Annapurna – A spiritual journey

Video prepared by Seema Parkhi: (102) Annapurna Base Camp (ABC)…Experience of lifetime 💕🙏March -April 2022 – YouTube

Thirteen is supposed to be an unlucky number. But for the six women and seven men team intent on completing the Annapurna Base Camp Hike, this proved to be a lucky number indeed.

Thirteen of us from different professions, backgrounds, temperaments, expectations and hiking experience, but bound together by a common goal, converged in Kathmandu, Nepal, on March 24^th 2022. How would the next nine days go? What would the trek open our eyes too? Would we succeed? How difficult will it be? Will we be awestruck? I am sure all these questions raced through each one of our minds leading up to this expedition.

But I am getting ahead of myself so let me start from the beginning.

Day 0: We all arrived in Kathmandu on different days and by different airlines; But we all met on March 24^th at the Hotel booked for us by the Nepal Hiking Team (NHT) to meet our Guide, Arun. We had heard that we were getting the best guide that the NHT had to offer and we were all itching to go. Earlier in the day most of us had taken the Grand Tour of Kathmandu to see the various temples – Pashupati Nath, Monkey Temple and the famous Boudhnath Stupa. We all came back to the Hotel to pick up our duffle bag with sleeping bag and Down Jacket (provided by NHT). The Duffle Bag would hold our 12 kgs of personal items that the porters would carry.

Ganga, the owner of NHT and our guide Arun were on hand in the evening to talk about the itinerary and answer any last-minute questions we might have.  Once the last questions were answered, money converted to Nepali Rupees, we all bid each other a hasty Good Night to run back up to our rooms to finish packing, weighing and repacking our duffle bags.

Day 1: Kathmandu >> Pokhara >> Nayipul >> Birethanti >> Tikhe Dunga (Sharp Stone)

The next morning, after checking out and keeping our luggage in storage, we all congregated in the Hotel Lobby with our Duffle Bags and our day pack. We were finally off on our adventure, and the first leg of our journey was the 23 minutes flight to the town of Pokahara. We all squeezed ourselves into the two jeeps and headed off to Kathmandu Domestic Airport. The flight to Pokhara gave us some stunning views of the snow-capped ranges of the Himalayas and our excitement knew no bounds. Soon the flight was over, and we were again traveling in Jeeps to make a brief stop at the Hotel where we were going to drop off our luggage (for folks who were going to stay in Pokhara). A quick pit stop and we were on our way to Nayapul village to start our trek.

The 90-minute drive had us staring at the changing urban to village landscape and the switchbacks that took us up into the hills. Pokhara looked like a beautiful city and less crowded than Kathmandu and had wider streets. The villages we were now traversing through had a charm of their own and we were all committing each detail to memory. Soon we were in Nayipul and pulled up to a small NJ kind of a strip mall with small eateries and convenience stores. Here we met the porters and the Assistant Guide, Gokul, who would be a large part of our lives for the next nine days.

Our first stop was in the village of Birethanti for lunch. The next stop was 3 hours away to Tikhe Dunga for our first night camp.

Our morning breakfast was an abbreviated packed box which we had all partaken at 6 am in the morning. Lunch was soon a memory and the all of us started following the porters and our guide to our first camp at Tikhe Dunga. We passed many villages and farms on rolling countryside. The day was sunny and hot and the 6 mile walk after a heavy lunch made me lag behind. I thought to myself again – what am I really expecting here? What should I pay attention to? What should I capture in my memories? Should I stop and take pictures or let the naked eye feast on the beauty and savor each second?

Soon I started lagging behind as I just could not take the heat. Our guide Arun, immediately saw the struggle and kept me company, slowly encouraging but keeping a watchful eye on me. Paresh Bhai recommended putting a wet towel around my neck. This helped a lot and brought my body temperature down. Somehow, I made the 6-mile trip to Tikhe Dunga hoping the evening would cool me further. On the way Arun explained about the various plants and kept me engaged. I rounded one final corner and came upon our first Lodge – Chandra Guest House – covered in flowers. It was an unexpected view and completely charming. We were all given room keys and from here on we learned how to purchase Wifi, phone charging services, hot showers and then getting ready simultaneously for the next day. After dinner, Arun asked how we were feeling and what we thought of our first day? He introduced the assistant guides and porters on the trip and told us briefly of what to expect the next day. We also introduced ourselves to the Porters and Guides whom we had met in Nayipu that afternoon.

