Trekking Annapurna Sanctuary, Nepal: Day 8 – ABC to Bamboo

The day started with an early wake-up call to see the sunrise. I was skeptical that there would be much color but since the view point is just 5 minutes from our bedroom, why not?

This wasn’t another hour hike in the dark like at Poon Hill and with a lot fewer people. The first morning rays on the peaks were dramatic but not as colorful as at dusk.

The early morning sky was crystal clear. All we had to do now is wait just a couple of hours for the peaks to be fully lit and the range would pop bright white against a deep blue sky. Around 8AM after a leisurely breakfast, we took our small group back to the viewpoint for a group photo.

We had the place nearly to ourselves as almost all the other trekkers had already started down. The range was lit just as I hope it would be. Just glorious. Was it worth the long trek to get here? It’s still too soon to tell. I have to let the memory of too many nights in cold tea house rooms, crowded trails and health issues wear off.

Leaving at 8:30Am we chase the sun down though the valley as it lights a path before us to MBC.

Our way back down along the same trail, the path was less crowded than on our way up. Other groups heading down had already left and groups heading up hadn’t made it this far yet. For most of the day the trail remained less congested. It was only after leaving Dobhan heading into Bamboo, our destination for the night, that we encountered heavy traffic in both directions. From just past MBC until somewhere before Himalaya the views of the valley and river below are spectacular.

I can’t get enough of the torrential glacier water pounding through immense boulders. Soon after, we are back in the forest, starting with dry forest and then wet forest as we near Bamboo. It’s a long climb down, nearly 2000 meters, but we make it in 6.5 hours including short breaks for tea and lunch.

Bamboo is much warmer tonight. We are given one of the new paneled rooms with a window overlooking the forest. It’s dry without the mold of our previous experience. The hot shower worked this time and dinner was reasonably good – tomato soup, vegie burger with fries and a veg biryani.

November 4, 2012

For links to all the posts related to the trek see the Annapurna Base Camp page.

For links to all the posts in this series see the Nepal page.