A long-pending bucket list, I got to go see for myself the beautiful Kuri village on the weekend of my birthday which was totally coincidental. We had our Hiace van, but knowing beforehand it won't take us to Charikot, we decided to take a bus from Kathmandu itself. We found a reasonable package deal from Fireside Resort at Kuri with pick up, drop off, bed, breakfast, and dinner. Our bus was to pick us up at 7 and leave by 7:30 am in the morning but the bus driver demanded extra money at the last minute with the travel manager and hence we were at Sallaghari until 11 am.
Fortunately, he (Santosh Ji) managed to get us another bus. We stopped by Sukute for lunch at 2 pm. Our driver was an old man and his driving pace was very safe meaning we would be very late when we reached our destination. But better safe than sorry.
Due to the rain a day before, the roads in some places were very muddy and slippery and hence our bus stuck in 2 places. We lost about 1 hour in that chaos. By 6 we had reached the last stop where our bus was to drop us off. Due to rain and snowfall, the previous day ordinary vehicles became unable to cross Deurali.
Taking a short bathroom break, we started dealing with the Bolero drivers. Agreeing on NRs 250 per head, we took two boleros, some getting the luxury to crowd inside the seats and some getting the luxury of the open sky.
1 hour later we reached Gairi. The snow was so thick after Gairi, we had to change vehicles again. From here on, only the boleros with a chain tucked in the back tyres could cross. We lost 30 minutes again trying to find a vehicle as the only two there were already reserved. Somehow, we found a place for 4 and sent our 4 fellow hikers along. The rest of us started walking in the snowy path. Slipping and wondering we kept walking in the chilling night. Since the full moon was 2 days back. the clouds below us and the snowy hills shined in the bright light of the almost full moon.
After walking for about an hour, the hotel sent a pickup for us and our gang hopped in.
When we got the first glimpse of the Kuri village, all the troubles, and obstacles we had faced that day faded away. A valley surrounded by white hills and beautifully crafted huts with carefully placed lights was a sight I will remember for a long time.
We then settled in, in the campfire that was made for us, ordered some snacks and only after filling in our hungry tummy, we went to our rooms to change. But it was so chilling that for most of us it was less like changing and more like adding more layers of clothes.
We sang, danced in front of the campfire, enjoyed good food and chitchatted until 12 am. Then a friend of mine closed my eyes and everyone started cheering. They had organized a super amazing birthday surprise for me in such a remote place. A birthday I will remember forever because they put the cake on my face despite me begging. I mean who wouldn't beg to save the trouble of washing your face in such freezing weather.
Due to the snow and our not so good shoes, we planned to get a ride of cable car instead of choosing to hike. The cable car would start operating at 5:30 am so we decided to wake up at 5 am and leave by 5:30 am. Getting to our cold as ice beds when we got in, we fell asleep like a rock.
The next morning, we freshened up and reached the cable car operation house by 5:45 am but they only finished the testing after 7am. Until then, we enjoyed the marvelous beauty that Kuri Valley beheld.
The ride of the cable car was of 5 minutes only for which we paid NRs 500 including the return ticket. We still had to walk a distance of 10 minutes from thereon. But due to the snow, it took us at least half an hour. The path to the temple of Kalinchowk Goddess was so damn scary already and the snow only added to that. One slip could mean slipping off the hill. At one section, two hills were conjoined by the stairs of iron. The temple overlooked the Kuri valley, Charikot, Gangapurna mountain range and Sagarmatha mountain range followed by hills with trees covered in snow which looked no less than a painting and a wallpaper picture. Even though, we had missed the sunrise soon after the weather got cloudy for a moment and it started to snow lightly. The wind was howling, and the clouds circled above us, yet they did not disturb the view of the white snowy mountains on the far range. The round of fresh air hit our nose, and serenity surely touched us at that moment. Peace was found, and so was happiness and a delight. Maybe it was heaven we found on earth itself.
We also sighted a cruel practice of animal sacrifice in the temple which torn apart the momentary tranquility I had had. One of the devotees had brought a small goat who was shivering due to cold and the fate that awaited. Unable to see, I left the group and headed down wondering in my mind, yes hell is also here.