It was now time to relax and a couple of us and the porters and guides danced for a while. This is when we were introduced to the Nepali song – ‘Phool Phool phulera’

Day 2: To Ghorepani via the towns of Ulleri and Banathanti

The next morning after a sumptuous breakfast and after paying for our Hot water/Wifi/Cell Phone charging, we began the hike anew with great expectations. We knew it was mostly uphill and we had to climb a lot of stone steps and everyone was mentally ready for this challenge. After crossing a small suspension bridge, we started the steep climb to the small town of Ulleri on the mountainside. The stone steps seemed unending, and the day was getting hotter. Fortunately, unlike the first day, the Sun was behind us and out of our face. We soon reached Ulleri and we took a short pit stop to rest up and go to the bathroom. We were soon on our way to the next pit stop to have lunch. On our way we crossed a lot of tourists/backpackers/hiker and came across a small church where the Sunday service was going on. There was beautiful choral singing and it was just unusual to find a church in a village like Ulleri. The lunch location was breathtaking and you could see a deep valley layered with different shaded mountains. This was the town on Banathanti. Little did we know that we were to shortly traverse through those very mountainous regions to reach ABC.

Our onward march now entered a very different landscape. We were in a forest area and there were not as many steps to climb but rolling hills which our guide, Arun, called as ‘Nepali Flats’. We were thankful for the shade the forest provided and saw some Rhododendron trees. Arun mentioned that the Rhododendron flower was the official Nepali flower and it was illegal to break it from a tree or bush. We did see some local women pick the flowers up from the forest bed and they mentioned that it was used to make wine and had medicinal properties.

We soon came to a little shack in the middle of the forest and it was a Smoothie Bar! We all sat down around there to take some pics and buy smoothies. Seema bought a Rhododendron smoothie and I must say it was refreshing. Soon we were again herded off and asked to begin the last part of our journey to Ghorepani.

We continued through the dense forest and soon saw Gorepani in the distance and of course Arun pointed out to the topmost building on the hillside to tell us that we were staying there. Not only that, but Jolly and my room was on the 3^rd floor and we cribbed all the way up to our room and just plonked down on the bed. We were surprised to know that we had our own attached private bathroom! This was to be our only private bathroom on this trip. We crawled into bed and came down around 7.30 pm for dinner. Sheer exhaustion was making me sleepy but I had to eat to ensure that I ate well. Jolly and I went down for dinner after taking a nice hot shower. We could not see anything from our balcony as the clouds were hanging low. Again, after dinner, Arun talked about what we were going to do the next day and as we had to wake up early to go to Poon Hill, before coming down for breakfast, and then our next onwards march, everybody scattered to their rooms quickly.

Day 3: Morning hike to Poon Hill and back to Ghorepani; Ghorepani to Chiule via Tadapani

The next morning, we were all up and ready to go to Poon Hill by 4.30 am. We had started taking Diamox, a day earlier, in preparation for Poon Hill because of the altitude gain. In a single file, we moved up the mountainside again climbing stone steps all the way up to Poon Hill (90 mins). No sunrise for us as the clouds were hanging low, but the early morning dawn made visible the following amazing ranges – Dhaulagiri, Annapurna, Himchuli, Macchpucchare and Manaslu. There is a fire tower structure at the top of Poon Hill, a small tea stall and plenty of views. We spent some time taking pictures and enjoying the view but had to again leave in 90 minutes time to go back to the Hotel, have breakfast and start our hike to the town of Chiule.

The hike grew more beautiful minute by minute and we were all totally immersed in the beautiful flaming pink, red and white Rhododendron forest.  There was miles of color all along the way and we marveled and took plenty of pictures. We were again back to climbing another mountainside and coming down the other end through a deep and shady valley to our remote lunch break spot. After another sumptuous lunch looking at Rhodos everywhere, we continued our trek through the town of Tadapani (uphill) and all the way down again to Chiule perched on a mountainside facing another valley.

It had been a long day and there was no hot shower available as the mule had broken the hot water pipe. We all stayed in their restaurant/kitchen area next to the fireplace and kept ourselves warm. The nights were now distinctly getting chilly.

We now had a set routine – Wake up at 6 am, Breakfast at 7 am and on the road by 8 am. After a late dinner, Arun again explained to us what we had in store for us the next day and off we all went scrambling to our beds.

Day 4: Chiule to Chomrrong to Sinuwa (Upper)

The next morning, we found out that the puppy who was sick and throwing up outside had passed away. The mother had started barking around 2 am in the night and we all saw her walk around the beautiful front yard all dejected.  One of the memories from this hike that will stay forever with me is to see the mother dog go from person to person to get some sympathy. After breakfast we had to walk downhill (on dreaded stone steps again) to reach the river and cross the suspension bridge. The mother dog followed us all the way down and at some point, she must have gone back for we did not see her again.

