• Day 6 Bupsa to Chaurikarka with a high point of 2900m

By now we were averaging long days to cover the miles on the trek. We really wanted to make it to Namche on our 9th day of trekking and so pushing through to Chaurikarka seemed like a good idea. Our bill at the lodge in Bupsa came to 1780 rupees and the host didn’t charge us for our rooms. He was also really kind in giving each of us white prayer scarfs to wish us a safe journey up to Gokyo Ri. We all decided we would leave them up there once we’d made it to the peak of our trek.

The highest point of the day came at Khari-La (2900m) and all the while we could spot our route as tea houses would crop up along the way. We also passed mani-walls and lot’s of prayer flags. We weren’t too far from the Lukla to Namche trekkers highway and so we were holding onto every moment we had on the paths before we met the busy pathways ahead.

In Puiyan we enjoyed an excellent lunch at one of the lesser known lodges, here we had what we jointly voted was the best ra-ra noodle soups to date plus we couldn’t help but lap up the fried eggs! Even Helen who isn’t an egg lover enjoyed one!

As we approached Chaurikarka it had been a really long day and we got there at around 5pm joined by a few other trekkers. We can’t remember the name of the guesthouse we stayed at but it’s at the top of the village past the Stupas and the Hilliary school. In fact right in front of the lodge is a sign on the pavement; down to Jiri onwards to Namche, also upon leaving the lodge to the left there is a Mani-gate so we hope this helps in identifying which lodge we stayed at, for anyone who’s interested! After dahl bat times 6 we enjoyed another early night in our cosy tea lodge.

• Day nine: Chaurikarka to Namche with a high point of 3446m

We were once again ready for a long day, leaving at just after 8am (most trekkers tend to up and leave at around 6-7am but we preferred to have breakfast and get ourselves ready before heading off). As we left the village we were hiking through village upon village, with pathways lined with mani-stones and walls. When we reached Cheplung we finally joined the Lukla to Namche highway which is the path most people take when they fly into Lukla and start their acclimatisation walks.

We had lunch in Phakding at the second lodge we came to on the left of the path, there is a nice outdoor seating area which always marks highly on our scores! By now the four of us seemed to be marking the standard of food in relation to the best meals we’d been enjoying along the way. We knew some awards would be given out at the end of the trek (hypothetically that is!). Dave and Joshua had been chatting pretty much all the way about food and so it deemed right to stop at this point. The Singapore lads passed us as we sat there, this time they had their friend with them who’d flown out to Lukla to join them for their trek to Everest Base Camp. It had been really nice bumping into them most days.

We had a good break for lunch and then continued onwards, stopping in Mondzo (Munjo) to buy a few choccie bars that we thought would help us out later on in the climb to Namche. We then passed the checkpoint had our names entered into the log book and we were suddenly in The Solo-Khumbu National Park. From here there is a steep downhill climb and several villages to pass through whilst criss-crossing over the rivers on large swing bridges. After leaving Jorsale there are no more villages until Namche.

There is a fantastic swing bridge taking you over from one side of the river to the other which then leads you into a really steep and dusty climb. This climb doesn’t stop until Namche Bazaar, and it is pretty relentless. Amata was struggling with a head cold and sore throat and so all the dust being blown up around didn’t help. Dave was on good form with his duct-tape socks but we all needed our little chocolate boost along the way. We also got our first real glimpse of Everest from an abandoned tea house in ruins. This last part of the climb is tough coming in from Chaurikarka and Helen felt it was the hardest day to date, the elevation in this section is around 800m or so.

The sight of Namche was welcomed indeed, we were just a little annoyed by all the steps and such getting into the village. Once we did there was some music playing from one of the many shops along the street and so Joshua and Helen broke out into a little celebratory dance, Amata filmed us and Dave just did a cool head nod! We opted to stay a little way out of the busy area of Namche at The Moonlight Lodge one of the higher lodges, which also meant more stair climbing. But it was worth it, Moonlight is a great lodge, the owners are helpful and the food was some of the best we’d had so far. Showers are on the pricey side at 300 rupees but it was a very hospitable place to be.

