Change of plans (warning: post heavy on logistics and details)

For those wondering about the gps tracks here’s the update. Sarah got sick with a upper respiratory infection and after 4 days at 16,000 ft it was advised to go down to a lower elevation to recover. The two of us headed down with a plan to take a little detour and meet up with the the group in Namche. After 2 days we received a note that another member of our group was very ill with fevers and all 3 team members had helicoptered out to Kathmandu. With no way to talk from the mountains we knew we would hike to Num (our back in service update) to make some calls. Sarah was feeling better after a few days rest down lower so we embarked on a 3 day hike out to service. For the sake of meeting up with the group we decided to jeep to Tumlingtar and fly to Kathmandu. Our team member’s fevers had cleared and he was doing better by the time we talked.

Once we all reconvened in Kathmandu the decision was made to start in the far west and hike back towards Kathmandu. We would start by climbing a peak that we intended to climb at the end of the trip and then hike east on the trail. The one hiccup is that Nepal is smack dab in the middle of elections this week and basically the entire country is shutting down which makes getting permits a challenge. During this time, everyone returns to their homes, often villages high in the mountains or other remote regions, to vote in their local elections. The permit would likely take over a week to get in hand, so instead of waiting in Kathmandu, we decided to hike a section of the trail in Langtang National Park. We are hiking this morning after jeeping from Kathmandu to the start of the trail in The Last Resort.

Our 4 day stint back in Kathmandu was really nice. Eating all the food, taking in more sites and enjoying the company of our Kathmandu compadres was healing. We are adapting to the changes and enjoying the wild flow of life in Nepal. We will continue to retro post on our blog when we have service.