Our first trek high above the Kathmandu Valley

Day 4-Thurs, Oct 16, Kathmandu

We were all pretty excited when we started out on this day.  It is our first chance to get out of Kathmandu and into the countryside.  We entered our lavender bus and drove out the ring road toward Bahtapur, just like yesterday.  But today we continued up and up on smaller and smaller roads until we are switch-backing on roads no wider than sidewalks. There are terraced rice fields all around punctuated with narrow, three-story red brick houses topped by tin roofs.  When the narrow road turns to dirt, the bus stops and we begin to walk with Rajendra as our sweep and "Casey" at the lead.

Hiking through a small village

Kathmandu Valley with smog

Sunny dry weather after Tuesday's downpour

Of course, it is the local by-way and local people are walking by in their everyday clothes and shower shoes or slippers carrying bags or loads.  School children pass by in their uniforms accompanied by a parent.  And we are all "geared up" in our high tech hiking clothing.  As we walked, Casey pointed out a kind of bitter herb called "Nepal hops" and marijuana by a doorway grown as feed for animals.  We pass a cow and some goats with kids, chickens and lots of dogs.











All the time we are going up hill and the dirt road has turned into a dirt path through a pine woods.









After an hour we came to the top of a hill with views all around.  Casey brought us here to show us the "largest trident in the country."  The trident is the weapon of Shiva, the Destroyer.  This representation is 10-15 feet tall, made of steel pipe and sheet metal.  It stands next to a large stone monument with a bas relief of Shiva the Terrible with many arms.  He is belted and garlanded with severed heads.

We are greeted there by an orange clad and turbaned Sadhu.  Rajendra talked with him and gave him an offering of money after-which he blessed us, gave us tikkas, and stood with with us for photos.

James with Sadhu

When we left that place, we were accompanied by eight of the holy man's 20 well-fed, well-behaved dogs.   They escorted us through the woods to the village which was our lunch stop and the end of the trek. The village was small but contained a tiny clinic staffed by a community health worker, a public toilet, a restaurant, store and a few homes.

Descending from Hindu hilltop temple

Continuing our hike

We passed 3 women collecting firewood

View of the Kathmandu Valley 

A Community Health Worker at small clinic told us she was giving immunizations today.

The clinic was funded by Rotary International

We continued on in the bus to Nagkarot.  It is a high hill, anyplace else it would be called a mountain, with an observation platform on the top. From there we could see the Himalayas shining above the foothills.  A layer of clouds formed above the hills.  The mountains rose from the cloud layer.  They are white and rugged. Floating there above the clouds, they are seemingly not rooted on earth at all.  Improbably high, incredibly massive, vividly white, completely breath taking.

The Himalayas were breath-taking as they spread out before us

Floating above the clouds they seemed home of the gods

 And then we go down the hill leaving the mountains behind for a winding bus ride through rice patties, houses and the mind-bending chaos of Kathmandu traffic.