All posts tagged: mountain life

[Nepal: Diary of a First Time Trekker]: Day 3, First Day Of Proper Trekking

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It was here – the first day of proper trekking! I think we were all keen to put our hiking boots to good use (mine for their debut) and get stuck in. As our guide, Pasang, had briefed us the night before, today we were in for a long day. We needed to begin our ascent up the mountain, and that meant a long 8 hour hike up a steep stone staircase, through neatly terraced hillsides on our way to the top of Ulleri. As we rose early, the sun was not yet out and temperatures were cold. But as I quickly began to learn, it’s all about the layers in the Himalayas (rhyming unintentional) as after a couple of hours, the sun emerged mid morning and it warmed up extremely quickly, plus the sheer exertion of walking on a constant uphill made sure we had our sweat on. It was a constant striving to retain a good balance, but I made sure I was prepared – with about 4 to 5 layers to play …

[Nepal: Diary of a First Time Trekker]: Day 2, To Birethanti

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The next morning it was an early start, but the wake up call was somewhat softened by the fact that we were heading straight for the van. It was a driving day, meaning we could sit back and relax all we wanted as the driver took us all the way from Kathmandu to Pokhara, a journey normally done by flight. I say relax – but by that I mean if you are able to sleep, shut your eyes or even rest your head, sat in a van going over the bumpiest of gravel roads adorned with potholes every other second, cliff drops leading to deep ravines on one side and sheer high cliff faces on the other no doubt prone to frequent and dangerous rock fall. In my younger years I’d never been one for napping or sleeping on any sort of transport. I’d never be able to fall asleep on planes or trains and would be baffled at people who could have 10 minute power naps. However in my recent years of travelling, I’ve …