and the people – those are the things one enjoys after taking care of the physical and mental aspects.
Acclimatization, hydration, strength, endurance, preparation, the right gear, enough sleep, good food, rain covers, snow protection – these are all things that need to be taken care of, first. Only then does nature reveal its grace to a body and mind ready for it.
The trek for our group started ahead of Nayapul – from Ghandruk to Kimrong, after a Kathmandu-Pokhara flight and a two hour drive from Pokhara. And incidentally, rain was our partner throughout that afternoon. We were blessed with our first view of the mountains that night at Kimrong Danda, making us wonder what more was in store.
The next day from Kimrong to Sinuwa felt like an unending stairway to heaven and beyond. We took a few breaths at Chhomrong over lunch only to proceed to more steps – up and down – and bridges over green villages on our way to Lower Sinuwa.
Machhapuchhare – the fish tail mountain – became our constant companion on this day and the next, providing us glimpses whenever the sky became clear, displaying itself at various angles, and looking astounding any which way you looked at it. The Annapurna range itself stayed mostly hidden.
The following day from Lower Sinuwa to Deurali via the pretty villages of Bamboo, Dovan and Himalaya, often through forests of rhododendrons and lush valleys crossing rivulets, was the real test of endurance and a lower body workout many times over.
The pleasant mountain views in the morning, followed by a hail storm in the afternoon and then walking over avalanche snow in the evening darkness made me laugh at the illusions of control that we harbour in our naive urban minds.
Our experienced guide, all of 60 years old, often sympathized, sometimes smiled, at our questions of ‘how far?’ and ‘how’s the route?’ with answers that started with ‘Let me say – just a bit’ and ‘It is mostly Nepali flat’ – which meant a terrain of ups and downs.
It was the next day, from Deurali to Annapurna Base Camp via Machhapuchhare Base Camp, that turned out to be the one when the grace of nature showered its blessings.
Walking through a steady ascent accompanied by light snowfall and mist as our companion, we reached Machhapuchhare Base Camp for lunch. We left it soon with sporadic views of mountains in sight, at first, simply because of the snow and mist cover.
It was only an hour later, when the mist cleared, while walking in the middle of snow in all directions that the amphitheater of nature started its show with a constant display of the entire range of mountains after every turn.
When we finally reached Annapurna Base Camp in the late afternoon, it seemed like I was standing on sacred ground surrounded by the mountain Gods. It is tough to escape coming face to face with our own littleness in the face of mighty nature up so close there.
I stood spellbound on snow as the setting rays of the sun soaked us in the stunning views of Macchapucchare, Himachuli, Annapurna South, Annapurna 1 and the entire massif with numerous peaks in whichever direction we looked.
It only got better on the following morning as the sun rose early, shining its light in all its glory on the 360 degree view of the mountains from Annapurna Base Camp. Nature had been kind, we had been very lucky to be showered by its grace. It was time to descend.
As we descended, the ability to neglect our legs as if they belonged to another body, while still observing things we had seen on our way up, in a different (literally brighter) light, turned out to be a skill of paramount importance.
That is when the stories about people I saw started taking root in my mind.
A woman porter taking the stairs seemed to be fighting more than just the load on her back. A lone trekker who asked us for directions seemed lost not just on the trek but in life. A noisy family of middle-aged women and men were sure to face some hilarious situations in their struggle to climb up the stairway to heaven.
A villager farming his land, a porter looking for a better life, a monk searching for peace, a guide missing his family and so many more seemed like starting points for stories from the mountains. Perhaps, they were climbing other mountains of their own.
Apart from the forests and the mountains, these impressions about people stayed with me as we completed the descent back into Pokhara. As we came back to the familiarity of the honking cars and milling crowds of Kathmandu, my body recovered from the soreness but my mind dwelt on the experience of the Annapurna Base Camp trek.
While it is not for everyone, for whoever decides that it is for him or her, it is certain to provide memories for a lifetime. Like one of my trek mates said, “Life ke asli maze yahi hai, bro.”
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