Immersed in the Annapurnas

The highlight of our trek was our climb into the heart of the range, into the Annapurna Sanctuary. Again we began in the steamy lowlands, hiking through thick jungles full of ferns and moss-covered trees. The rhodadendrons were blooming, its pink flowers punctuating the diverse pallate of greens we found ourselves in. The forests remained thick and dense because of further protection of the diverse valley leading to the sanctuary. We spent one day hiking in the rain, making the forest seem even more lush and alive as water dripped from all the vegetation and small clear streams rushed down the hillsides and sometimes the trail. Once we climbed up out of the forest into the alpine zone, we caught quick glimpses of the mountainsides through the thick clouds settled in the valley. The mountainsides had a fresh dusting of snow and small waterfalls were cascading down the dramatic cliffs that framed the valley. We spent one night at the lower base camp, as the mountains were hiding behind a thick curtain of clouds. Small purple flowers defiantly poked out of the snow and brilliant blue birds fed on sluggish lady bugs, all adding color to the dull afternoon, as Tim and I explored the area near our lodge. Just before sunset, the clouds suddenly dissipated and the striking jagged peak of Machapuchre put on a brilliant performance that heightened our hopes for the views the following day.

Tim woke me up in the wee hours of the morning, as the ambient light revealed the dramatic peaks that surrounded us. We stood out in front of our lodge, the light increasing until a blaze of gold like a brushstroke of golden paint lit up a sliver of the peak of Annapurna South. Slowly the other peaks caught the sun's rays. We marveled at the peaks once more, only this time we were right in the center of them. In every direction, we had a jagged peak towering over us. We quickly packed our bags and headed for Annapurna Base Camp, another 1000 ft higher, as the sun began melting the previous day's snow, but keeping us warm as we trekked. We quickly reached Annapurna Base Camp and spent the morning enjoying the amazing views, lounging on some rocks in the sun. Rock falls and avalanches continually thundered around us, but in the vast sanctuary you could never spot from where the sound came. By noon the clouds returned and thick moist snowflakes began to fall. We retired to our room and spent the afternoon reading from the warmth of our sleeping bags. The following morning, Tim woke me at 3am to look at the stars. He had spent the last hour out in the cold under a brilliant starry sky. The milky way stretching across the sky emerging from behind the silhouette of one peak and disappearing behind the silhouette of another. Shooting stars tore across a perfect nightsky. We sat out in our sleeping bags and watched as night slowly transformed to day, and we witnessed again the sun's entrance from even better seats than the previous morning. It was a marvelous display from 13,500 ft...and it was hard to wrap our minds around the fact that the peaks surrounding us still rose another 10,000 ft above us. We felt so small amidst these mighty peaks that compose this young, fragile yet diverse, mountain range...and we felt so lucky to witness the beautiful process of the days unfolding. We had beautiful weather hiking back down the valley, although it was sad to leave the mountains behind as we returned to the blazing hot lowlands...although we were still mentally in the heart of the mountains.