Nepal. Around Annapurna. Part 2
The ascent to Thorong La Pass was probably the toughest challenge of our journey. Gaining almost 1300 meters in altitude triggered symptoms of altitude sickness in me: lightheadedness, slight nausea, headache, and loss of appetite. Although we were not pushing ourselves too hard and maintained a heart rate of 120 beats per minute, which at sea level would be 80-90 beats per minute, the altitude made it much more difficult...
Interactive map of the route...
Despite the sunny weather and clear skies, it was quite cold at the summit of the pass due to strong winds and subzero temperatures. We put on almost all the clothes we had...
Usually, the Annapurna Circuit is trekked in the opposite direction, which is considered much easier. We didn't meet anyone trekking in our direction. The main reason is the altitude of the last lodges before the pass. In the typical route, the last lodge is at an altitude of 4900 meters, allowing for a shorter ascent of 516 meters to the summit of the pass, compared to the 1300 meters we had to climb. This is crucial for proper acclimatization...
High camp at 4900 meters...
We descended to an altitude of 3800 meters...
Then diverged from the main route towards Tilicho Lake. We gained another 300 meters and spent the night in a lodge near the lake's base camp. On the fourth day, we covered over 30 kilometers, crossed Thorong La Pass, and headed towards the high-altitude lake.
The strong wind, cold, and the frozen, cloud-covered lake at an altitude of 4919 meters were challenging...
We got quite sunburned the day before, and now we were a bit frostbitten after reaching 5000 meters. Throughout the climb, we didn't encounter a single tourist...
On the way back, we stopped for lunch with our porridge at Tilicho Lake base camp...
We spent the fifth night in the village of Bhakra, where there is a Buddhist temple complex and monastery...
We descended from the lake and experienced the contrast of cold and warmth as we ran down the mountain into the gorge...
Stupas were located along the stream, with prayer wheels inside that started spinning under the pressure of water hitting the blades attached to their axis...
Another Buddhist monastery... Near this monastery, we found two orange scarves with Buddhist symbols, which became a prized decoration for our backpacks...
The road was cut along a rocky mountain. The rocky surface still bore the marks where explosives were placed during the construction of the path...
On the sixth night, we stayed in the village of Thaleku. The next morning, on the seventh day, we were greeted by the green landscapes of the lowlands...
Another example of roads "carved" into the Himalayan cliffs...
Here we found local Nepali women bathing and doing laundry. After taking sulfur baths, Dima rubbed himself with their body oil...
Traditional farming techniques...
Nepal is a country where six-sevenths of the territory is occupied by the Himalayan mountain range. The main industry is agriculture (76% employment, 35% of GDP). People have learned to reclaim small patches of land for cultivation, leading to the creation of terraced farms that cover many of the country's mountain slopes...
On the seventh day, having covered about 50 km, we virtually completed our route. The next morning, we only had to reach the bus station in the town of Besisahar. Our next stage was the Three Passes trek, located in the Everest Base Camp region.
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