My Experience :Trekking Annapurna 2024: BY Mr. Tony Suckla
Most people that do the Annapurna trek will start from the east side as the ascent is more gradual. But me and Sneha were already on the west side so we did it the opposite direction from most tourists. On Oct. 23 Sneha and me left a village called Hile and walked uphill all day to a place called Nagethanthi where we spent the night, then the next day we went over a mountain pass town called Ghorepani and we headed for a place called Sikha, but on the way about 5 pm we met some Nepali men that informed us that we were on the wrong trail and offered to help us get back to the right trail and village.
Because Sneha knows Hindi she was able to communicate with the Nepalis as Nepali is very similar to Hindi. At about 6:45pm we made it to Sikha. The next day we walked to a place called Tatopani and kept the Sabbath day and the last day of Sukkoth there on Oct. 26. I had a Zoom app meeting with about 15 people online from various widespread areas.
Tatopani means hot water in Nepali and there was a geothermal heated hot spring in Tatopani that we visited on Friday. On Sunday, Oct. 27 we walked to a place called Ghasa, on Monday, Oct. 28 we went to a place called Kokhethanti.
Then to Chhairo on Tues. Oct. 29. On the way to Chhairo I stopped to rest and Sneha who was behind me took another shorter trail and passed me up. I kept waiting for her and eventually realized she must be in front and finally that night we met up again.
On Wed. Oct. 30 we went to Jomsom, then on Thursday, Oct. 31 we went to small village called Lupra. On the way to Lupra we had to jump a small creek by hopping from stone to stone, with my long legs I did it, but Sneha could not make it and jumped in the water and got her hiking boots soaking wet. So she took her boots off and tied them to our backpacks and she wore her sandal flipflops the rest of the way to Lupra. On Fri. Nov. 1 we walked to Muktinath and kept Sabbath day there.
Because the ascent is so steep from the westside in Muktinath and Sneha was walking slowly, on Sunday, Nov. 3, I hired a Nepali porter to carry her pack over the Thorung la pass.
On Monday, Nov. 4, we went to a small village about 2 hours from Muktinath and we spent the night there. While in this small village, called Pedi, we met a young Nepali man from Kathmandu named Ayush, he also wanted to cross the Thorung La pass from the west side and so we all three decided to walk together. Early in the morning on Tuesday, Nov. 5 we started walking to Thorung la pass.
The porter originally told me he was going to walk with us and guide us the proper way, but he changed his mind and told us to go ahead and walk on our own and that he was going to come by horse with Sheha’s backpack later and meet us in a small village called Thorung pedi on the other side of the pass. So Ayush, Sneha and me started walking about 4:30am and being that it was dark we could not see the way properly, we got sidetracked for about an hour and half before we found the right path. From about 6am to around
| Ayush, Nov. 2024 |
11:30am we walked up hill till I reached the Thorung la pass(5416 meters/17,769 ft.). I waited another 30 minutes and Ayush came and then our porter came with a horse and said he was going down to Thorung pedi with Sneha’s pack, about 1pm Sneha made it to the pass.
We had some tea at a small shop and ate some snacks we had brought and then headed down the eastern side. When I reached the high camp I waited for some time for Ayush and Sneha but I soon left and went to Thorung pedi and paid the porter that had brought Sneha’s
backpack and Ayush and Sneha came an hour or so later.
backpack and Ayush and Sneha came an hour or so later.
On Wednesday Nov. 6 we three started walking toward Manang. On the way there Ayush
separated from me and Sneha and went on a different trail to a place called Tilicho Lake. Sneha and me continued down the Annapurna trail to Manang. On Thursday, Nov. 7, me and Sneha headed toward Upper Pisang. I was about an hour
or so ahead of Sneha as we were going downhill, I could not walk slow or it would be hard on my knees. When I got to the place where I needed to turn off to go to upper Pisang there was a Nepali driver sitting in his jeep next to the road. I knew that if I waited on Sneha to
catch up with me that it would be too late to make it to Upper Pisang, so I asked the driver if he would be willing to go
get her for me. He said no, that he was waiting for someone. I told him I would pay him Nepali Rupees 2000($21.00). So he agreed to go get her and bring her to me quickly. We made it to the beautiful village of Upper Pisang about sundown and found a lodge, the next morning we had a nice view of the mountain range. On Friday Nov. 8 we went to a village called Chame where there is a small geothermal heated hot spring pool.
Sneha and me had some shorts and we changed at a lodge and went to the hot spring waters. While there a group of about ten young Israeli men and women came and they all just stripped down to their underwear and got in the hot springs.
While relaxing in the hot spring waters one of the Israeli men started talking with me about politics. He noticed and asked about a wristband I was wearing that had some Paleo Hebrew characters and some Bible verses of Exodus 3:15 and Acts 4:12. I explained to him about the Name of Yahweh. He told me the Jewish tradition of the
Name of YHWH being too holy to pronounce, I asked him if we should follow the Jewish traditions or the word of YHWH. He said he would consider this some more later. We kept Sabbath day in Chame on Nov. 9 and I had my regular Zoom meeting with about 12 others joining in.
On, Sunday Nov. 10, we walked for a few hours and then took a jeep to a place called Dharapani, it was a scenic route on the road and we avoided alot of dust by taking the jeep.
On Monday Nov. 11, we walked all day to Jagat and reached by sundown. On Tuesday Nov. 12 we were wanting to go to a hill station called Bahundanda but I got side tracked and lost about and hour and half of time before we got back on the right trail. Thus we stayed on Tuesday night in a place called Ghermu. On Wednesday Nov. 13 we walked to a place called Bhulbhule. On Thursday Nov. 14, we had a short few hours walk to Besisahar, which is where most other trekkers will start the Annapurna circuit. From Besisahar we caught a mini bus to Pokhara.
On Friday Nov. 15 we went canoeing in the Phewa lake in Pokhara and Sneha left Saturday night to go back to India.
Tony Suckla
December 25, 2024
