On the trail - Day One

Thursday, May 9th

Meg and I walked down the quiet, shuttered Kathmandu street before dawn this morning. For once the streets were almost quiet. By now they are bustling with bright colors, sharp smells and a cacophony of sounds. But we are not there. 

We whizzed through the domestic terminal, and before we knew it, we were boarding our 20 passenger Twin Otter plane for the trip 90 miles and 5,000 feet of elevation into the mountains. The plane was loud - the flight attendant passed out cotton balls for our ears. It was also terrifying and exhilarating to fly through huge cottonball clouds, wondering if the pilots would be able to land. They fly only by sight. But eventually they dived down and we magically found ourselves on the short 1,500 foot runway. 

And as I climbed out of the hatch and descended the ladder, I spotted my friend TA, waiting to board. There was only time for a quick hug and this photo - I was turning my head to "meet" TA's partner Marion when Meg snapped the picture, and there was no time for a retake. 

Outside the airstrip, past the throngs of porters hoping for work, there was no road. No cars. Just stone steps up and down - the trail.  After a quick stop at a tea house to reassure you all that we survived we started hiking and promptly got lost. We wandered through the Lukla daily market before we rejoined the main trail. 

We need to gain about 9,000 feet of elevation on this trip, but the first day was mostly downhill. 300 meters of down gave my thighs quite a workout - they're still sore. But the terrain was amazing. Much of the trail is made of stone - there is a lot of it here. Fields are carefully barricaded off with waist high stone walls, allowing the animals to run free. And there are many animals. Chickens getting shooed out of houses, dogs sleeping just about anywhere, and the cows and horses who use the trail as pasture. Yak bells herald the approach of trains of donkeys or Dzongkha, yak- like beasts. We will see real yaks farther up. 

The trail is also the superhighway for all the human inhabitants of the region. Kids going to school, women going shopping with small children in tow, Trekkers, and of course the porters with their monster loads. 

Nepali women with small children, porters with monster loads, kids walking to school, and a few hikers made up the human inhabitants of the trail. Dogs and chicken show up around every village. 

We crossed our first bridges too. I'm sure ( actually, I am) that they are strong and safe. But they take getting used to. Huge cables stretch from one side of the river to the other, holding a metal floor and chain link sides, decorated with tattered prayer flags. Walking across by yourself involves some swaying. Sharing the bridge with others means all sorts of competing vibrations. It's not a good idea to share the bridge with animals. I'm getting the hang of looking down at the floor of the bridge without looking down to the river rushing dozens or hundreds of feet below. 

We hiked as far as we could, knowing that it would help with the long second day awaiting us. We ended up in a charming lodge in Monjo. We sprung for a room with attached bathroom, which included hot showers. Bliss. An early bedtime was in order for our aching bodies, so we snuggled in warm and tight. 

Coming soon: the Namche Hill