Poon Hill Trek Day 5: Ghandruk to Naya Pul/Pokhara

13.2 km, 1000m down.

On this last day of our trek, we woke up to sunshine and another great view.

The trail took us around the mountain while slowly descending down to the river, and it was easy, and a relief not having to climb more stone steps.

There were so many colourful butterflies.

This local man looked like a small troll.....

A few hours of 'Nepali flat' equals anything non-vertical! Time for a rest.

We reached the river and Naya Pul around noon,

and our car and driver took us back to Pokhara. We were very pleased with our selves, and had had a fantastic experience in the Himalayas.

We just managed to have lunch, overlooking the lake in Pokhara, before a thunderstorm broke loose. We were in a supermarket when it broke loose, and they provided small stools for us to wait out the rain. Nepalis are so friendly.

Soon the road 'disappeared', the gutters were filled with water, and we could not get across the street, without getting very wet. Some people crossing were up to their knees in water! The monsoon was supposed to be over by the end of September, but the weather doesn't always adhere to the calendar, obviously.

We picked up our luggage at the Lake Diamond hotel, and took a taxi to Raniban Resort above the lake. It was a funny and scary experience. The taxi was a small Suzuki, and there was barely room for the four of us and all our luggage. Due to the rain the windows fogged so the driver couldn't see anything, and the road up the mountain was so bumpy and full of holes that we got stuck. The men got out to push the car free, and then we left them to walk the rest of the way to ease the weight in the car. What a way to say thanks!  The car skirted all over the road, and there were several steep drops, so a bit scary. We got dropped off at the bottom of a LONG staircase up to the resort, and, luckily, a neighbour felt sorry for Tine and Dorte (he didn't know the men were coming), so he called the resort, who sent three people to help us carry the luggage up. What a relief! 

Raniban Retreat is a secluded hill top hotel, perched 420m above Phewa Tal lake, and the town of Pokhara. Raniban. We spent two nights here, relaxing, doing laundry, and enjoying the views of Pokhara, the valley and the Himalayas for the last time.

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For a better view you'll need a pilot's licence!

We have been swimming in the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth, and seen some of the highest places in the world here in Nepal, and this Nepali stamp is a great symbol of these experiences.

“To reach a great height a person needs to have great depth.”

Poon Hill Trek Day 4: Tadapani to Ghandruk

 7.2 km, 700m down.

The clouds had cleared over night, and we descended through the last mossy rhododendron forest, 

and along a clear creek, where Andy built an Inukshuk!

We reached Ghandruk around noon, and it started raining, just as we reached the hotel - again perfect timing by Yogen. We relaxed after lunch, and then Yogen walked us through the village, which is mainly inhabited by the Gurung people, who are of Tibeto-Burmese origin. We visited the Gurung museum and learned how they lived, and many of the tools and crops exhibited there are still used today. 

The blackboard in the next photo got covered in ash, and then the student would practice writing the letters or numbers by writing in the ash, then scrape it off and apply new ash.

Bamboo grows really fast here, and it is used for many things. This time a cute plant box.

We shared the trails with mules and people transporting food and wood to the villages.

The rest of the afternoon was spent sleeping, reading and just relaxing, and we all enjoyed an afternoon off our feet.

Pooh Hill Trek Day 3: Poon Hill And Ghorepani To Tadapani.

O10.8km, 700m down.

We left the hotel at 5:00am, wearing lots of clothes and our head lamps as it was still dark and cold, and climbed the 380m up to the top of Poon Hill at 3200m. It was tough 'jumping' out of bed and start climbing up more stairs at this altitude, but the view of some of highest mountains in the world was well worth it: Annapurna I (8091m), Dhaulagiri I (8167m), Annapurna South (7219m), and Fishtail mountain (6993m).

We enjoyed tea and croissants from the German Bakery while enjoying the sunrise.

After a sturdy porridge breakfast, and another look at the wonderful view, 

we continued out trek towards Tadapani.  The day continued with another gradual climb over a ridge at 3200m (second one in a day!) after which we descended some steep stairs.

The rhododendron forrest covered in moss was an amazing sight, as it was trees and not the bushes we are used to seeing. It must be amazing to trek here in March when they are all flowering. There are 32 different flower colours.

