Although definitely a big city girl, I'm often at my happiest in complete wilderness. I love being in nature and enjoy all kinds of outdoorsy, sporty activities. Hiking definitely falls into that category and one of the parts of my gap year that I'm most looking forward to is a two week trek, the Annapurna circuit, that I will be undertaking in April.
Although I'm reasonably fit and am used to walking a good deal, trekking the Annapurna circuit is no mean feat. It seems sensible to prepare myself for it by undertaking a few day or weekend hikes before I go (the difference between a hike and a trek is that the latter lasts at least a week). And, of course, these day hikes are a pleasure in themselves.
On Sunday, I went on my first of these, a six and a half hour hike in Shivapuri National Park, on the edge of the Kathmandu Valley. We (myself and my guide/friend Vivek) started a couple of km outside the park at Budhanilkantha, a place notable for its 5m long sculpture of a sleeping Vishnu, in his incarnation as Narayan. It was made in the 7th or 8th century out of one piece of stone and is most impressive. It's a site that is holy to both Hindus and Buddhists and, when we arrived, just before 9am, there were a number of young monks chanting and lovingly (it seemed to me) washing the statue.
From Budhanilkantha we walked to the park. I slogged up the hill, sweating and panting and wondering what I'd got myself into then, looking at my watch, realised with dismay that we'd been walking about 10 minutes.Once we got to the Shivapuri National Park, the situation improved dramatically. The scenery consists of a variety of forest types, depending on altitude and aspect. The park lies in the transition zone between subtropical and temperate climates. We planned to hike from the entrance at Pani Muhan to the summit at Shivapuri Peak, via the holy site at Baaghdwar. That's an ascent of about 2000m over a distance of 12km. Believe me, that's pretty damn steep. Four hours solid uphill hiking. And then, of course, what goes up must come down.
Despite the poor start, I felt I did rather well overall (Vivek may well have disagreed, but then he;s used to that kind of walking). There were certainly brief moments of clambering up particularly steep sections when I wondered if I'd make it out alive, but then we'd get to a slightly less steep bit and suddenly I wouldn't feel tired at all and enthusiastically pushed on. What's for sure is that it was beautiful, with the forest becoming denser and the path narrower the higher we got. At times, were so isolated from any signs of human life or civilisation that I felt it wouldn't have been much different if we'd walked the same path hundreds of years ago.
Vivek made a good guide. He's knowledgeable about birds and plants and would stop to identify trees, flowers and chirping. Along the way, we passed a monastery, from which we would have had a lovely view if the air had been a bit clearer. Two hours later we hit Baaghdwar, a pilgrimage site since it is the source of the holy Bagmati River, which pours out of the mouth of a beautiful tiger-face fountain. The last 45 minutes from Baaghdwar to the summit was a total killer but worth it. The views weren't exactly spectacular; although there was a clearing, there were still too many trees to get the full panoramic experience, but we could see the snow-covered peaks of the Langtang region which was magical. There were also prayer flags to admire, which added to the fantastic sense of achievement. The best part of being up there was the air; so pure and fresh. We lay on our backs and I watched the clouds which seemed noticeably closer than when in the city (although that may well be my imagination).
The way down was a doddle in comparison with the ascent, taking just two and a half hours, and there were some pretty decent views to enjoy, allowing us to appreciate just how high we'd climbed. Unfortunately the photos don't do it justice.
Seven and a half hours after we left Budhanilkantha we arrived back there tired but happy. Vivek took me to a traditional Newari restaurant (the Newaris are the original people of Kathmandu Valley). I would never have found the place myself, nor trusted it if I had. We had to climb a ladder into a converted old house. There were dozens of local men packed into the three tiny, crooked rooms, sitting on low benches along the wall, not a table to be seen. We were brought plates of much appreciated but far too spicy (for my taste) food, resulting in my mouth being far more sore than my feet!
Vivek made a good guide. He's knowledgeable about birds and plants and would stop to identify trees, flowers and chirping. Along the way, we passed a monastery, from which we would have had a lovely view if the air had been a bit clearer. Two hours later we hit Baaghdwar, a pilgrimage site since it is the source of the holy Bagmati River, which pours out of the mouth of a beautiful tiger-face fountain. The last 45 minutes from Baaghdwar to the summit was a total killer but worth it. The views weren't exactly spectacular; although there was a clearing, there were still too many trees to get the full panoramic experience, but we could see the snow-covered peaks of the Langtang region which was magical. There were also prayer flags to admire, which added to the fantastic sense of achievement. The best part of being up there was the air; so pure and fresh. We lay on our backs and I watched the clouds which seemed noticeably closer than when in the city (although that may well be my imagination).
The way down was a doddle in comparison with the ascent, taking just two and a half hours, and there were some pretty decent views to enjoy, allowing us to appreciate just how high we'd climbed. Unfortunately the photos don't do it justice.
Seven and a half hours after we left Budhanilkantha we arrived back there tired but happy. Vivek took me to a traditional Newari restaurant (the Newaris are the original people of Kathmandu Valley). I would never have found the place myself, nor trusted it if I had. We had to climb a ladder into a converted old house. There were dozens of local men packed into the three tiny, crooked rooms, sitting on low benches along the wall, not a table to be seen. We were brought plates of much appreciated but far too spicy (for my taste) food, resulting in my mouth being far more sore than my feet!Overall, I enjoyed the hike terrifically, the best bit about it being that I did it. I now know that I can handle walking that many hours and covering such a significant ascent and descent in the same day. All that remains to be seen is whether I can do it for 14 consecutive days.
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