Fewa Prince Pokhara

... that does the same. Slower granted, but with determination that makes me turn, half expecting to see Death at her heels.

Yes, life happens here. The tourist trade forces the constant movement of goods, everything from chickens to tanks of gas. To the furthest reaches they go, ensuring we're provided some semblance of the comfort we expect, even at five thousand metres. Teams of mules, their bells ajingle push us aside as a young boy urges ...

... couple and their guide Sharee.

Day 5 - Danaqyu to Chame 12km now at 2710m
After 48 hours of heavy rain, luckily the skies were clear and the sun was out. Everyone was relived and rushed down to where the bridge used to be, the army had set up a temporary bridge and was helping everyone cross the river. The trail was really busy as so many people had been stuck so it was follow the leader for a while but we arrived in Chame at 1pm just as ...

... to get to it, and it was already dusk. Raju apparently mentioned this to us but both of us did not register this fact and paid for it as we dragged ourselves up the bloody hill in complete darkness, over rocky, uneven, ankle breaking terrain.

Sue, who was wearing sandals, only wanted to make sure there were no leeches. Raju kept saying, "No leeches." No leeches...

As we ascended further, there was dew on the grass. This time Raju said, "Ok, maybe some ...

Early start today and heading to Gandruk. It is kind of off the main trail (coming from the Hot Springs) but I am quite interested in seeing this village perched on the edge of another "forested and hilly area" Or maybe it is that I am not quite done with the numerous "stone" steps all the way up and then all the way down!!!! It is once again great scenery all the way up and up and up!!!!

... late and the cave was a really long way away and to go back up. She kinda yelled cause we wouldnt go with her but we just smiled, 'Namaste, Thankyou' and she shook her head and walked off...yeah we thought we'd give it another halfa and if no cave then we'd turn back, we had torches. So another 45min later and im out of water and sweating like crazy and we decided we were not giving up cause it had to be here somewhere and this random guy jumps out from a corner and tells ...

... of the Bob Marley, it was an easy decision to stay here for two nights before pushing on to Jomson (a further 1100metres below us) and we promptly embarked on feeding frenzy involving Yak Curry, Yak/Cheese and Bean fajitas, pizza etc. Still at a high altitude the evenings were still cold but the afternoon sun was hot and some of the aches dropped away over the course of our stay here, with processions of monks every evening. So the thirteenth day broke and once more it was time to pull on ...

... When the bus did come, it was quickly filled with locals, and we were told that we could go, but we'd have to ride on top. That two hour ride was one of the scariest things I've ever done. The one lane road was new and very bumpy, and we were sitting on a little mountain of luggage desperately trying not to fall off during the constant lurching to one side or another. At one side was a big scary cliff, and on the other was a hundreds-of-meters drop off to the river ...

... peaks on display today. But the terraced foothills and the glittering lake were enough for me. Maybe I'll catch the big snowy guys next time...



A HUGE thankyou to Jeanette, Claire, Anna and Natasha, whose birthday dollars paid for this thrill and sent me "flying without wings" - sorry, but I couldn't resist a chees y Westlife quote as it's for you Sligo girls! Thanks a million!

... still known as the Terai, the lowland strip before the mighty northern mountains, although it actually encompasses a number of separate and distinct geographical zones of low hills and marshy ground. Sixty million years ago this would have been the northern edge of the giant Indian plate that collided with Eurasia.

One of the first towns we passed through in this landscape was Bhairawa. We stopped there for a few minutes and were able to observe the people from the bus. After ...