Annapurna Round
in
Fifteen Days

Day Six, 1st October - Free Day Manang

1/10/10 17:25 Manang - 3530 metres

Dhan had said that we'd walk up to the glacier at eight o'clock (on acclimatisation days it is a good idea to day-hike up, returning to sleep at the lower altitude), but we didn't get going until a quarter to nine (when the sun was too high for decent shots, annoyingly). From the viewpoint I wandered off along a ridge strewn with prayer flags, which was really lovely, and then further up to a stupa which was surrounded with low stone houses, for the animals to shelter in during bad weather. The viewpoint is at 3,800 metres, which should stand us in good stead for tomorrow's climb to 4,000 metres. I felt like some sort of cyborg insect coming back down the steep zigzag path, with my sticks clicking along, keeping me balanced.

On the way back I went to visit Gangapurna Lake, which we'd seen from our journey up to the viewpoint; it is where the glacier melt-water ends up. I had a paddle in the beautiful lake . . . well I dipped my feet in briefly, as it was mind-numbingly cold. The only trouble was that I'd got my feet all muddy waddling over to the water, so had to repeatedly dip them in for short bursts to clean them off. I stuck my trusty thermometer in the water, and it told me it was ten degrees centigrade, but it felt much colder. I returned to the hotel and had soup for lunch, followed by samosas at a small cafe along the road.

I decided to have a nap . . . which was going well until a loud French group arrived at the lodge, they and their porters all shouting to each other. I had a chat with some of them later, and they were a nice bunch, so I forgave them their noisiness. I started packing my bag, putting as much stuff into the side pockets as possible, so as to leave enough room in the top of the main section for Dhan's bag to fit in. I was going to buy a bigger daypack, so I could fit more stuff into it, but Dhan says the quality here is not good, and insists that it is not the weight that has been a problem, but carrying the two bags rather than one. After a bit of negotiating, I got him to agree to me leaving at seven tomorrow, with him following on an hour later. This way I can get the good light for my pictures, and he can have a bit of a lie in. It's only a short day, just three or so hours walking, as we have to be careful not to ascend too far too fast. Above 3,500 metres 300 metres per day is recommended, with 500 metres being the maximum you should ascend.

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