Greetings All,
It is Day 4 of our trek. We are trekking with a group of ten, 7 from the UK, 2 from the USA (us) and 1 from Australia. There are 8 men and 2 women in our group. We are supported by a Bhutanese guide, an assistant guide, a cook, 2 kitchen staff, 3 camp staff and 5 horse men. All our gear, food, fuel, tents, trek bags, tables, chairs and kitchen gear is being carried by 38 pack ponies and mules. It is quite an undertaken to bring 10 people on a 26 day trek into such remote areas.
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| Our Lead Pack Mule |
We spent the first 2 days climbing through a cloud forest with massive pine trees draped in Spanish Moss, ferns and lichen.
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| Spanish Moss or Old Man's Beard |
The weather was not cooperative with cloudy skies and rain showers. The trail climbed along the Paro River which we crossed on log bridges adorned with Buddhist prayer flags.
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| Peggy on a Bridge Crossing the Paro River |
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| Breakfast at Jangothang |
We were at this spot 21 years ago when we did the Chomolohari Trek! The first 5 days of the Chomolarhari Trek coincide with the Snowman Trek which we are doing now. A lot has changed in 21 years. There are more people living in the valley, more trekkers and cell phone coverage at this camp! This morning the weather finally cleared and we were treated to a view of the massive east face of Chomolohari (23,997 feet) Bhutan's sacred mountain. The peak straddles the Bhutan/ Tibet border and has been climbed only 6 times. It is forbidden to climb Chomolohari from Bhutan as it is believed to be the abode of one of the female protector goddesses (Jomo) of Tibet and Bhutan.
In front of Chomolohari are the ruins of an ancient fortress. Out guide Namgay told us the legend behind the Dzong. Long ago the king of this region ordered his subjects to remove the top of the ridge that was blocking the morning sun. The people started this formidable task but soon revolted, killing the king. The fortress was abandoned and fell into ruin.
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| East Face of Chomolohari, a ruined Fortress s in the foreground |
In front of Chomolohari are the ruins of an ancient fortress. Out guide Namgay told us the legend behind the Dzong. Long ago the king of this region ordered his subjects to remove the top of the ridge that was blocking the morning sun. The people started this formidable task but soon revolted, killing the king. The fortress was abandoned and fell into ruin.
Today we did an acclimatization hike to prepare us for our first pass crossing tomorrow. We hiked 1200 feet above camp to two lakes and an impressive view of Jitchu Drake. From this angle the pyramidal shape of Jitchu Drake is unmistakable.
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| Marc and Peggy with Jitchu Drake in the Background |
That's it for now. Bandwidth is limited.
We hope all is well back home.
Peggy and Marc
3 comments:
Making me think of Lost Horizon! Curious what the locals, natives have to share..the colors Imlove, that snow capped mountin range in the background Fantastic!
You know who anonymous is!
Hello Marc & Peggy - my husband works with a friend of yours at Mass DEP. We are planning a trip to Bhutan next year for our 20th and are considering Chomalhari - would love any recommendations. Especially - travel company recommendations. We would like to stay at Uma Paro - they offer a trek, but are also open to other alternatives.
~Alison
Portsmouth, NH
Hi Alison,
We used Geographic Expeditions for our first trip to Bhutan. They are a US based company and are quite pricey. For our recent trip we used KE Adventure Travel based in the UK. This was our 13th trip with KE. They are more affordable than US companies and offer good value. Both companies use Yangphel Adventure Travel, the local Bhutan tour operator and offer a wide range of trekking and cultural trips. Hope this helps.
Peggy
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