So, now in week three of fighting this pneumonia shit, everyone at work, and myself, are astounded that I'm still sick. A million times better than week one, but still gasping for air and coughing whenever I talk. Amazingly resilient shit. Anyway, enough of my sob stories, lets look back at better times - the hike to the Tiger Nest in Paro Valley, Bhutan.
Sadly, this is another story of gasping for air, though. This trek was day two in Bhutan. It was -11 Celsius, and the hike was a day hike (up and down in one day) at about 15,000 ft altitude in the Himalayas. Let me tell you, when you aren't acclimated, the air at that altitude feels whisper thin. The trail to Tiger Nest is a constant 40 to 45 degree incline, culminating in the traversal of a crevasse by walking down a few hundred rock steps and then back up 800 rock steps, as opposed to rigging some suspension across. If you check out the distance pics of the Tiger Nest, the crevasse is just to the left of the temple.
So, needless to say, this hike damn near killed me. I was begging for mercy just a couple hours in, gasping for air. You have to constantly remind yourself to slow your breathing, because your body's reaction to the thin air is to pant, which causes your heart to race. I didn't wear gortex, and should of, because I sweat my ass off while hiking, and then as soon as you stop to rest the sweat makes you freezing cold. This is an easy trek as far as trekking in the Himalayas goes, and it kicked my ass. Gotta be in better shape and give myself a bit of time to acclimate to the altitude for next year, as I want to go on at least a 3 day.
No comments:
Post a Comment