From the suspension bridge, it was all uphill again through rolling terraced fields up, up and away to the town of Chomron, a Gurung locality. Some of the houses there were really old but you could see fresh new construction along the hillside too. Our restaurant where we were supposed to have lunch was again at the top of the hill and facing the hillside where we would go down (steps again), cross another suspension bridge and walk up the next steep hill to reach our camp for the night – Sinuwa. We were of course not staying at lower Sinuwa, but upper Sinuwa.  The guide had explained to us that the town of Sinuwa would be the last town we would pass through. After that were only commercial establishments for tourists to stay and eat at. After lunch, as had become routine now for us, we again started our hike and climbed down the valley through stone steps to a wholesale outpost where you could buy Namkeen, Toilet Paper, soap, etc. We had a quick break there and started the uphill journey to Sinuwa (Upper). On the way up we had to shelter on one side as a group of donkeys came barreling down the mountainside. It was a little scary but they had momentum going and would not stop. Soon, we were at our guest house and everyone started unpacking and getting into line to take a shower. After dinner that day, Arun mentioned that we were soon leaving the villages behind and we started anticipating our hike to ABC. Some of us also started showing signs of stomach ailments and that was disconcerting. Would everyone be ok to hike the next day?

Day 5: Sinuwa to Bamboo to Davon, to Himalaya and then Deurali

Our next day was critical as we were going deeper into the valley and going down first from Sinuwa to Bamboo and from there all the way uphill to Deurali where we had to camp in the night. Like I said, some of us had started showing signs of exhaustion compounded by stomach ailments and medicines were shared between the hiking team. We continued taking Diamox, eating right and ensuring we had boiled water (cooled down).

The next morning, we all woke up to see the magnificent view of Macchapucchare staring so close to our faces. It was truly magical. After breakfast, everyone again geared up for Day 5 and our march into the Annapurna Sanctuary area. We climbed down (on stone steps) to the established area of Bamboo and two dogs (one male and one female) followed us all the way to Dabon to Himalaya (lunch here). After lunch, we again sped up as we wanted to reach Deurali before it got too dark. Some of us were lagging behind and we were worried about them but our guide Arun handed us over to the Assistant Guide, Gokul, and we made haste for Deurali. The landscape was decidedly getting remote. Whereas the area of Bamboo was completely covered in Bamboo trees, the vegetation became sparser nearer to Himalaya and to reach Deurali we had to cross a icy patch of snow.

Deurali, perched high up on an outcrop with the river gurgling and gushing below and the entire valley unfolding before our eyes, is a remote outpost. It was extremely cold and it was difficult to stay in our allotted rooms. We all took our shower and congregated in the kitchen/dining area. We took blankets from the rooms and sat waiting for members of the hiking team who were running late to show up. Soon through the darkness we saw the lights from the headlamp and knew our friends had made it to camp in Deurali. The next day we were supposed to be in ABC and we eagerly awaited our instructions from Arun.

Day 6: Deurali to ABC via MBC

The plan was to start from Deurali and head over across the river to the other side to avoid an avalanche prone area; walk for 30 minutes and then cross over the river again and walk till Macchapuchhare Base Camp for lunch.  The day was sunny and cold and the looming mountains provided a fantastic backdrop for many a picture. The jagged, saw tooth edge mountains on both sides with waterfalls gushing down to frozen vistas will forever stay in my mind. I tried soaking in the quietness and the aloofness of the ranges. We were soon happy to see Macchapuchare Base Camp and knew we were inching closer to ABC.

At MBC, Arun pulled out an Oximeter to take everyone’s oxygen level reading. We had already started feeling tingling sensation in our fingers. After lunch, the weather started turning and the clouds started hanging lower and lower. The weather change and the landscape change made me anxious to get to ABC. There was frozen snow everywhere and all of us quietly and steadily started hiking up to ABC. Within 90 minutes we heard yelling ahead of us and saw that we had reached the Welcome to ABC Sign. I asked Gokul how much further we had to walk and he said not more than 10 minutes. As we could not see anything around us, we did not realize that we were almost at Base Camp. Soon we saw the shape of the building through the clouds and breathed a sigh of relief that we were finally at ABC.

We got our rooms but no one wanted to shower as it was too cold and we all sat in the dining area where there was plenty of warmth. After a full dinner, Arun told us to be up by 5.30 am the next morning to be able to walk up to the viewing area to see the sunrise. We still could not see anything around us and went to bed, feeling cold and over excited.

