Day 15 - Yo-yo Woman Incantations For the Mountain Gods

High Camp to Muktinath over Thorong Pass

It is 3:50am when the neighbors wake me up with their noise. It is snowing.
I don't feel like going up in this weather and I told Pipi that but, of course, he nodded in disagreement. It's just a job for him. What does he care about whiteouts and views and other such useless sensitivities.

I can't go back to sleep so I prepare for departure. When Pipi comes to knock at my door I am peeling my eggs; I'm having breakfast. "Pipi, we're staying and waiting for good weather." No way.
So at 5 am we head out in the dark. Everybody is ready to go but only the Spanish guy with his porter and guide are ahead of us. Pipi is ahead of me; behind the bulk of trekkers.

It is dark, there's about 1 inch of fresh snow, it's snowing heavily and the trail is slippery. So I'm going slowly but soon do not see or hear anybody ahead of me.There's also nobody behind either. The only indicator that I'm going the right way is the state of the trail: slippery. Then, about 20 minutes later I cross a wooden bridge that is all white but with the footprints of those ahead of me. Ok, that's good! It means that I am on the right track. The trail now starts to go steeper up on what seems to be a moraine. I still can't see or hear anything around me. The headlamp gives just enough light to stay on the trail.

Some 15 minutes later the visibility improves as it dawns. I can now turn off my headlamp and, eventually, I can spot some dark figures in the distance ahead of me. It is a monochromatic picture in shades of blue-grey. The landscape, bare and somewhat rolling looks out of this world. As I'm walking by myself in the whiteout it reminds me in an awkward way of walking on the Moon - awkwardly, since I've never been on the Moon. I have no idea how walking on the moon is like, but it can't be much different. All bare land, just rocks and grey, lifeless shapes.

I keep repeating my mantra: count 100 steps, stop and breathe. Sometimes the breaks are not even necessary. Nonetheless, I stop and draw a smiley face on the flat rocks or boulders covered by snow. This becomes a ritual: spot a flat rock, reach it, stop and draw a smiley in the snow.
The trail is less steep than I expected and within 1 hour I gain 300m in elevation. That's progress. Under the snow the actual trail is not visible but some metallic poles painted in black and white stick out showing the way. I can also see the people ahead now and even identify Pipi among them.
When I catch up from time to time with a porter we exchange jokes and I give him candies.
I reach the pass at 7:12am. Only a bit earlier did I take out the camera to record the "lunar" landscape. We are still in a whiteout and up here it is windy and colder.

The first thing I noticed when reaching the pass was the little building - a little tea-house offering temporary shelter and some hot drinks to the trekkers and porters alike. Only then I noticed the huge cairn and all the prayer flag strings. Not fluttering this time, in spite of the wind, because they are too frozen :-)
Pipi is inside the tea-house but comes out as soon as I get there. Congratulations!

I put down my backpack and pull out Pepe. I'm happy and jumping like a yo-yo. Picture time! So I take pictures of Pepe in front of the "Welcome to the Thorong La - 5416m" board. Visibility is very poor. No views.

While I'm running and jumping around more people reach the pass. Some look happy, others look exhausted and stressed. The porters are the only ones ok, the ones you can laugh and joke with for sure.

A bit higher from the tea-house, less than 100m away is a big cairn and many more flags. What it points to, no idea. But I go there, take some pictures and return to the tea-house.

Pipi, here's your prize - and I hand him over the apple, biscuits and chocolate I have for him. All other porters and guides look surprised. "Want some cheese?" "No, later."

I enter the tea house with the cheese package and end up buying a cup of tea. Then I open the cheese package and share it with all porters around me. They're happy and grateful.
I notice the boy serving: he is the boy who passed me running easily uphill when I was coming up panting. He's running up 600m every day to serve hot tea to the trekkers in the early morning hours!

After tea and cheese I run out again and continue my yo-yo jumping session. "Where do you have so much energy from? Do you ever get tired?" somebody asks me. I don't know. I'm just happy!

Barbara and Lars, the German couple arrives and we're all hugging each other happy. "Congratulations!" Barbara is thanking me for the smileys "I knew it was you!" Some other people also thank me telling me that they were encouraging and motivational. I can only be happier! Which means that I'm jumping around more to everybody's entertainment.

"Clouds, please, please go away a bit!. Mountains please show up. Please! A little bit of sunshine and some views ..." People are laughing at me, I know. But this worked wonders when Dave and I were in a whiteout going up Porterhouse peak on the glacier. And not just then. Pipi is freezing and wants to descend already.
"No! If I don't get a view we go back and come again tomorrow!" I am determined to do that. Pipi can't even smile anymore. He is cold and I am totally unforgiving.

Guess what. The clouds thin out and we get some minutes of blue sky and sunshine. It's more than just a sucker hole. The Thorong Peak which was totally invisible before - I didn't even know it was there! - suddenly takes shape and its white glaciated slopes are shimmering in the sun. Ok, yo-yo, now run again up the hill and take pictures!

Minutes later the clouds envelope again Thorong Peak and it's as if these magic moments have never happened. Some people who have left as soon as they got up here missed it altogether. I have some nice pictures.

I ask Pipi to come for a picture with Pepe and he obeys. His expression in the picture speaks volumes about his distress. I also get a picture with both Pipi and Pepe done by somebody else in exchange for their picture.

I would like to stay longer but there doesn't seem to be any point. Pipi is freezing, visibility is poor, it is cold and windy. At least the snowing stopped before we reached the col. It is 8:32am when we start our descent.

