It was a pleasant climb through a mature hardwood and bamboo forest today.  We are in a narrow valley leading  into the Annapurna sanctuary, so despite the clear conditions we did not have direct sun until 10:30 am.  There are monkeys in the forests we... Read More

Today was rather uneventful, but we did have some of the nicest weather we have experienced.  It often gets partly cloudy starting at midday, but today was blue sky from dawn to dusk.  Because we were at moderate altitudes of 1800 to 2400 metres, it... Read More

The walk today was distinct from previous days in a couple of ways.  In the first place, the vegetation was much richer.  It is apparent that the rainfall is greater here than in other areas around Annapurna.  We walked through a lush forest of large... Read More

Today Matthew and I climbed a net 1600 metres to Ghorepani.  This is the biggest climb on the Annapurna Circuit.  We felt very strong at first, sucking in the viscous and oxygen rich air at 1200 metres.  The last hour, with fatigue and thinner air,... Read More

Today all four of us descended 800 metres to a land of bananas and oranges.  The first half of the day we walked on extraordinary trails cut into the sidehill above the river, or rising or falling on stone staircases. I frequently imagined that we... Read More

We have walked 5 hours each of the past two days, mostly on trails on the opposite side of the valley from the road.  We started in conifer forests, but now that we have dropped to 2000 metres, we are walking through bamboo and other... Read More