Day 7: ABC to Deurali, to Himalaya to Bamboo

The next morning I could hear Seema asking everyone to get up and see the mountains. What an astonishing sight! We were surrounded on all sides by the magnificent mountain ranges and the clear sky was dimpled with a million tiny stars. The dawn was as clear as the previous day was cloudy. We could not contain ourselves and were all off along with the others to the viewing area to witness sunrise gelding the mountain peaks gold.

Each incremental increase in daylight unfolded a beautiful vista. The mountains were soon golden at the top and everyone took plenty of pictures. It was difficult to leave this view and go back to the Base Camp. But we knew we had to go. We had breakfast and as some of our team members had requested for Wifi connection to show their families the mountain ranges, we had to wait for the sun rays to kick start the wifi router. Soon, we had to leave and took plenty of pictures again at the ABC sign as the mountains were now visible behind it. I kept looking backing as we headed back the way we had come. The day was clear and I marveled at the frozen empire around. We soon reached MBC. After a short break we started our walk to Bamboo dropping almost 6000 ft in elevation on a single day. This was a long day and it did not help when it started raining after lunch at Himalaya. For the next two hours, we went through pouring rain all the way down to the established area of Bamboo. Boy, was I happy to see Bamboo!

Day 8: Bamboo to Jhinu

The next morning, we again started the uphill climb to Sinuwa and from there all the way down to the town of Chomrong and back again up the hill to the lunch area. From here, we needed to take another fork in the road to arrive at the town of Jhinu. The lodge here was beautiful and had very pretty flowers decorating it outside. The view and vista in front was amazing. It was now time to party and boy did we party in style. We invited the porters and guides to have a drink with us and soon someone had songs playing on the speaker. It was the end of the hike for many people at the lodge and we all broke into desi dancing. We had also collected the tip money to be handed to the porters and guides and after dinner, Arun asked all of us to speak about our journey. It was very emotional as each of us got back and talked of our special memory. Manu handed over the Tip envelope and we were all crying by then.

Arun again explained what we would be doing the next day.

Day 9: Jhinu to Pokhara and for some back to Kathmandu

Day 9 was the shortest hiking day as we barely walked for 45 minutes before we came to a long suspension bridge. On the other side, were waiting 2 jeeps, to take us back to Pokhara. Again, we took a lot of pictures. I am very proud to say that many of us in the hiking group decided to give away our shoes, socks, clothes, jackets, hiking poles etc. to the porters and guides. We took the Jeep to the town of Pokhara. The road was rocky with many switchbacks. Somehow, we managed to reach Pokhara in one piece. Some of us had to return to Kathmandu and they went to the Airport to catch their flight. We were staying in Pokhara for some additional days and came to the Hotel Lake Star.

And so ended our 9-day expedition. This was mostly logistics that I wrote.

A lot of us were affected spiritually by the mountains and we learned so much about life from our humble guides and porters.  They put their heart and soul in making this a fabulous experience for us and no one was left behind to traverse alone. Each Guide and Porter made us feel special and looked after. We are grateful to Nepal Hiking Team and Ganga ji, for providing us with an unforgettable and special journey.

Our head guide, Arun, never failed to ask each of us how our day went and made sure we were taken care of. We ate like Kings throughout our expedition, wanting for nothing. And Gokul’s day never ended. He was forever running around herding us through the mountains in the day and ensuring we had everything that we wanted to eat and drink.

Desi Outdoors (Vivek Jain – I am looking at you) made it happen along with Nepal Hiking team. I can’t stress enough on the team spirit that made us look after our fellow hikers. We all made it, we all lived it and we all came back home in one piece. Thank you Annapurna, we bow to you.

• Guides – Arun, Gokul, Suman and Ganesh
• Porters – Shambhu, Amrit, Raju, Ramkrishna, Sagar, Kiran, Suraj, Kesab
• Guest Houses – Chandra Guest House (Tikhe Dunga), Guest House The Hungry Eye (Ghorepani), (Mountain Discovery Lodge, Chiule), Sinuwa, New Panorama Hotel, Deurali, Sanctuary Lodge (ABC), The Bamboo Hotel and Restaurant (Bamboo), Hotel Evergreen (Jhinu)
• Hike Lead and Coordinator – Manu Marulachary
• Hiking team from New Jersey /Pennsylvania- Paresh and Parul Patel, Harmohinder Oberoi (Mindy), Jolly Butti (JB), Manjeet Chawla, Seema Parkhi, Rajeshree Kulkarni, Haresh Dashputra (Dash), Siraj Merchant, Jagadeesh Aluri, Vineet Kumar and Anagha Yerande

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