Day 2-3 – The Annapurna Diaries

Finally, the 1st day of trekking. After a breakfast for champions, we sat down for an interminable wait to get a shared jeep to take us to the trailhead at Syange. 

Got in the jeep, packed like sardines only to get off again because of a jeep owners association fracas. 

Escalated quickly enough with the police being called in force and a jeep being seized. (Ours actually)

2 hours now. Waiting to see if this will get resolved. 

Ok, so it’s 4 hours now so we will need to leapfrog Syange and head direct to Chamje foregoing the 1st trek day because if afternoon rain predictions. 

Luckily I had the company of a lovely couple from UK, John and Margo, stuck in the same pickle and can of sardines as I. If you guys read this, then, thank you for a morning of fun. 

The jeeps finally back in service we boarded to go on a 2.5 hour Jeep Track trip, if you could even call it that, to Chamje and checked in. 

Wonder of wonders I still have a western WC. 

This place is beautiful, surrounded by the tallest rock formations on both sides with the roar of the Marsyangadi, the only noise to be heard. At the moment, I seem to be the only trekker here and am content to curl up outside with my Kindle and truly relax. It’s 4:30 in the evening and the temperature has dropped to 5C. Finally beginning to feel the mountain weather. 

So, on retrospect – Not the 1st day of trekking after all.

It’s going to be an early dinner and off to bed for an early start tomorrow to Bagarchhap. 

Early start today with breakfast at 6:15 and out the doors at 7:00am. 

Walked straight down the gorge to the Marsyangadi river and crossed over to the eastern side via a bouncy suspension bridge. Then the climbing began, and in earnest. It just didn’t seem to end but finally we hit some Nepali Flats (A little bit up and a little bit down). After 2.5 hours of walking and 6kms done we reached the Manang district arch and then Tal. 
We had now moved from Hindu territory to Buddhist regions. 

At Tal permits were checked, tea was consumed and off we went toward Dharapani for lunch. 

Walking along the sides of the gorge was unlike anything I can describe. Steep drops along one side, tall cliffs reaching for the skies on the other, lesser hills towering above them capped with snow from yesterdays rain. These snow capped peaks were too small and insignificant to warrant a name.  

Back home these pedestrian Nepali hills would have been mythical giants. 

3 hours and 7 kms later of which only the 1st 500 m was on the trail, (a steep rough cut path to get us out of the gorge and onto the jeep track), we finally reached Dharapani for a welcome break and hot food. 13kms and 5.5 hours so far. The road from Tal to Dharapani was swelteringly hot and all I could think of was cold orange juice. Lunch break was a long one and a half hours post which we set off for the last one hour (4km) of the walk to Bagarchhap. 

It’s now cold and threatening to rain. Out came the jacket again as I trudged wearily along with just one objective – to finish.

Today was my first day of trekking on the circuit and a trial by fire, so to speak with an 18 km long trek, with varied pathways, rough cut stairs, rocky ascents and muddy descents, jeep tracks, the sun, the cold and mostly beautiful vistas all around. 

I survived today.

Onward to tomorrow.