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| Day 9-13 Bazara-Goeche La Trek 2014, WW | |
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| | Day 9-13 Bazara-Goeche La Trek 2014, WW | | | |
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Day 9-13 Bazara-Goeche La Trek 2014, WW
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| Hiking | 30.46 Miles |
4,749 AEG |
| | Hiking | 30.46 Miles | 10 Hrs 32 Mns | | 2.89 mph |
| 4,749 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no linked trail guides |
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| no partners | | Part one: http://hikearizona.com/trip=105408
Part two: htp://hikearizona.com/trip=105742
Day 9:NOW We're in the Himalaya As I said in Part Two, Dzongri is a destination in itself for many tourists who visit Sikkim. They trek 2-3 days to get there, then climb to the viewpoint called Dzongri Top for an up-close view of Khangchendzonga. The mountain is visible from Darjeeling on clear days from "Tiger Hill", but Dzongri gets you closer to the action. My visit to the viewpoint in 2012 was spectacular, and we met a number of other trekkers there with whom we struck up lasting friendships. The general enthusiasm you find up there is comparable to being on a boat floating through the bottom of the Grand Canyon on day 1, only more international.
We hit the trail at about 3:30am in order to catch dawn over the high peaks. The climb is about 600', and while it's reasonably steep, it's nowhere near what we'd been doing the first days of the trek. The crystal blue skies and dawn glow on the mountains was worth the effort. Many of the mountains we were seeing were by now feeling like old friends, and it was fun trying to put names to all the peaks. The other trekkers on the summit weren't quite as friendly and open as the first time I visited, but I wondered if that was a factor of our being such a large group. It could also have been that rather than being European as many were in 2012, the majority of the visitors this time were from India and China, so we had even greater cultural differences.
We headed back into camp for breakfast and to finish packing our gear before hiking on to Tangsing. The trek from Dzongri to Tangsing is particularly beautiful because of the amazing views of my favorite peak, Mt. Pandim (6,691m or 21,400'). Although you can see Pandim from Dzongri Top, it is the eastern ridge of the basin, so photos don't work in the early morning. However, as we headed northeast in the mid-morning, we were treated to breathtaking views every step of the way.
We also had amazing views of Black Kabru. This lower peak is rarely covered in snow, and according to my guide was the destination of sacred pilgrimages by Sikkimese kings (who were also holy men). Climbing Black Kabru is prohibited now. It is also prohibited to climb Pandim - in fact, it's believed that no one has ever visited the summit of that mountain. Maybe that's why it's my favorite, I always love believing that there are places on earth that have never felt the human foot.
Tangsing is a broad meadow at the bottom of the Prek Chu valley, and it's a common stopover point for treks heading up to Goeche La. Here there were almost as many ponies in use for packing as yaks - and ponies tend to have higher, tinkling bells. It makes for a peaceful evening in the mists, listening to the delicate bells over the roar of the river...
Day 10: A Step Closer to Heaven Tangsing at about 12,600' is far from the highest of the camps we'd use on the trek, but it's proximity to the massive peaks makes it feel even more...well, Himalayan. We were rousted from our tents early yet again to hike up to a dawn viewpoint. We grumbled about it a bit, but our guide scolded us that we could be "lazy" when we went home - we were in the mountains now and we should not miss a thing. He was right, of course. (He's a very devout Buddhist if there's such a thing, and had a lot of life lessons to teach us throughout the trip.)
Binay almost had a mini-mutiny on his hands when we reached the vista on the ridge above camp and the clouds and fog were completely obscuring the mountains. Lucky for him it didn't last, and the peaks appeared as if on cue. This time, he'd instructed the porters to bring up tea for us to enjoy with our dawn light show. Really, you can't beat that. Hot tea and brilliant snow covered mountains. What a life!
We headed back down to Tangsing knowing that our hike to the next camp at Lamuney would be very short (less than 4 miles). We persuaded Binay to let us take a leisurely breakfast and breakdown rather than rushing on. Even though this might mean that we didn't get the very best campsite, and that the winds might make putting up our tents more challenging (afternoons and wind are a given at Lamuney), I think the porters were glad for a little break in the action. They were clowning about and enjoying themselves all morning.
We reached Lamuney (13,400')before lunchtime anyway, and luckily beat the winds. The fog rolled in hard, though. I took a little solo jaunt down by the river and spent a little solo time in the wilds, hidden more by the fog than by any distance from the camps. I was pretty anxious about the hike up to the main event: Goecha La the next morning... In 2012 I decided against going because I was quite sick with a head cold and leftover Delhi Belly. This time, though, there were no excuses. Chung Wang in particular was convinced that I would make it to the first viewpoint (15,000') if he had to carry me himself. No matter what, tIt would be an intimidating climb up there, in the dark and near freezing temps. I worked really hard not to let my anxiety get the best of me all night.
That night, we still played cards and dice and ate a hearty meal, but I think many of us were just crossing our toes in secret, hoping for the best the next day...
Day 11: Goecha La First, I should explain about Goecha La and the "three viewpoints". Common practice among guides now is to only take people to a hill top 1,600' above Lamuney and call that spot "Goeche La". They don't even let on that the "real" Goecha La is still much further up. The second viewpoint is another hour's hike one-way, and involves dropping about 400' and regaining it plus another 300' on top of that. It's way more than most trekkers can handle. The actual Goecha La at more than 16,000' is still another hour beyond that, and much of the year involves walking through deep snow. I figured from the beginning that I'd be happy with viewpoint 1 - afterall, it was much further than I'd made it before, and the views are supposed to be pretty freaking incredible. Well, I'm here to tell you that they are!
