Lata Marang April 2, 2001 Early AM. As we walked up to Lata Marang cutting throught the rising rive slope and looking at the huge white and brown peaks looming before us it was easy to see why people think the high mountains are the abode of gods, that they are holy places. Yeaterday we made great progress with six hours of hiking. Heather was a trooper through the last two hours after the porter had gone back to Tal and we hiked up a deep Rhododendron forest with a specatcular clear green waterfall crashing among the smooth red cave maw below the broken foot bridge. 50 degrees F out and chilly, we stood in the cold mist of the waterfall marvelling at the perfect clear green waters. It was a struggle to climb out of the valley gorge adn teh drizzle sprayed and dulled as we went up. We were rewarded at the top by a typical wild west looking three-sided kitchen with a steaming cup of reasonably priced tea and cripsy Roti (fried bread) rings. For the first two and a half hours yesterday we hiked in silence - excercising to only think of what we directly experieinced on the trail - it was not easy but energized us nonetheless.

Lower Pisang April 3, 2001 Evening. Yesterday night spent in a chilly budget village called Biranti with funny charcoal-smudged young people that gae me breaks for speaking some Nepali. Had conversation about Maoists with a Nepali Guide named Santosh and an American from Seattle named Joanna at the equally shithole hotel next door to ours. Today's walk was a glorious slow uphill 2.45 hours as the valley opened up. Annapurna II was a huge sweeping bald eagle shining in the clear air. After we stopped for pie Heather's spirits opened up and the gloom lifted. I have not heard any high praise from her yet on the view but maybe soon. This town of Lower Pisang is a knockout - old stone buildings very Tibetan, swooping glacial peaks dizzyingly all around. We found a hotel with private bath and big bed - Heather just flat out ran with her bag here. The room upstairs is the first toasty one we've had filled with young people to chat up. By the way we passed through the village of Chame yesterday and it was ultra-charming with everyone engaged in some useful activity - painting, cleaning, sewing, husking corn. All day we alked through a fraigrant and peaceful pine forest. Good thing since I made a stinky every ten minutes for some reason. Next Entry

 

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