"Good morning uncle, sunsai cha?", (are you well) greeted Lalu, "This morning no clouds". I looked out of my tent to behold a superb Himalayan panorama.
We had left Pokhara some 2
weeks previously.
On the outskirts at Bagat it had taken all morning to find
porters familiar with our proposed route. Eventually we set off
along the hot, dusty, new Chinese road beside the Yamdi Khola
before heading northwards through the broad, flat, golden-yellow
rice paddies to the small, compact village of Mardi Pul at the
confluence of the Mardi Khola and the Seti Khola. We encamped on
a grassy terrace across the river from the village.It was a fine
starry evening and in the distance could be seen the shadowy
forms of Annapurna South and Machapuchre.
A snarling pack of guard dogs
awaited us
next morning when we crossed the rickety suspension bridge into
the thatched roof settlement. We continued northwards up the Seti
Khola valley through golden, rice paddies to the large Gurung
village of Ghatchok. High in the sky amongst the cumulus clouds
loomed the pointed summit of Annapurna IV.
Beyond Ghatchok we crossed the
Seti river
at Diphrang bridge and climbed along a forested ridge. Camp was
made on the volleyball pitch of Chyanglung village.
Next morning a flag-stoned pathway led up through the stone-walled,
thatched-roof houses and then zigzagged steeply to regain the
ridge-top. A glimpse of the summit spire of Machapuchre was
obtained before it was engulfed in the rapidly forming cloud
cover.
We climbed along the ridge through meagre terraces of millet and small kharka (summer grazing settlements) with their wickerwork huts. There was a fine view down to the farms of Ghatchok scattered over a broad plateau above a double escarpment gouged out by the Seti river. At a grassy clearing in the scrub we stopped for lunch.
Leaving our equipment behind I searched with Lalu and Nima for an alternative campsite higher up the hill but failed to find another water supply. In the evening it rained heavily however, early next morning there was a clear, starry sky and I set off by torchlight for the top of Chyanglang Hill.
It was a 3 hour climb through dense, damp, moss-covered forests before I emerged onto open grassy slopes leading to the summit. The promising start to the day was not fulfilled. Although it was only 0800 clouds and mist already obscured the view from the isolated top. However, a short wait was rewarded with a sighting of the triangular, ice and rock peak of Machapuchre in a window in the clouds. Other glimpses were then obtained of the nearby summits of Annapurna III and IV - sufficient to verify that on a clear day the outlook would indeed be spectacular.
Returning to Ghatchok we set
off the next
day on the ascent of Odani Hill, the high point at the start of
the long ridge falling from Machapuchre. Our objective was to
reach the base camp situated beneath the peak on a hidden plateau
- "the Other Sanctuary".
At a solitary farmhouse perched atop a narrow ridge we stopped for lunch. Large chil eagles wheeled and soared in the sky overhead. Further up we emerged from thick forest into an open grassy meadow at Hille - a nice campsite apart from the leeches. In the early morning sunshine a fine view was obtained across the valley to the peaks of Annapurna IV and II and the massif of Lamjung Himal.
A short, half day, climb gained the ridge-top where we encamped as the next water supply was too far for the day. Once again cloud and mist had enveloped the tops.
Clear skies at dawn revealed the dazzling white of Annapurna South and the Hinnchuli peaks a short distance away to the northwest of our ridge. They were mirrored in the dark waters of a small pool at our camping place.
The gradual ascent along the forested ridge-top, with occasional views on either side down to the valley floors, was terminated with an abrupt steep climb out of the jungle to reach the green, grazing pastures on the hilltop at Kumai. Again water supply was a problem and we dropped down a short way to encamp in a pleasant glade in a birch forest.
Another fine view in the
morning was
revealed with Machapuchre rising at the head of the ridge and the
peaks of Annapurna IV, and II, and Lanjung Himal to the East.
Regaining the crest of the ridge another, longer, steep climb
over tussocky grass slopes, brought us to the level pastures of
the Kharkas at Khorchan and a magnificent panorama to the West of
Annapurna South, Annapurna I and Hinnchuli.
Setting off early next morning we followed the crest of the ridge passing more Kharkas, now deserted for the winter, and some moss-covered pinnacles before climbing sharply to a transverse ridge. The new ridge led upwards to a narrow path which then contoured round the steep hillside. At a junction the right-hand path led slowly up to a col with a single cairn. According to the guidebook we should have now reached the next campsite. No possible site was found. We retraced our steps to the junction and Lalu and I investigated the left-hand path. This also led to a col but again no possible campsite was found.
The weather had deteriorated throughout the morning and it was now cold, cloudy and windy. Light snow was falling. We retreated back to our previous campsite at Khorchan.
A winter's scene greeted us in
the morning
with the landscape blanketed with snow. The tops were shrouded in
cloud. A rest day was spent mostly inside the tents. The day
after was still overcast but I set off back up the ridge. Lalu
and Nima were to follow bringing a packed lunch while our two
porters were to remain in camp.
Regaining the junction in the path, I followed the left-hand
branch back to the col and then onwards on a narrow path round
the base of the rock and snow slopes of Mardi Himal. After some
time I decided I was getting nowhere and returned to the junction
where I was joined by Lalu and Nima. We now pursued the right-hand
path. Shortly after the col a faint track was found which
contoured to the left across the mountainside. This led onwards
and upwards to another col with 3 cairns. A boulder field was
then crossed when, a short drop below, a flat snow-covered meadow
with some old, roofless, stonewalled Kharkas were found -
presumably the "Other Sanctuary" but, disappointingly,
with the enclosing clouds, no view of the surroundings was
possible. Again we retreated to our campsite on the hilltop at
Khorchan.
It was the following morning that a brilliant red sun climbed over a pink horizon into a cloudless sky. To the East were the silhouettes of the peaks of the Manaslu Himal. Closer were the summits of Annapurna IV and II, and Lamjung Himal. Soaring directly above us towered the rock and ice ramparts of Machapuchre. To the West were the dazzling white snow slopes of Annapurna South and Hinnchuli.
By 0830 however, banks of clouds were already materialising and we retreated back down the long ridge into the jungle. Occasional shafts of sunlight penetrated the dense canopy and there was a crescendo of insect noise. From Odani Hill we descended the western side through the Gurung village of Riban on a long stone stairway and across the rice paddies to encamp on grassy flats on the banks of the Mardi Khola.
There was a fine view up the valley in the morning to Annapurna South and Hiunchuli. The path now followed the banks of the river back to Mardi Pul and the confluence with the Seti Khola from where Machapuchre, Annapurna IV and Annapurna II were to be seen.
Proceeding through the rice paddies alongside the Seti Khola we soon reached the outskirts of Pokhara and a local bus used to return the hotel in the city centre.
From the flower gardens at the dam on Phewa Tal the next day there was a splendid outlook across the lake to a Himalayan panorama extending from Dhenlegiri in the West, through Annapurna South and Hinnchuli, Machapuchre, Annapurna II, IV and II, Lamjung Himal, to the Manaslu Himal in the East.
A 9 hour journey over the broken, 200Km road, in a perpetual state of reconstruction, brought us back to Kathmandu.
