Easy as, 1 2 3. As simple as, do re mi, A B C.
Ehm.. No. The Annapurna Base Camp (ABC) trek is not easy as 1 2 3. So don’t just go ‘Baby, you and me girl’ go climb that mountain. It’s the Himalayas for … sake, not a walk through your local park.

Don’t listen to locals that assure you it hardly ever rains. Do bring a raincoat, a good pair of shoes and a mindset to climb stairs.
When you are ready, physically and mentally, you are in for a treat. Start from any of the regular set-off villages and rather quickly you will lose the sight of roads and motorized vehicles. Small mountain treks lead you past small farming villages over hills (that are actually 2000m + mountains) and across rivers that flow through lush valleys.
The last three days to the top we first wandered through jungle type forests. In this scenery one expects hot and humid weather but we hiked in the beginning of February when the nights are still cold. In a forest full of ferns and bamboo suddenly we stepped through snow. We passed the tree line not much later and ended up in a true winter wonderland of snow, rocks and peaks.

We woke up at Machhapuchhre Base Camp, only a few hours away from our final destination. But we weren’t going anywhere. The snow was up to our waist. After the morning the sun’s heat pierced through the clouds and got hold of the slopes. Even though a complete white-out obscured our vision the presence of avalanches was pretty clear. From our safe location in the camp the thunderous sounds and dusty snow winds that came down with the avalanches were impressive to say the least. We weren’t going anywhere. Not for the next three days.

04/07/2013
Auroville