Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Outfitter recommendations requested (Himalayas)

Try the link again, I had it set as visible to friends only originally, now it's public and should work (if not feel free to friend me!!)
=) tif

Thanks so much for sharing!

I love the sleeping dogs and yaks-on-a-bridge. Gotta say, the dal bhat looks good! The tip of Everest peaking through the clouds...priceless! I'm real glad to see the suspension bridges have metal fencing on the sides.... Looks like the trip of a lifetime!

http://blog.eddiebauer.com/2013/01/18/david-morton-introduces-his-son-to-his-second-family-in-nepal/?oessoa=6046088&cm_mmc=email-_-690-_-B-_-mortenson&j=3581362&e=eddiebauer@piotrowski.us&l=98425_HTML&u=39304984&mid=1067029&jb=438

Great catch. Very engaging write up. And his son and the other kids are so unbearably cute.

I'll be in Kathmandu in a week if you need anything.

I just may be in Nepal at the end of this month or the beginning of next... if I do end up over there, it'll likely be for two months of much-needed wandering...

If you are there for two months, then you may just wander into me. Which would be kind of funny since, in multiple Whitney and WPSMB trips, I have never actually seen you, leading me to wonder whether you really exist. If we do cross paths in Nepal, the first Mustang beer, or Himalayan butter tea, is on me.

Probably wishful thinking on my part, but...
Free tickets easily available...
Wife didn't threaten divorce when I mentioned I was considering this...
A decade since my last trip would just be too much... (this is the 9th year since I've been back over there)

Since I'm out of shape, I'd probably head straight to Pokara for the Annapurna Circuit/Sanctuary to walk myself back into shape and then hammer thru the Khumbu for the rest of the time... I'm guessing I'd be there late March/early April into early May (which I think means I might just be able to track you down for that beer...)(I politely sip the tea when offered... can't stand the stuff.)

Meet you at EBC? Seriously, I'll PM you my itinerary.

Yeah, I am using a free ticket myself.

Free tickets?? Mileage points? Elaborate, please.

@Richard P. Oops, no PM possible as one of us is over the limit. Sent you email instead.

@Bee. Frequent flier miles! If you have the miles, United has a fair amount of availability on its own flights, and on its partners (e.g., Thai Air, Asiana, etc.) From San Francisco, good routing is available through major Asian capitals (e.g, Seoul, Singapore, Osaka) or Australia/Sydney to Bangkok, and then from Bangkok to Kathmandu. The same probably is true from LAX.

Ahhh, yes! I had not thought that there would beee the proper(useable flier miles) connections in the more remotely traveled destinations. I have mostly used my miles on standard routes to Europe.

Hadn't looked at my UAL account in a number of years and was stunned to see that I have nearly 200k still. I guess I must have had a bunch of Continental miles...

The key is the Thai Air connection from Bangkok to KTH. Up to that point, there are a ton of options in routing, so there is availability. I opted for leg stretches in Seoul (eastward) and Osaka (westward).

There are a few other places that have flights in, but Bangkok probably has the most traffic.

Had a bunch of choices for flying in... kept trying until I got something that wasn't taking me thru China... had a really bad experience in Shaghai in the middle of coming-and-going a number of years ago and don't care to have a repeat of it!

I'll be arriving in KTM on 3 March (hoping I'll start walking on Monday) and decided I definitely want to be back home for my wife's bithday in early May. I'm flying home on 06 May.

I still may pull a Scully on this thing... pressing the confirm button was harder than it's ever been... thoughts of Jeff whining about not wanting to leave family kept running thru my head... I may be more like him than I think these days...

A LOT of things to get done in the next two weeks...

Karin, I'm putting money on us running into each other over there, if not Gokyo, like I said in the e-mail to you, then probably as I race back towards civilization... although I'm still planning how I'm getting into and out of the Everest Region... current thinking is to go in at Jiri and come out at one of the settlements way to the east of Lukla and bus it back to KTM. Or maybe, head up above Thame and exit out thru the Rolwaling Valley... where are my maps?

If you guys want to stay at a really nice place before and after your trek, come to Hotel Courtyard in Thamel. I'll be here indefinitely. Come grab a beer!

www.hotelcourtyard.com

Kevin, definitely want to hear the tales...

I'm reading that the front and back ends if the Annapurna Circuit are not much fun anymore because roads go all the way to Manang and Muktinath, so I'm looking at alternatives. One that keeps popping up is Manaslu Circuit. Since you've been to the area, can you comment?

I'm in! By indefinitely, you mean at least a few months?

yeah i just did both treks. ya the scenery on the Annapurna Circuit is still mind blowing but the roads on the west and east sides are extending ever farther up. on the west it goes beyond Muktinath and if i remember correctly, it goes beyond Manang on the east side. and they are still extending the road. you will see motorbike tour on the west and mountain biking tour on the east. imagine trekking while having these things zooming by you. Manang is somewhat of a circuit which huge crowds of "trekkers" everywhere. i still don't understand why people need porters and guides on this trek. you are just carrying a day pack walking on roads more than half the time and path so well defined because it has been used for hundred of years. that's just my opinion. but don't let me discourage you from doing this trek. it is still spectacular. i'm just spoiled by other wild places.

Manaslu is where you want to go. mostly pristine wilderness with villages that look like they have not changed in hundred of years. kind of like AC but 30 years ago. not too many tea houses. we camped 90% of the time. it was also because i was on the Manaslu expedition so we had the gear with us.

yes, will be here until June i think.

The debate in my mind regarding the AC is: Remember it how it was, or head in and see "Nepal Modernization" One thought that I did have a few days ago was: rent a motorcycle and do parts of it that way.

The Annapurna Sanctuary stills remains at the top of my list for scenic beauty, so if I don't do the AC, I'll have to figure out how to get in to it.

I read a TR about doing the part of the Great Himalayan Trail starting near the Helambu area and extending all the way around the AC. The good thing that I'm hearing rumors of is that you can do the Tea House Trek thru the Manaslu area sans Guide. If I can't pull that off, I may not go there either.

Since my first trek I've felt that a Guide and Porters are only necessary for carrying climbing gear and adding to my comfort. If there are Tea Houses, you can do definitely do these treks without the help.