We saw many monkeys

and went through the lush forrest with many waterfalls.

The final stretch to Tadapani at 2721m went down a valley and up another 130m climb in less than 1 km. Finally, all the climbing of this trek was done, and we were very happy about that. Our porters relaxed by playing a game, and they had a lot of fun.

The oil barrel oven was working on full blast in the dining hall, so there was hot water in the shower (a treat!), and we were cosy while relaxing there and having dinner. Not too easy to leave the warmth and crawl into a very cold bedroom, but we had good blankets.

Poon Hill trek Day 2: Ulleri to Ghorepani.

Eight km and 1000m up.

We woke up to sunshine and wonderful views of the Himalaya. Sixty million years ago the Indo-Asian plate collided with the Eurasian continent, forming the Himalaya. And the Himalaya and is still growing at a rate of 6 mm a year as the Indo-Asian plate is still sliding. Nepal claims 10 of the world's 14 tallest mountains.

After breakfast we continued the climb up the mountain on more stone steps, and it took quite a while to get going. But today the steps were interchanged with more even terrain, while still slowly climbing. 

It was a very varied hike, as we passed several waterfalls, villages and a rhododendron forrest. We stopped for tea, and Dorte gave a small girl a couple of gummy bears which she liked. I rubbed my tummy, and she did the same after she had eaten them.

Lars took a short cut down the mountain side and fell, but luckily he only got a few scratches. Towards the end of the trek it started drizzling, and Mr. Rai was encouraging us to move ahead before it really started raining. We reached Sunny Hotel in Ghorepani at 2820 m around 2:30pm, and it was wonderful to have a hot shower. We almost felt like taking another one, just because we didn't know when the next one would be! The hot water is heated with solar power, so no sunshine, no hot water! Unfortunately, Ghorepani was covered in clouds, so there was no much of a view. After some hot tea, we found a warm place with Internet access, and caught up on our emails. 

It started raining again, and we really hoped it would clear by the next morning, so we could enjoy the view from Poon Hill. We had dinner at 6:00pm and were in bed by 8:00pm, as we were tired - again. Once you pass 2500m the air starts to get thinner, you breathe faster to get enough oxygen, and you can get altitude sickness. 

Poon Hill trek Day 1: Naya Pul to Ulleri

This 5 day 51 km circular trek is very popular as it is not as demanding and long as many other treks in the Annapurnas, but still has magnificent views. 

Day 1: Twelve kilometres; 1000m up and 169m down.

We hired a car and driver to take us and the two porters, Yogen and Udim. We had hired them to carry most of our luggage to the start of the trail head in Naya Pul. It was a bumpy one hour ride to get there, but with some amazing views of the Pokhara Valley. When we stopped at a corner store, we thought it was break time, but it turned out that we were in Naya Pul.

Then we started hiking up along the river, through small villages,

and along the rice fields. It was dry, but the trails was muddy after all the rain, the air was humid and the vegetation buzzed with the sounds of insects. The landscape was beautiful with low hanging clouds, and now and then sunshine on the mountains and the rice fields.

We shared the trail with many other tourists, locals, and horses and donkeys. We had a good lunch and rest at restaurant Green Land in Birethani along the Modi Khola river.

The local people were drying beans outside, 

and this pretty little girl was curious about us.

When we reached Tikhedungha, Yogen asked us if we were sure we wanted to do the long and steep climb up to Ulleri now or wait till tomorrow morning. We decided to the get the 550m climb over just 1.9 km over with, so up, up, up it went.

We got caught in a shower, which was welcomed as it gave us an excuse for a rest and a cup of tea. 5,979 steps and 2 hours later we finally reached Ulleri. I was very proud of my sister Tine from Denmark (far right picture below) as she found this part very hard, but never complained.

We started the day way down in the valley on this photo above. We stayed at the Good View Hotel where the rooms were very primitive ($3 a night!), the solar shower luke warm, the bed not the most comfortable, and the food so-so. We were in bed by 8 pm as we were quite tired. It was cold at 2020m when the sun went down. As the rooms had no insulation and no heating, sleep in a warm bed covered my thick blankets was our best option!