Nepal – Day 2 – This Adventure Is Real

I am finally in the mountains, while I enjoyed Kathmandu, I came to trek these mountains and today was the beginning of that part of the adventure and oh what a start. We had the obligatory early wakeup call to be at the airport for a 7:00ish flight. For me, the jet lag effect hit yesterday, so I was early to bed and up by 4am, so I had plenty of time to repack once more and adjust what I would be trekking with, there were two things that I regret having to leave. The first was the small jar of peanut butter, I guess I am a peanut butter junkie. The second was a Swiss Army knife my brother gave me a long time ago for Christmas, I have never used it, but I always carry it on big hikes. It traveled with me across Spain and I was planning on it traveling with me on this adventure, but the weight limit made me cut these final two items.

After gathering in the hotel courtyard and combining the packs into big travel bags, 2 people’s packs went into each travel bag, we had a quick boxed breakfast and then hit the road, literally, walking a few blocks to the bus, remember the road repairs near the hotel, then off to the airport. A quick run through security and then a check in with Tara airlines to weigh and check the big bags, weigh the carry on packs and get the boarding passes. From there, we just had to wait about 45 minutes for our flight, thankfully weather was good today. The flight was in an older plane that might have seen better days, but it worked and we all decided to trust it and the pilots. The flight even had a flight attendant that made sure cellphones were off, seat buckles fastened and then she gave us either gum or cotton for the ear pressure. From there, a smooth takeoff and a slight turn towards the north, this trip just then got real. After a few minutes, we noticed a few mountain peaks in the distance, then more, then I noticed the further we got the more imposing the mountains looked. They created a beautiful view from the plane. All of the sudden, we flew next to a large mountain wall, it looked like it dropped straight down, then around a few more “corners” and the plane aimed down a little. At that point, even from the back of the plane, you could see the tiny runway in the side of the mountain in the distance….. A minute later, the plane hit terra firma and applied the brakes. All the sudden, we were in Lukla, a quick deplaning, then a short walk to a teahouse for tea and to prepare for the days hike to Phakding. A little less than 5 miles later, we arrived at a great teahouse to relax in and spend the night.

Today’s trek was a visual delight for a guy from the Texas Panhandle. We are not even seeing the big mountains yet, but these mountains and this area is beautiful. I can’t wait to see what is in store for the next few days. We are in an area that is lush green with large rhododendron trees, pine trees and other mountain growth. The trail is good, but rocky with plenty of ups and downs. Today was mostly down, problem with that is that for each down, you have to pay for that sometime when you are ultimately going up. Tomorrow all be a testing day with a lot of going upwards.

There are religious symbols everywhere, Buddist prayer rocks that are huge, shrines and prayer wheels. Nepal really is filled with people searching for God. They are sincere and open in their beliefs.

Isaiah 43:19

4.7 miles –  783 feet climbed

continue to day 3