Annapurna Circuit Part I: Welcome to the Jungle

Day 1: Bus to Besisahar, hike to Bhulebhule; 5.6 miles

We were up early mostly due to excitement, but partially due to necessity. We thought we knew exactly where the bus stop was (it has to be where the bus dropped us off, right?). Wrong. We ended up running with our packs on to another bus station and made it just in time. Talk about pre-trek training.

Our 5 hour bus ride to the start of the trek was another workout of its own. With every bump and curve, we were thrown about the bus, forcing us to keep ourselves balanced, keeping our legs tight to stop our bags from flying around the bus, arms clinging tight to whatever we could. By the time we needed to start hiking, we were exhausted.

We got to Besisahar, the traditional start of the trek, and met a sweet solo trekker, Elena. The three of us grabbed some lunch, checked in with our trekking permits, and were on our way. Within the first 30 minutes, we had to cross a river in our boots, turn around due to losing the trail, and hike past huge jeeps and trucks on the road. We loved every minute. About 3 hours passed and we arrived in Bhulebhule to a lovely woman who was basically begging us to stay in her guesthouse. We checked out the room and gladly obliged.

Every muscle was sore and tired, we changed our sweat-soaked clothes, and sat out on the lovely deck to relax. We were finally on the Annapurna Circuit. Something we’ve been daydreaming about for months.

Day 2: Bhulbule to Syange. 8.7 miles

We woke up refreshed and sore, and excited about what the trail had in store for the day. The path was a constant up and down; “Nepali flat” as they say, “a little up, a little down.” It was a lovely hike with lots of running water. Not just river crossings, but it also felt like often, the river was flowing right down the trail we were walking on.

This stretch of the famed Annapurna Circuit winds through rice paddy fields, over super sketchy suspension bridges, alongside of wild marijuna fields, and through tiny villages.

As we walked deeper, we could see that the huge gorge we were in was growing wider, taller, and more vast. We felt humbled quickly. Then, as we turned a corner, we saw the most awesome thing:

All of the sudden, we were transported from sheer awe into a conicidental glee of hometown joy. The owner of this little shop was stunned to hear that Loveland was our home ski area, and we sat down and talked with him for a while. He had met a Coloradan on a trek a few years back, and just visited him in Denver last year. No, this Nepali did not ski (he laughed when I asked, and told me I was silly.) It was a refreshing dose of home away from home in a different way. Inspiring, to say the least.

We trekked on and had lunch at a lovely little cafe in Ghermu. Right after we left, we were caught in rain. Which tied us in closely to the massive waterfall we were able to see for the remainder of the day’s hike. We walked until we got to Syange, a waterfall town where we dried off, had some lemon tea, and appreciated the rest.

Syange is a town where many trekkers take a jeep to to begin their hike. So, we got to meet a lot of people who were starting their trek the next morning. It was here we met a lovely Isralie couple, Rit and her husband who invited us to celebrate Rashashanna with them. With apples and honey, they taught us to toast, “May your next year be as sweet as this apple! L’Shanah Tovah!” and take a bite for good luck in the new year.

Day 3: Syange to Tal; 6.8 miles

We began day 3 in the light rain (or waterfall mist?) and met up with a new friend, Bree from Seattle, among the scuttle.

The four of us trekked on, and came over many crested hills, and each proved to be more stunning than the last. We followed the a truly raging river which got more and more powerful until the town of Tal where it calmed out and you’d never know it was the same river.

We had a fun, chatty hike to Tal where we had a leisurely lunch of dal bhat, tea, and spring rolls. I explained to our friends my [un]healthy fear of leeches, just in time for Elena to find one in her sock. Barf. We had a rainy evening, and some friends we met the day before in Syange showed up at our guesthouse. Seeing acquaintances on the trail is like running into old friends at your favorite coffee shop when you didn’t even know they lived there. Super exciting, and you have so much to catch up on, even though its only been a day or two.

Day 4: Tal to Danaque. 6.2 miles

We woke up on day four to see the skies clear, and our first glimpses of huge, huge peaks. Kangaroo Peak shyly showed itself far down the valley, and we shook off the chill of the night before and found a refreshed energy to hike!

We said “farewell for now” to Elena and Bree who had a tighter schedule which demanded a quicker walk, while we had no agenda and wanted to take it slow. We saw many new friends at the checkpoint in Karte where we saw lots of trekkers statistics. The marketer in me was shamefully excited, and I have to share:

In September 2013, there were 2,522 trekkers who entered through this checkpoint. 578 Americans passed through in all of 2013.

A little perspective can spark a lot of humble excitement. I felt that I was in the great company of so many wonderful people who had passed through before us.

We had a relaxed lunch where we watched a family clean the contents of their entire kitchen to get ready for the busy trekking season. We were entertained by a son of the family’s who was frolicking and desperately trying to get our attention. It was endearing and adorable. After lunch, we took a side trek up to a quite unique town called Odar which was at the top of an impressive number of man-made stone steps. The villagers were so happy, friendly, and welcoming. It was a treat to be up there, and get the wonderful views of the farms and valley below as well as the mountains afar. We passed along many locals farming their land, and kids playing in the trees and felt a sense of childhood home.

We spent the night in Danaque, where we met back up with our Israli friends and some people they met along the trail. The entire town had no power due to the “load shedding” idea where neighboring towns share their power sources to save money. It was lovely for us, as we got an amazing post-afternoon rain rainbow view and had a fantastic dinner with friends by candlelight.

Day 5: Danaque to Chame. 7.5 miles

The morning granted us gorgeous views of big peaks, and were once again inspired by the awe that only the Himalayas can provide. We walked through the lovely little town of Thanchok and enjoyed the bigger and bigger views of the mountains as we progressed. We stopped for homemade cornbread and tea and a lovely chat with the owner who was excited about us being from Colorado. “OH! Big mountains!” he said. We assured him they weren’t as big as the peaks in his backyard but he wasn’t having it.

We proceeded to Chame where we ran into Bree and Elena again who had to keep trekking, but we stopped there for the night. We explored the town, and watched some local children play soccer alongside a row of big prayer wheels, saw a local woman expressionlessly pluck a chicken, and spun a prayer wheel that was 4 times as tall as I was which we had to grab on to, and walk around it to turn. There are literally paper prayers inside these wheels, and the Nepali believe that when you spin them, you are spinning the prayers upwards to the heavens. Its a lovely, humbling thought to embrace.

That evening, we hopped into the small, surprisingly hot, natural hot springs tucked into the hillside along a waterfall that feeds into the river and relaxed with some locals and other travelers while we reflected on how lucky we are.