The trail goes down a moraine field, a bare, light grey and brown landscape with weird air currents. Sometimes it's freezing cold, then it gets warmer again. A lot of people are having difficulties going down, although I don't find it to be very steep or difficult.But I have my poles and I have the short trip history behind from Vancouver which definitely helped me keep somewhat fit. I pass everybody on the way down, though I'm neither in a rush nor doing it intentionally. For those who know me better from trips, I'm not a fast hiker; I'm actually slower downhill than uphill quite often. This might tell something about the wide range of people trekking these parts of the world.
Since the clouds are hovering over the valley we do not have any views for more than 1000m downhill. It is still the lunar landscape with no vegetation and apparently no life. Only much lower at around 4000m there is some grass growing on the slopes and we get below the blanket of clouds. Down in the valley it is sunny and the rolling hills of the Mustang region are shimmering in all shades of brown.

We reach Phedi, the bottom of the mountain, so to speak, around 11:30 am. Here the trail goes straight through the garden of some lodges prepared to offer refreshing drinks and food to the tired trekkers. I prefer to buy apples for both of us. They are delicious. It is sunny and very hot down here and one by one the trekkers get here. It is very interesting to watch. The American couple from Seattle looks exhausted. Others too. Some look reliefed. Instead of seeing happy faces I see mostly grim and exhausted. Hardly a smile or a joke or nice comment from any of the trekkers. That's a bit disappointing. Only I feel jumpy?

There's an old woman with a red cloth wrapped around her head I'm trying to take pictures of. I like the constrast between her weathered face, brown and wrinkled and the red cloth. But she figures it out and, without saying anything, she just comes over and sits next to me. I can't take any more picture.
Pipi is not in a rush to go and chats happily with some other guides. There's only 1 hour left to Muktinath a very gentle downhill amidst pastures scattered with countless rocks. There are herds of sheep grazing there and cows.
Since I would like to visit the Sanctuary in Muktinath I am going ahead. See you in Muktinath!
There's only a pleasant walk left from the 1600m descent and in front of me the wide expanses of Mustang unfold. It is not a friendly land, a bare of hills and ridges in all shades of brown, yellow and red. To the North, a few hundred kilometers away lies Tibet, and Upper Mustang is very similar to it in terms of scenery. The book I've just finished has provided me with so much information and additional images that I can put things together like in a puzzle.
n contrast to the yellowish-brown slopes ahead of me in the sun, the ridges behind me look dark and disappear behind grey clouds. Did I just come down from the clouds ?

Before reaching the village the trail passes by the Sanctuary and area enclosed within white stone walls encompassing several temples, both Buddhist and Hindu. Lots of prayer wheels, mani walls, little chortens and a maze of prayer flag strings are marking the area.
After stopping at the checkpost I get to the hotel and order lunch. I am starving, there's a line-up for the shower so I rather eat first and shower last. Meanwhile I can read and write in my diary.
The promised hot shower is cold but refreshing and I am ready to go explore the area right away. The village does not include more than 3 dozen houses along the dusty road and a dozen guest houses with funny names like "Bob Marley Hotel". There's also a "The Doors Pub" offering Tibetan cuisine. Clearly there is a lot of interest in music here.

Apart from the guest houses there are also some souvenir shops selling jewelry, wool accessories and postcards. While passing by you get constantly invited to enter the stores and look at things. Once you get inside you're trapped and you can hardly leave without spending some money for some item.
The Sanctuary is a complex of temples in a very green and clean landscape. There are lots of trees and flowers and it feels like walking in a park.
The first gompa on the left is locked but has lots of flowers in front and I can take pictures just the way like. At the temple higher up there's just an old woman sitting on the grass overlooking the landscape and turning her prayer wheels in prayer.
There's more action at the big pagoda temple. This is a Hindu temple to which people, pilgrims come from all over the place. Behind it are the 108 famous water taps where you can wash your sins away in the holy water. Indeed, all people coming here are making sure they are washing (some men are hanging around soaked in their underwear) or at least splashing themselves under these taps. They then visit the Vishnu temple and make donations.
I limit myself to just taking pictures. I'm going to carry all my sins along with me wherever I go. It would be too easy to just wash them off.

A small monkey jumps and runs playful around to everybody's entertainment. A saddhu is sitting there in front of the temple and I ask for permission to take a picture of him. Since he agrees I take the picture and then leave him a 20s note.

The other gompa in the back is also locked but I manage to visit another gompa by following a group of trekkers accompanied by their guide. I know he'll be able to find someone to unlock the doors. And that's exactly what happens.
After that I continue the round back to the entrance turning the prayer wheels along the way. The light is getting warmer as the day nears its end.
On the way back I run into the Germans again and then spend the evening with them over a nice dinner at candlelight.
For Barbara and Lars this has been their honeymoon. I find it very exciting and interesting. Certainly a unique experience to shre and remember for the rest of their lifes. Even though for her it's been the first encounter with a Third-World country and a culture shock, for that matter, I'm sure she'll be able to crystalize all her impressions and emotions and treasure these memories forever.

What I am a bit surprised about, not just now but over and over along the trek, is to see how much people miss various things here. Meat, steaks, hot showers, soft beds, etc. For many people meat seems to be the first thing on their list.

Why am I not missing any of these? I do't miss meat, I can sleep just about anywhere and I could probably eat rice every day for the rest of my life. Not even dirt and garbage disturb me any more. I have learned to look beyond that. I just feel happy and relaxed. I know I am not looking forward to returning to "civilization". I have not seen or heard a car for almost 2 weeks now. What a blessing.

It is 8 pm when I decide to go to bed. It's been a very long day. At 5 am in the dark up the mountain ad then at 5400m in a whiteout, hours later steaming in the sun and then again some more hours later dinner at candlelight. I feel very lucky.