Carrying whispers of history: Growing up with the Narayani River flowing past my doorstep and the Manaslu peak always in sight, I dreamt of exploring the hidden trails that snaked northwards. These paths whispered tales of ancient traders, carrying spices, salt, and stories between Tibet, Nepal, and India until 1960 and 70s. Their journeys, often arduous and fraught with hardship, laid the foundation for cultural exchange and paved the way […]
Mugu and Upper Dolpo Traverse 2021
Inspiration When Daniel approached HAL about organizing a custom trek in Nepal, he made it clear that he wanted to explore the less frequently visited part of the Himalayas. Inspired by Robin Boustead guidebook on the Great Himalayan Trail we set our eyes on the far reaches of western Nepal – plotting a plan of action to traverse from Mugu, Dolpo and Mustang. This trip would be much more than […]
Everest Three Passes Fastpack Trip Report – 2019
This was our second time visiting Khumbu area, the land of Everest having completed the maiden three passes fastpack last year. Our plan over 13 days was to cross massive valley systems using three passes; Renjo La (5,360m), Cho La (5,420m) & Kongma La (5,535m), a non -technical climb of Gokyo Ri (5,357m/17,575ft), a walk to Everest Base Camp and possibly climb Kala Patar (5550m/18,208ft). Our team consisted of six members; […]
Annapurna Fastpack Trip Report – Fall 2019
This was our 7th fastpack around the Annapurna circuit and we thought of all our friends who walked together on this journey before. On this trip our nationalities included USA, UK and Nepal. First couple of days was marked with rain (delayed monsoon), wind and leeches but was compensated by views of waterfalls, hills and terrace fields. As our effort to include local cultural experience on our trip, a local shaman […]
Kilimanjaro Trip Report – 2019
What happens in the Himalayas does not always stay in the Himalayas… Wanting to stretch our legs a little, and listening to some of our alumni who had ‘Kili’ on their bucket list, we decided to organize a climb. And it worked (errr…mostly worked). We are happy to report that in the early morning hours of Sept 7th, Tanzanian time, all members of team ‘Kilimanjaro Coffee Crushers’ made it to […]
Langtang Fast Pack 2019 Trip Report
What lied ahead was a trip to Langtang, starting at the foothills of Kathmandu and traversing through Helambu before entering Langtang National Park.
Annapurna Fast Pack Spring 2019 Trip Report
Team Salmon made it around the Annapurna Circuit without the need to swim in Marsyangdi or Kali Gandaki river! This was Himalayan Adventure Labs‘ sixth time going around the circuit and first in spring. Although there was an early scare of tropical cyclone Fani thankfully the weather turned out to be great. One of the highlights of the trip was finding new side trails; Besisahar to Bulbule and Tal to Dharapani was a […]
Traversing Dolpa to Jumla
Dolpa is the only place in Nepal where I got a cultural shock in my own country.
Everest 3-Passes Trip Report (2018)
The first things you notice as you fly into the khumbu in a rattling metal-can are the towering rock faces and the cold, you step outside onto lukla and your breath is a frozen fog in front of you. Knees knocking together with the sudden chill, we see that we are already among “lesser” peaks of the highest place on earth. Our instinct looks for warmth, so out of the […]
Annapurna Fast Pack 2018 Trip Report
Our fifth annual Annapurna Circuit Fastpack was a success! Team ‘Slow Momo’ was anything but slow, rounding the circuit in just over eleven days, doing some hard ‘double days’, but also taking the right amount of time to visit the temples, smell the roses, and acclimate safely. High points included helping organize the children’s race in Manang and everyone crossing Thorung Pass (5,405m/17,728ft) in good spirits under blue bird skies. Other […]