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<\/a>My Stops<\/p><\/div>\n
Planning to visit upper Mustang? my friends have built this awesome map<\/a>,\u00a0please do check it out!\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n As I left for Chele from Kagbeni, that\u2019s when it slowly began to dawn on me, this journey was going to be one of a kind. Just a few minutes walk towards Chele in the break of dawn – I find myself all alone. If an alien abducted me, or if I fell off the cliff and died, my body would remain untraceable. Nobody would know where I took my last breath. The isolated nature of this place was terrifying, at the same time deeply moving. Turns out, it was just a beginning, the best and the most thrilling part had yet to come.<\/p>\n I took the last flight to Pokhara from Kathmandu on May 16, 2014. Stayed overnight and flew to Jomsom the next day.\u00a0I cannot talk about this trip without mentioning the Jomsom flight, cause it was mind-blowing. The airplane literally flies in between the hills. You can see the trees so up close, it is ridiculous!.\u00a0It was the very first flight to Jomsom and I started trekking pretty much right after I landed.<\/p>\n Jomsom Flight<\/p><\/div>\n Jomsom Airport<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n At Jomsom Airport Runway<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n Outside the Airport – Jomsom<\/p><\/div>\n Given below is a synopsis of all my stops:<\/p>\n The hours mentioned is the time it took me to get to the destination. Depending on your pace, it may take you shorter or longer. On top of that, I also got lost on the way so, if you know where you are going, it shouldn’t take you that long.<\/p>\n Jomsom – Kagbeni<\/strong>: \u00a03 hours Kagbeni<\/p><\/div>\n Kagbeni<\/p><\/div>\n Kagbeni – Chele<\/strong>: 6 hours Chele<\/p><\/div>\n Chele – Syanboche<\/strong>: 6 hours Syanboche – Ghilling<\/strong>: 2 hours Way to Syanboche leaving behind Bhena<\/p><\/div>\n Ghilling – Ghami<\/strong>: 4 hours Ghami<\/p><\/div>\n Ghami – Tsarang<\/strong>: 5 hours<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>
\nThis was the shortest walk and still one of the most tiring ones for me. I got the taste of what the trek would be like\u00a0on the way to Kagbeni. This was still a busy route with a lot of people going back and forth. So, it felt pretty normal.\u00a0The first hotel I went asking for room said they were full. I freaked out and I immediately agreed to stay at the\u00a0second hotel I checked; with a fear that I may not get a place to stay. There was an old lady – when I asked about the wifi, she showed me the router. So, I thought it would be cool. But nobody knew the password. In the entire trip it was the worst hotel I stayed at. Clogged toilet\/bathroom. Didn\u2019t get to shower. They were having some puja. I was so hungry – but didn\u2019t get to eat until the Lamas did. Still having said that, it was relatively cheaper.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>
\nThe moment I left Kagbeni – that\u2019s when I started getting lost. I got lost almost everyday, then on. But Chele wasn\u2019t too bad, considering there were other people near by as well. After walking for hours I was glad I was very\u00a0close to Chele. But then, I realized it was on a top of a\u00a0hill. I took the longer route that jeep takes cause I did not think I could conquer the hill. I asked this guy about the path to follow, who was washing his jeep. He said- I was taking a longer route obviously (pointing at the sheeps grazing) he continued, “just follow the sheeps.” Those sheeps were walking uphill almost on a 90 degree\u00a0angle. I was like, are you serious? After a lot of fuss, I managed to conquer my fear and got all the way to the hotel called Bishal Guest House.\u00a0By then I was so hungry, I ate a plateful of rice. And it was the best food I had tasted in the entire journey.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nChele to Syanboche is an absolute thrill, this is where you get the most awe inspiring views but not so easily, you\u2019ll have to first cross a few hills to get the best views. This was the hardest one for me. As I had to climb up and get down multiple hills, it seemed like an unending journey. But the views were just amazing! Syanboche has just about 10 houses. Only stopped there for lunch, then trekked another 2 hrs or so to Ghilling.
\nSpent a night at New Kunga hotel.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nI was extremely tired by the time I got to Ghami and the fact that I got lost (again!) and had to climb one extra hill, wasn\u2019t\u00a0very happy about it. It was from here that my back started bothering me quite significantly. But all that changed when I got to Royal Mustang Hotel. The weather was perfect. If I could show the world what happiness means, it was that moment. When I was sitting on the chair, with the sunlight on my face. Feeling relieved that there was no more walking to do, no more back pain, soaking in the beautiful scenery, accompanied with great food, a total bliss!<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nThe way I got lost on the way to Tsarang; it was truly into-the-wild kind.\u00a0I was supposed to get to Tsarang in three hours. But I had already crossed 4-hr timeframe and I wasn\u2019t seeing a single settlement.\u00a0Then it hit me, I am royally lost.
\nFunny thing is, at a time like this your brain works both ways. It tells you, now you will die. Also, it triggers survival instinct- gives you all kinds of ideas to find a way to survive. Thankfully my survival instinct overcame my fear and of course, like every day with a little sobbing and still with a lingering thought of death – I kept walking and walking and walking and saw a few houses miles away.\u00a0Turns out it was another small village called Tarang, I kept walking straight up the cliff – then I spotted a bigger village on the right. That was Tsarang. Saw an old man listening to a radio. He confirmed, the one on the right is Tsarang. Now, all that I had to do was keep walking. Here I stayed at Maya\u2019s Inn.<\/p>\n