• Day 10 Namche rest day

We did very little on our rest day; washed clothes, showered and ate! We enjoyed the luxury of a coffee and hot chocolate as well as a danish pastry later on in the day. Amata was mainly trying to get over her cold, but all four of us were happy just to chill, read and chat in the Moonlight dining area. It was also a good place to check emails and stock up on a few essential snack items for the treks ahead of us (200rs for 30mins in an internet cafe). We decided to do an acclimatisation hike the next day to Thame sitting at 3800m and we wanted to stay there. This meant we could leave some gear behind at the lodge and make it a nice 2 day hike with a small load. Our final bill at the Moonlight Lodge came to 7450 rupees, this was our biggest and perhaps most indulgent bill to date!

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0, 18mm f4, 90mm Tele-Elmarit f2.8 processed in Lightroom 3)

As we wanted to try and camp within the Zion National Park camp site we were up early and out driving around the South Campsite looking for a free pitch. The Watchman Campground was reservation only and we couldn’t book a place, therefore we ricked the first come first served policy of the south site. Each person we asked who looked to be moving on said that their site was already taken by new people! After asking around 5 groups of people, we finally asked a guy who kindly offered us to share the site with him and his friend as long as we split the fee with them, “it’s a deal”!

Nick and Christina, who were pretty serious rock climbers, were to be our camp buddies for the next two nights with the site being large enough for both cars and the tents. Here at the Zion National Park there is a free shuttle bus service that takes you around the park (much like Yosemite NP) and drops you at various locations before doing the return trip. As customary we headed to the Visitors Centre for some information about hiking in the area as we were interesting in the popular Angels Landing hike – A five mile round trip in the canyon increasing +1488 feet elevation via a strenuous steep cliff-side. As this is the most popular route it would be very busy and also we wanted to do something a little different from the masses. Observation Point was recommended to us by the knowledgeable ranger and we decided this was our hike for the day. Eight miles round trip, +2148 feet elevation change via a strenuous steep cliff-side – perfect!

Helen’s cold had taken hold but she pushed through and we decided to just go for it. In a nutshell the hike was amazing. Quite possibly the hiking highlight of the America trip so far for the sheer natural beauty of the rock faces, views, weather, the autumnal leaves, the list could go on. You will need hiking boots, layers of clothes as in the shade it was chilly, food and plenty of water if you are going to climb up to the top. Also if you are afraid of heights and drops then be prepared to face these fears, but it is well worth it.

Back to our tent we hired up the single stove and Helen prepared another scrumptious meal of veggie chilly and rice. Dave went in search of fire wood (nearest place is at the shop near the Cafe Soleil and the Zion Canyon Theatre $6 per bundle) and we sat our a nice fire for the evening chatting with Nick and Christina.

We decided that the 22nd was to be another day of hiking as the area is so beautiful it would be a shame not to see more. Taking another tip from our ranger friend at the visitor centre we headed out to Kolob Canyons, part of Zion NP. This is a 45/60 minute drive from the South Campsite west along SR 9 and then north on I 15. The 7 day pass for Zion is good to use here too, just pop into the visitor centre at Kolob and show it to them.

We decided to take on the Middle Fork of Taylor Creek as it was only 5.4 miles round trip and hardly any elevation gain. There are some river crossings that need to be traversed but there are plenty of stepping stone rocks to aid your crossing in the shallow water. The hike was just as awe inspiring as the previous day but for other reasons. The trees here were much more autumnal against the orange rock and again out of the sunlight in the shade near to the river water it was pretty cold.

The hike brings you to a double arch water streaked alcove which is very impressive and we continued on up river a little further to see what we could find, more amazing scenery and the odd waterfall. On the way back we spotted a rather HUGE tarantula and we had to get a photo whilst he / she scuttled off with some speed into the woodland. The whole trip took us around 4 hours with lots of photo taking and a lunch break.

After some inspiration from Nick and Christina the previous night we decided to do a curry for dinner. It was pretty amazing after the hike and we head an early night ready to set off tomorrow for the next canyon, the Grand Canyon.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)

The train down to Surat Thani left at 7.30pm and we got in at around 7.30am the next day. There were a load of people making their way down for the full moon party which was going off at the weekend. We were trying to avoid the masses and opted instead to head to somewhere Helen has never visited before whilst travelling through Thailand. Our destination was Khoa Sok National Park and so when we exited the train we headed straight to a restaurant area where we could buy bus and taxi services to any destination in the south. We managed to book onto a mini-van operator who would pick us up at 10.30am, so we sat in a restaurant along with a few other backpackers and enjoyed a fruit shake whilst we waited.