We walked in the dark for more than an hour before the sun began to warm up the glacial valley. This meant walking past Samiti Lake, in fact inches from the shore, without being able to see more than what your headlamp would illuminate. Creepy. The slow team made it to Viewpoint 1 perhaps a little after the magic moment when alpenglow hit Khangchendzonga - but not too late to have a magical couple hours with the mountains. Two members of the faster crew decided to push on for viewpoint 2, which they later assured us was phenomenal. Binay and one of the porters went all the way to Goecha La - post-holing in thigh-deep snowdrifts (the porter, Bisay, only had on cheap foam shoes, and nearly lost one).
Back to my humble perch at viewpoint 1... Now I'm truly surrounded by these massive mountains. We've walked to the far slope of Pandim, for a new view of that peak's northern face. We also can see new features that have been hidden behind their brethren, like Goecha Peak and the Kabru glaciers. Below us is a glacial moraine so massive that you can imagine getting lost in the boulders and mud fields. Imagining this entire valley filled with ice hundreds of feet deep puts one in awe of the powers of nature, and how rapidly and massively they can change.
It was very cold at Goecha La...probably a few degrees below freezing. No matter how excited we were, our clothes just weren't heavy enough to keep us comfortable without moving about, even in the sunshine. So, with a bit of a disappointed sigh, we had to turn back for camp. The upside was that we passed back by the glacial-blue Samiti Lake just in time to see it light up with morning sun. What an amazing color - it looks unreal in person and impossible in photos! There are the remains of several huts at Samiti, left over from the days when it was permissible to camp on it's shores (which would make the hike to Goecha La MUCH easier in the morning). However, pollution from the pack animals and human waste became a serious problem at the lake (which, like so many of the features in these mountains, is sacred) and camping there was outlawed.
We arrived back at camp impossibly early considering how much we'd already experienced that day. What ensued was one of the best parts of the whole trip - and might have even trumped the mountain views at Goecha La. We spent a completely delightful morning playing cards and dice with the porters and yakmen. Somehow, we finally broke through the language barrier and started communicating with simple words, gestures and smiles. We realized that they genuinely enjoy their jobs, and they realized that we were truly appreciative of everything they were doing for us. The three of us (the slow group) even got nick-names from the guys:
Rocky became "Dhunga" (Nepali for rock or stone)
Nancy became "Rapchick" (Nepali for cute - longer but funnier story)
and I became "Hawa" (Nepali for wind)
We had so much fun that we were disappointed when the rest of the crew arrived and all the activity started up again in preparation for hiking back down the valley. The mists rolled in again and we started back the way we'd come along the banks of the Prek Chu. Our camp that night was at Kokchurong - a local word meaning "Place of Refuge". Just as it was in 2012, this palace offered up the heaviest, deepest fog yet. Our camp teetered on the edge of the river, back in the deep rhododendron forests. We ate a celebratory meal and went to bed exhausted.
What a day!
Day 12-13: Begrudgingly Going Home So from here, everything seems like a bit of a let down, right? Honestly, I enjoyed the hike back to Yuksom immensely, in part because of our new closer relationship with the crew. In our last camp at Tshoka, the boys played a vigorous game of cricket, and Mitch joined in as the American Dodger's representative. The hiking days were longer, as we no longer needed to be concerned with acclimating, and mostly downhill (what a relief!). We were back in the rhododendron forests - then down lower in the jungle proper, complete with leeches and biting insects galore.
We spent part of an afternoon in the caretaker's hut in Tshoka, hoping to try some Tumba (millet beer). Though Binay had promised they would have some, the wife of the house was away and the men were "too lazy" to make it themselves (Binay's words - he liked calling people lazy). Instead, we had mango juice and marveled at the way they live in the moutains: small kitchen cookfires warm the home without a chimney, so the smoke fills the room and chases out the bugs. The walls are black with soot but the place is still clean as a whistle. The people were (as always) so warm and friendly, and funny. When he learned about Rocky's nickname, he almost fell of hist stool laughing! Imagine, a man called Stone!
Our last day was full of encounters with other groups coming down the mountain or just heading up. The trail between Tshoka and Yuksom is something of a foot-path-highway, probably even busier at times than the corridor trails at the Grand Canyon. We stepped carefully to avoid the dung, enjoyed the views across the massive valleys and played on the scary but stable suspension bridges.
When we arrived in Yuksom, we had plenty of time to take photos as we walked through town toward our hotel in the tourist sector. Binay had arranged a party for us to celebrate our last night (and coincidentally my birthday), so we showered up and started repacking our things while the boys cooked us up one more incredible meal...
I forgot to mention in Part I that Rocky's birthday was the second night of our trek - his 55th. We told the guide on the sly and they made such a big deal of it for him that I think he nearly cried. They wove him a garland for around his neck and made a bouquet - both of red rhododendrons. There was cake and much singing and a little dancing and they presented him with a hand-carved bamboo flute. Needless to say, after such a fuss, I was excited to find what they'd do for me.
Well, our final party was off the hook amazing. Binay brought in children from a local school he supports to perform traditional songs and dances for us. The cooks made a meal that was simply unreal in it's flavors and complexity (and thank goodness the fresh veggies were back). There was not one but two cakes - one for my birthday, and the other for "Happy Trek". We all received scarves (again) and got big hugs from our boys. Binay even got us Tumba in spite of the fact that he doesn't drink. We made our presentation of tips to the crew (there's a story in itself), and gave a few gifts. The boys found me a special ring, made from the horn of a sheep, that is said to protect you from bad meat. It was a beautiful gift, and something unique that I'll always treasure!
We crawled up to bed, barely able to keep our eyes open at 9pm. And thus ended the trek, but hardly the journey...for the next morning, we'd pile into taxis for the trip to Darjeeling. |
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Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.- Barack Obama |
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