Annapurna South from Ghandrung

In December 2007 I had taken a team of fourteen trekkers including two children for a five day circuit in the Annapurna foothills north of Pokhara.

 On the first day we stopped at Gurung Cottage, a small guest house in the village of Ghandrung. The first day of the trek is always hard and the stiff four hour climb from Syuli Bazaar near the river to Ghandrung had been especially tough for the team straight out of the plains.

  The last trekker entered Ghandrung around 5 30 pm in the fading dusk. The weather was not particularly good with clouds swirling in the valley and visibility was low. We could not see the view of the Annapurnas and Mache Puchare which Ghandrung is famous for.

  I was sipping a cup of tea in the stone patio of Gurung Cottage, chatting with Kisam Gurung, the owner, who I was meeting after a year.  We both lamented the inclement weather which looked as though it would deprive our group of the dress circle view. Suddenly, as if by magic, the cloud curtain started to clear and the tip of Annapurna South came into view.

  We watched mesmerized and called out to the other members.  The cloud cover dropped even lower and we could see a major portion of the peak glinting in the last rays of the setting sun. Instinctively I grabbed my camera and took a few shots. Within minutes the cloud curtain was back and the magic moment was over!

Jake Norton believes Mallory & Irvine climbed Everest!

Everest climber Jake Norton who has been a part of the Mallory and Irvine search expeditions has posted a very plausible account of what he feels could have happened on Everest after Mallory and Irvine were last seen by Odell. Please check his blog below for the account which is very gripping!
http://blog.mountainworldproductions.com/2010/05/what-really-happened-to-george-mallory-andrew-irvine-part-ii.html

Ama Dablam

Ama Dablam is one of the most beautiful mountains of the Khumbu. In January 2004, Srijit Dasgupta and I were walking back from Kala Pattar after being bruised and battered by a snow storm which kept us lodge bound at Pheriche for 2 days! It was so cold that the water used to freeze in our sleeping bags! On the return leg we stopped for the night at Pangboche at  a lodge owned by an Everest Sherpa. The morning was not very clear but as we started walking back towards Thyanboche and Namche Bazar, the weather improved and  started to clear and we had this stupendous view of the peak. Pangboche has an excellent location and not many trekkers stop there so the village is usually quiet and lodges are easily available. In winter we were the only guests!

Primulas and Frank Smythe

In the summer of 1987, I think it was late May, I walked with Brigadier Sidhu and Major B V Naresh of the Indian Army from Thangu in North Sikkim to the village of Muguthang in the Lhonak Valley. On the way, you have to cross the Lhonak La pass which was snow bound due to unseasonal spring snowfall. These primulas were blooming on a meadow just before the climb to the pass. Looking at them, I was reminded of R.L. Holdsworth's comments in Frank Smythe's book The Valley of Flowers which I reproduce here.

" All of a sudden I realised that I was simply surrounded by primulas. At once the day seemed to brighten perceptibly. Forgotten were all pains and cold and lost porters. And what a primula it was! All over shelves and terraces it grew often with roots in running water. At the most it stood six inches high, but it's flowers were enormous in stature and ample in number.... In all my mountain wanderings I had not seen a more beautiful flower than this primula....."

My sentiments as well on seeing these primulas bloom below the pass on that misty May morning with snow threatening!

Jim Brandenburg

deThis is just an amazing blog and web site .. brilliant photography by a National Geographic shooter. Do take a look!
http://jimbrandenburg.blogspot.com/
http://www.jimbrandenburg.com/

Great Himalaya Trail

 trailRobin Boustead is working on developing the Great Himalaya Trail. 

In his own words " The Great Himalaya Trail (GHT) is the longest and highest alpine walking track in the world, as it winds between the largest mountains and remotest communities on the planet. Connecting 5 Asian countries; Bhutan, China, India, Nepal and Pakistan, the GHT covers more than 4,500km from Namche Barwa in Tibet to Nanga Parbat in Pakistan. At the moment, only the Nepal section has been walked and mapped in thoroughly. The other countries are still being researched, so if you want to do some real exploring and become part of the GHT then contact us for ideas "  He is also working on a book for Trailblazer which does excellent trekking guides on this route. For more information please do visit  Great Himalaya Trail

Bandavgarh Tigress killed by a jeep

Sabyasachi Patra has published a very moving account of the death of a tigress in Bandavgarh last month who was allegedly killed at night by a government jeep. The tigress had three small cubs barely five months old who are now without their mother and are unaware of what has hit them. Please read http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/bandhavgarh-tigress-runover-by-jeep
Sabyasachi has also requested that we raise our voices against this callousness of the government machinery and has asked for e- mails to be sent to various officials and government institutions whose details are also mentioned in the post.

11 Year Old climbs Everest

Jordan Romero is 11 years old and is attempting to climb the seven summits. For a detailed account of Jordan and his Everest climb please visit this interesting blog by Alan Arnette http://www.alanarnette.com/news/2010/05/28/jordan-romero-my-thoughts/