The pick up was early to our surprise and it took around an hour and a half to reach the entrance to Khao Sok. We didn’t have any accommodation booked but as soon as we got there taxi drivers were ready waiting with their pick up trucks to take us to a place to stay. We wanted to go to one place recommended called Art’s River View Lodge in the Lonely Planet which was advertised as being around 300 Baht as their cheapest option but when we got there we were informed that the cheapest room was 600 Baht, so we soon moved on and luckily our taxi driver hung around so that he could earn his commission for wherever we would end up. There was a great place further back down the lane towards the main road called Nungs House that we had spotted on our way past.

They had a great sized bungalow with en-suite and hot water which we bargained at for 2 nights for 500 Baht. The manager there is really friendly and hospitable. We looked around for a few tour options for the next day and then set off to explore the national park for a few hours. When we set off it was very hot and sunny, within 2 hours the weather changed and a monsoon came with it. We’d managed to walk a good distance and stop by at some of the waterfalls in the area (although they didn’t really impress us). It was a good walk but we could tell the weather was going to worsen so we started making tracks back and in doing so got caught in a monstrous downpour which brought to the surface many leaches who decided to attach themselves onto us…not a pleasant experience but getting absolutely drenched was fun!

When we got back we opted to book the one day lake and cave tour through our guesthouse as-well as our travel arrangements to Koh Pha-Ngan. The one day tour cost us 1500 Baht each including lunch, we managed to find a few cheaper alternatives but only by 100 Baht or so and we were happy with the service at the guesthouse so decided to go with them. The joint bus and boat tickets to Koh Pha-Ngan were 600 Baht each.

The following day we woke up early to be picked up at 8.30am for the tour. There were 7 of us in total along with another cheeky chappy Thai tour guide and the drivers. It took around an hour and a half to get to Cheow Lan Lake, an enormous man made lake built for hydro-electricity. As we arrived at the pier there was a long-tail boat waiting to take us on an hour long boat trip to the Tham Nam Thalu cave. The scenery around in and around the lake is stunning, we were reminded once more of the karst peaks we’ve seen time and again in China, Vietnam and Laos but we thought this was the most beautiful of the karst areas we’d yet visited. They jutt out of the water some 950m, with perhaps 100-300m depth below, we just couldn’t believe that the lake was man-made and had taken nearly 20 years to fill.

Along the way we stopped to view monkeys swinging in the trees and a monitor lizard who was unhappily disturbed from its roost by our tour guide who just couldn’t resist getting the creature on public show for us. Be warned, Thai tour guides and those from other South-East Asian countries do like to show off and disturb creatures from their natural habitat to show them off to tourists, but it’s not what we want to see!! Still they’ll do it all the same, like boys playing with ants!

On the south-west shoreline there is a base where many tourists and backpackers stay for the night in bamboo style bungalows over the waters edge. There are also a few restaurants there and we were able to use kayaks as part of our tour cost, we enjoyed a great lunch there too. After a short trip on the kayaks and a very filling lunch we took the boat a little further down the shore-line and got off to start a 2 hour walk through the jungle to the cave. We crossed through big jungle forest trees and leaves, butterfly’s drinking from the water-logged paths and more wildlife which prompted our tour guide to once again act his child-like ways by disturbing them and trying to grab them for us to photograph. We saw massive spiders, lizards, beetles, birds and so on, before eventually arriving at the cave entrance. We didn’t really know what to expect but the cave is massive! We packed away our cameras and valuables into dry-packs and started trekking through the cave. We were in the cave for over an hour making our way from one side to the other, passing by hundreds of bats, more huge spiders, toads, frogs and streams. There were other tourists in there too but most of the time our group was alone, and at one stage we all stripped down to our swim gear and got ready to swim through the deeper streams. Our hero tour guide took all of our dry-packs over his shoulders and didn’t once get them wet, whilst he directed our steps along rocks and through small rivers that he has guided people through time and again. At one point we were head deep in water as we climbed down a waterfall and into a pool, it was scary and exciting all at once. We couldn’t believe the scale and depth of the cave and with all of the wildlife, limestone, rock formations and water passing through, we have to say it was an amazing experience.

