The Annapurna Circus part 1 (is there anyone left in France?)

October 6 - October 19
The 109 miles ended up taking eight and a half hours! Its a slow road at the best of times, snaking its way up hill out of Kathmandu, and the problem was compounded by the start of Dasain festival - a time when many people return to their families. It was an entertaining enough journey - a DVD bus no less - we had a Nepali version of 'Now thats what I call Music Vol 1' to watch & listen to four times. People were on the roof, with goats, one way tickets for them, as they were to be sacrificed. We started the trek on the 6th, with the only deadline being to be in Kag Beni on the 19th, for the trek to Upper Mustang. This gave us a relaxed itinerary and plenty of time to acclimatrize before heading over the Thorung La, the 5416m pass that takes you from Manang district over into Muktinath - very much 2 worlds colliding.

I had made this trek in Spring 2000, and was slightly taken aback by the volume of trekkers in this peak season - obviously people are no longer concerned about the political situation here. The first few days saw us catch the end of this years late monsoon, so most afternoons were wet, with the following mornings trail occassionally alive with leaches. By day 4 this had eased up as we entered the drier region of Manang District. Exceptional views of Annapurna 2 from Pisang, and Lamjung Himal and Manaslu from Chame were pre pass highlights. The volume of trekkers - most of whom were all following the same itinerary meant finding a room could be tricky. Many of the groups sent off one of their porters as a runner to nab the rooms, leaving heavily bagged Western & Kiss in their wake.

Getting over the pass healthily was very much the focus for the next few days, so 3-4 litres a day each, regular trips to the loo, plus acclimatization walks on rest days was the norm. We iopted for a 6am departure from the foot of the pass, which got us there for 10am, there were about 30 of us, including a large German group whose excellent guide took time out to build a commemorative cairn for one of his previous group members who had died here 2 years earlier. Some cheery Dutch trekkers joined us in downing a swift noodle soup, before a 3 and a half hour skip down the other side! Prayer flags were tied to the thousands already at the pass. Ell presented one to her dad, and I for my grandparents. Mission accomplished. Its one of the truly charming features of this region that the continually turning prayer wheels and fluttering prayer flags carry these messages across the land.

Pete, you will be delighted to hear that the Kag Beni babes are still here - running a lodge whilst looking way too stylish! We are having a well earnt rest after returning from Upper Mustang, thats 23 days worth of walking so far - we have named one of the hills, Kag Beni Hill, it keeps us entertained. Its brighter today, but blowing a gale - been a lovely day off. Tomorrow we start what should be a leisurely descent over 7 days, where we intend to drink beer and eat steak.