Singalila Ridge Trek |
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Rimbik to Siri Khola
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After a short descent of 4 km traversing the steep slopes, we crossed a suspension bridge over the rushing waters of the Siri Khola to reach the Goparma Hotel, our spartan but comfortable lodgings for the night, and to enjoy the first of our nightly three-course dinners, rich with the flavours of India and Nepal. Glad not to be camping out in the rain, we fell asleep listening to the waters of the Siri Khola rushing down on their path to the mighty Ganges. |
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Following trekking tradition, we were woken with a hot cup of tea at 6 am, served a hearty breakfast of porridge, eggs and croissants at 7 am and set off again at 8 am. Such would be the pattern of each day. The overnight rain had cleared leaving a misty morning behind as we climbed quickly up along a daisy-lined path through garden terraces of potatoes and peas that traversed these lower slopes of the Singalila Ridge.
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Stream through the cardamon plots |
Step aside - porters coming through! |
Once more into the ghostly mist |
Soon we entered a mixed broadleaf forest, which gradually changed into a zone of tall conifers, as a dense fog settled down to create a landscape of ghostly shapes. Reaching the village of Ramman, we stopped for a tea-break in a Nepalese teahouse and were greeted by the sun and the local school children on our emergence. I have always marvelled at how a little bit of sun can lift the spirits. Even the birds seemed to sing louder as we headed off, traversing across a slope of gnarled lichen-covered oaks, the yellow orchids drooping from high on their trunks complementing the brilliant pink and red colours of the first rhododendrons in bloom. |
A mossy-rock filled stream |
The luminescence of a red rhododendron |
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Setting up the tents at Samanden |
Bucolic bliss |
A brief sunny interlude |
The village of Ghorkey sleeping in the mists of the Ramman Valley |
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Nello and Hazel with the Sherpa family von Trapp |
At 2900m, the track flattened out and followed the crest of one of the ridge spurs through a forest of tall lichen-covered oaks and monkey nut trees with an understorey of dense bamboo thickets. This was red panda country and, somewhere high in the trees well out of sight, the red pandas were sleeping. |
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At 3250m we stopped for lunch and, as we ate, the wind gradually picked up, whipping streams of cloud through the trees on the top of the spur. Climbing on, we emerged into an open grassland, splashed with a dash of pinkish-purple primulas, and were soon enveloped in a thick fog. As the wind strengthened, Wangchuk led us across the foggy landscape to our destination at the Indian army border post of Phalut (3505m); the big climb was over! The porters had just set up our tents and, after a hot tea and rum (courtesy of George), we climbed into our tents for a nap. Well that was the plan; during the next two hours we experienced hail, followed by gale-force winds, a fierce thunderstorm, and finally a blizzard. |
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Of these views I can offer no comment! For us the Singalila Ridge was an ethereal world of dense fog, icy winds that whipped over the ridgeline from Nepal, rain, sleet, hail and snow. Walking 21 km from Phalut to Sandakphu in these circumstances was a surreal experience. |
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It seemed that we were walking through the dense fog in a slow-moving bubble with a 30-40m radius of visibility; there was no real perception of distance or depth, at times the ground would slope up, at times down, at times it was flat. The strange ghostly shapes of trees faded in and out of our bubble, the stark silhouette of the odd grazing yak or dzo appeared and disappeared. Even the occasional display of a flowering rhododendron failed to lift our spirits. At that moment, I would have traded a million rhododendrons for one brief glimpse of Kangchenjunga! |
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Sandakphu to Tumling - a taste of Nepal |
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As we ate breakfast, the cloud began to rise up from the valleys and by the time we set off, was drifting across the low points of the ridge line. We quickly descended a stony road, surrounded by the the dense green forest of the Singalila National Park. The rhododendrons seemed to be particularly beautiful this morning as whisps of cloud blew through from the Nepalese side of the ridge. Reaching the village of Bakhay, we followed the road into Nepal, traversing the western side of the ridge through several small Nepalese mountain villages, and looking down into the deep valleys of eastern Nepal below us. |
Descending slowly, the track led us through the superb forest on the Indian side, with rhododendrons, and the occasional brilliance of magnolias, lighting the way. A steep descent to the village of Gairibas saw us reach our lunch stop and passport check by the border post. |
Sorry, I couldn't resist .... |
Roadside chorten |
Magnolia blooms in the forest |
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The porters' having a rest break |
Where have all the trees gone? - Nepalese side of the ridge |
The village of Jaubari on its barren ridge |
Still, the villages are all full of young children and you can't help wondering what the future holds for them. |
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The main street of Jaubari and some of its residents |
One more zig into India, one more zag into Nepal and we reached our destination for the night, the very pleasant Shikhar Lodge at Tumling, with its large comfortable bedrooms and fire-warmed lounge. Sitting around sipping our warm millet beers through a large straw, we agreed that this had been the best day of the trek. We were even weaning ourselves off the immodium. What a difference a day makes! |
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The tip of Kangchenjunga rose faintly above the low cloud band, but that was all that we would see for the day. Still, the view back along the ridge to Sandakphu was magical, with thin wisps of mist drifting over the pastel shades of the ridge and forest in the pre-dawn light. |
With only 12 km of trek left, we set out along a winding stony road, dropping into the bare Nepalese side once more, climbing slowly back across the ridge into India at Tonglu, with its Buddhist monastery of Senchencholing. |
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Descending the grassy flats of Meghma |
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Mane Wall, Chorten and prayer flags at Csitray Monastery |
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Entry to Csitray Monastery |
Tea and biscuits are served |
The monks of Csitray in a steamy kitchen |
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