Our breakfast was waiting for us in our hotel and we all devoured in the food. We lazed around after having our breakfast. Then at 10:30 am, we started marching forward as we packed our heavy bags and took out our trekking poles. We walked up to the bus station where we also sighted a skier.
Again, we took a vehicle up to Gairi, then changed another up to Deurali where we had more tea and cookies. Our bus then took us to Charikot for lunch which we ate at 2:30 pm. Since we were already late, we ditched our plan to visit Dolakha Bhimsen Temple which was only 30 minutes away from our lunch destination. We wanted to cross the muddy trails before dark and so we started off again. We reached Khadichaur by 6pm and stopped by Dolalghat for some snacks.
With this ended our beautiful trip to Kalinchowk.
Fortunately, he (Santosh Ji) managed to get us another bus. We stopped by Sukute for lunch at 2 pm. Our driver was an old man and his driving pace was very safe meaning we would be very late when we reached our destination. But better safe than sorry.
Due to the rain a day before, the roads in some places were very muddy and slippery and hence our bus stuck in 2 places. We lost about 1 hour in that chaos. By 6 we had reached the last stop where our bus was to drop us off. Due to rain and snowfall, the previous day ordinary vehicles became unable to cross Deurali.
Taking a short bathroom break, we started dealing with the Bolero drivers. Agreeing on NRs 250 per head, we took two boleros, some getting the luxury to crowd inside the seats and some getting the luxury of the open sky.
1 hour later we reached Gairi. The snow was so thick after Gairi, we had to change vehicles again. From here on, only the boleros with a chain tucked in the back tyres could cross. We lost 30 minutes again trying to find a vehicle as the only two there were already reserved. Somehow, we found a place for 4 and sent our 4 fellow hikers along. The rest of us started walking in the snowy path. Slipping and wondering we kept walking in the chilling night. Since the full moon was 2 days back. the clouds below us and the snowy hills shined in the bright light of the almost full moon.
After walking for about an hour, the hotel sent a pickup for us and our gang hopped in.
When we got the first glimpse of the Kuri village, all the troubles, and obstacles we had faced that day faded away. A valley surrounded by white hills and beautifully crafted huts with carefully placed lights was a sight I will remember for a long time.
We then settled in, in the campfire that was made for us, ordered some snacks and only after filling in our hungry tummy, we went to our rooms to change. But it was so chilling that for most of us it was less like changing and more like adding more layers of clothes.
We sang, danced in front of the campfire, enjoyed good food and chitchatted until 12 am. Then a friend of mine closed my eyes and everyone started cheering. They had organized a super amazing birthday surprise for me in such a remote place. A birthday I will remember forever because they put the cake on my face despite me begging. I mean who wouldn't beg to save the trouble of washing your face in such freezing weather.
Due to the snow and our not so good shoes, we planned to get a ride of cable car instead of choosing to hike. The cable car would start operating at 5:30 am so we decided to wake up at 5 am and leave by 5:30 am. Getting to our cold as ice beds when we got in, we fell asleep like a rock.
The next morning, we freshened up and reached the cable car operation house by 5:45 am but they only finished the testing after 7am. Until then, we enjoyed the marvelous beauty that Kuri Valley beheld.
We also sighted a cruel practice of animal sacrifice in the temple which torn apart the momentary tranquility I had had. One of the devotees had brought a small goat who was shivering due to cold and the fate that awaited. Unable to see, I left the group and headed down wondering in my mind, yes hell is also here.
Our breakfast was waiting for us in our hotel and we all devoured in the food. We lazed around after having our breakfast. Then at 10:30 am, we started marching forward as we packed our heavy bags and took out our trekking poles. We walked up to the bus station where we also sighted a skier.
Again, we took a vehicle up to Gairi, then changed another up to Deurali where we had more tea and cookies. Our bus then took us to Charikot for lunch which we ate at 2:30 pm. Since we were already late, we ditched our plan to visit Dolakha Bhimsen Temple which was only 30 minutes away from our lunch destination. We wanted to cross the muddy trails before dark and so we started off again. We reached Khadichaur by 6pm and stopped by Dolalghat for some snacks.
With this ended our beautiful trip to Kalinchowk.
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