Back to the Mountains

After saying goodbye to our village and Nepali family, we set off for a final 2 week trek in the Langtang region of the Himalayas. 

Our adventure began the moment we stepped onto the bus in Kathmandu for a 80 mile, 10 hour long bus ride up and down winding mountain roads- in a vehicle with no maximum capacity. When we passed an overturned bus that had flown off the mountain edge, we wondered if we were really in Disney Land passing by props meant to scare us before the big drop. It worked, we were actually scared. 

Are we there yet?

An oncoming bus hit a motorcyclist. No one was injured. Just another opportunity for the whole mountain village and 6 buses worth of Nepalis to spend 2 hours together in the middle of the street... while we waited patiently...

Finally we made it to the trailhead! No cars allowed.

We passed through magical forests,

Crossed suspension bridges (a little bigger than York's famed wiggly bridge)

And Avi flew over some valleys

Finally, the snow-capped Himalayas appeared on the horizon

Prayer flags fill the sky

Yaks rule the terrain above 10,000 ft.

this lodge was build into a giant rock to protect against the frequent avalanches

the trails are flanked with teahouses to warm the body and soul

We spent 2 days in the most spectacular mountain village on Earth, Kyanji Gompa, to acclimatize before heading to higher altitudes 

Cassie enjoys the scenery

And scouts out the summit before our ascent

Back to the trail

Journey to the summit...

Climbing a mountain ridge

Steep trails

Almost there!

Rewarding views

Dancing prayer flags greet us with gusto and excitement

Summit! 15,751 ft.