As we exited the cave we had a further half hour or so walk back to the boat which was then followed by a tasty snack of fresh fruit and banana rice balls – yum! With another one hour boat journey back we eventually arrived at our accommodation after 8pm, it was a very long day indeed but we really enjoyed it and thought our tour guide was great too. We enjoyed food with our fellow tour buddies and then made our way back to prepare for another departure the next morning.

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)

We were picked up at 8.30am or so from our guesthouse and much to our delight there were an extra 4 people booked on the trip and so we received $10 refund each off the original trip price. We were able to take our main bags and leave them at the Tourist Office securely whilst we would b out on the trip, after dropping them off we went on our way to the first stage of the trek.

There were 8 of us in total and we were a good mix of people with 2 cheeky tour guides carrying our food from place to place. We took a Song Thaw for about an hour towards the national park and stopped at a wooden bridge, this presented us with a problem; we couldn’t go any further in the vehicle over the bridge with all the food and people packed inside of it, so we off loaded, carried the food and walked to the village around 1km away. When we got there Mii was waiting with a scooter and took the food from us in preparation for the lunch-time spot.

After a short introduction to the village and our guides we walked for around an hour and a half and landed at our first cave of the tour. It wasn’t so big in size but was good enough to explore with head torches. Onwards from there we continued to walk through forest and farmland and ended at the lunch time spot which was at another cave, here there was also a lagoon going into the cave and so everyone stripped off and went for a swim. Helen wasn’t feeling up to getting into the water and was still surviving off re-hydration drinks. The lunch was served on a long picnic bench and we fought off the flies whilst eating barbecued fish, chicken, sticky rice and vegetables, it was okay but the flies didn’t help! We stopped at this spot for over and hour and then continued to walk to another cave. This cave was very impressive, for 15 minutes we all sat or snoozed letting the lunch settle in the peacefulness of the cave. Dave went off to explore a little and photographed the rest of us snoozing away. The tour-guides then led us through one part of the cave guided by torch-lights and out into another much larger section of the cave. There was water and a sand-bank that led towards a large exit point. At one side of the cave there are steps leading up to a Buddah shrine and fantastic views across the cave to the other-side where we snoozed. We were told that once a year there is a festival that happens in this cave and around 3000 people go there to celebrate for 3 days, as always in Laos style, we could only imagine what this would be like.

After leaving the cave we walked another 5 km to a Stupa and then a further 1km to the village where we were staying that night. The village farmed tobacco and we were surprised at the presentation of the village homes in comparison to those we had seen and stayed at in Cambodia. There are around 90 people living in this village with mostly young children under the age of 11. When we asked where all the older children were the response was that in the dry season they go to the town or city to work and send the money back to their family, coming back in the wet season to farm. The children were good fun to photograph but we got the impression they’re used to westerners coming into their village as they showed off, grabbed at the cameras and were quite cheeky. Still it’s all good for the purpose of photographing.

Our accommodation comprised of an eco-style hut with great views from the village of the surrounding mountains and we enjoyed chatting on the balcony of the hut whilst the sun went down. The bed’s were made for us with mosquito nets and bed covers provided. We will say one thing though; always carry a sleeping bag liner or inner sheet as they don’t clean their bed linen very well and we noticed a few bugs crawling around!

We played Putong with the locals (boules) and managed to beat the French couple from our group, one of whom plays it every summer with his brother!! Not bad! The locals cooked us dinner and we all ate together along with them on the balcony of the guesthouse. Later that evening we participated in a traditional Laos Bacai ceremony, this involved the group sitting around a circular table with a candle and flower arrangement in the middle. For each person there was a portion of sticky rice and chocolate bar that we would accept as a gift.  The head of the village came to each of us one by one accompanied by his two deputy leaders, he prayed for us, spoke of good things to come and all of us were predicted we would ‘live long liiiife’. He placed a cotton bracelet on our wrist and the gift was in the pal of our hands. Following him his deputy’s did the same so we ended with 3 bracelets each and many many wishes of a long life!

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f2.0 & Olympus PEN, 17mm f2.8 & 100mm f2.8, processed in Lightroom 3)