Tatopani to Shikha: Up a thousand stairs

Over two suspension bridges , up thousands of rock stairs and then up some more, gaining 735m/2400ft of elevation to get to the town of Shikha was how we started our day. Along the way we stopped at “Excellent View Restaurant “, which is so incredibly rustic, high up in the hills at Ghara. While waiting for our food to be prepared we sat beside two woman thrashing wheat with sticks, endlessly. 

The little children who lived there would peek shyly around the corner to look at us, quickly shout “chocolate “ and then run away and hide after being scolded by their mother. They were a very sweet family, the patriarch ran the teahouse and cooked the food which was arguably one of the most delicious meals we’ve eaten on the Annapurna Circuit even though it did take about an hour and a half to prepare. He is very proud of his son who is in the Ghorka Army and he introduced us to his daughter in law and grandchildren. Later on we found out that his house had been torn apart in a storm a few years ago and he was slowly trying to piece it together again. 

The sky was hazy with a threat of rain and the hillsides were teaming with bird life and beautiful blooming bushes and trees. 

It was awe inspiring to look at the terraced hillside across the valley and see how high up on the mountains people lived and farmed.

We are both feeling lethargic today and are making the ascent slowly.

Leaving Ghara, the clouds became thick and black and we felt splatters of rain on our skin. We hoped we would make it to Shikha before the thunderstorm broke, which we did in the nick of time. 

Right now I’m typing from a tiny, cosy room at the Mona Lisa Hotel, looking out over the terraced village with slate roof houses and the mountains beyond as the rain pours down in torrents. I am so grateful not to be hiking in this torrential downpour. We even have a bathroom ensuite with a seat flush toilet and enjoyed a luke warm shower which was a treat compared to our usual ice cold showers in an outhouse bathroom which induce screams of shock as the cold water hits our bodies.

It’s important to keep on top of our laundry daily and wash our socks and underwear by hand, hanging them up to dry overnight a little and then further drying them by hanging items off our backpacks. In this manner, we are able to wear at least clean base layers of clothing everyday, which makes trekking far more pleasant.

Another daily issue is clean drinking water. It is advised to use some form of water purification system, either iodine tablets, life straw, UV system or charcoal filter. We have a Sawyer lightweight filter system. There are a few safe drinking water stations in some towns which provide ozonated water, this is preferable to buying bottled water as waste disposal is a serious issue here and the less disposable plastic used, the better. We have observed this problem in many villages where the streams are choked with plastic rubbish.

Hopefully the rain will stop by the morning and we’ll be able to continue to Ghorepani Pass tomorrow and then onto Ghandruk, whereafter we’ll make our way down to Lumle which is the end of the Annapurna Circuit.

Fun facts about Nepal:

National flower: Rhododendron

National bird: Himalayan monal ( Impeyan pheasant)

National animal: Cow ( sacred to Hindus)

National color: Crimson