Annapurna Sanctuary Part I - Naya Pul to Poon Hill

So I finally made it into the Himalayas and it was more incredible and awe inspiring that I had anticipated.

After a bumpy ride from Pokhara, we started off at Naya Pul  (New Bridge) with an easy five hour hike into the foothills. The Canadians in the group (Em, Kelly and Jaimee) were bemused with my appreciation of the soaring mountains. Later I came to see that we hadn't even gotten started with the mountains, and boy has it made me (re-appreciate) how flat Australia is.

At our lunch stop, we were entertained by three boys who had been trying to get an old motorbike up and running. They weren't successful, so just pushed each other around on the bike. Away from mobile phones and iPads these kids looked like they were having more fun than any kid playing fruit ninja.

The teahouses along the trek were also in stark contrast to some of the abject poverty in the outer areas of Kathmandu and Pokhara. There is a photo below which I think typifies the teahouses, with a buffalo, a goat and a satellite dish. It was eye opening to realise how much the region is dependent upon trekking and the capital it brings in. Talking to the locals, they were at pains to emphasise not only how much the economy had been effected by the earthquake, but how important it was for tourists to return to Nepal.

After lunch my tummy started to gurgle, with what I naively thought was just some lingering aftershocks from the twisting ride from Pokhara... oh how wrong I was.

We hiked on to Tikhedhunga in relatively warm weather. If you are planning on hiking the Annapurna Sanctuary or the Annapurna Circuit during the warmer months, make sure you pack for all seasons. I was comfortable in the heat at lower levels, but some of my colder climate compatriots suffered in the heat, and my 50+ UVA/UVB sunscreen was an absolutely necessity with 30+ not cutting it against the daily sweat and grime on the trek. I stupidly thought that a visor would be enough hat protection, and am now dealing with sunburn on my scalp. :|

After an evening of card games and a hailstorm let's just say that the antibiotics and anti-nausea tablets that I invested in came in handy. Frances if you are reading this, I just want to say I have undying sympathy for your stance on stomach upsets #francesisalwaysright. I was a bit concerned that I may have gone overboard with my medicine kit, but by the end of the hike there wasn't a piece of medication that someone on the trek hadn't needed.

Even without the gastrointestinal tremors the second day of hiking was meant to be a challenging climb, with a gain of 1300m in elevation and a solid climb of 3000 steps just to get to the first tea break.

The second day set the pattern for walking that we followed for the remainder of the walk. It typically went:

• Breakfast
• Walk for 2-3hrs
• Tea break (ginger tea was my drink of choice at these breaks because it was boiled and refreshing)
• Walk for 1-2 hrs
• Lunch
• Walk for 1-2 hrs
• Arrive at teahouse

We arrived into Ghorepani at about 3pm in the afternoon, at the See You Teahouse. This was one of my favorite teahouses during the entire hike, with a massive common room with a (very much) appreciated wood heater. Having not eaten the entire day, sitting by that fire with a book will remain one of the highlights of the trip.

It was early to bed for everyone that night as we had to wake up very early the next morning to hike up Poon Hill for a view of the sunrise of the Himalayas. When Mum and Dad asked me what I thought of Poon Hill, my simple response was that it was the best sunrise of my life. The photos below don't do that moment justice.

Even if you don't have time to walk the 10 days to Annapurna Base Camp, I highly recommend doing the shorter trek to Ghorepani and Poon Hill. As the sun summited the mountains in the distance, I realised that the Himalayas had stolen into my heart. I am anticipating a life long love affair with these mountains.