Day 5: Chame to Upper Pisang
Approximate Trek Time: 3 ½ – 4 ½ hrs.
Distance: 14k / 8.7 miles
Overnight Elevation: 3310m/10,860ft.
We woke early, the gentle rain that had started last evening still tinking against the tin roof. Luckily, it cleared before we’d finished breakfast and it was another beautiful day of hiking. Walking out of Chame, we spun the prayer wheels under the entrance/exit kani on the way out of town and head on down the road.
The road was “Nepal flat”, as the t-shirts proclaimed, “little bit up, little bit down”, constantly undulating. Eventually we took a turn-off onto a trail section – optional, since it would eventually meet up with the road again (and good thing, since the trail section was easy to miss). We were well rewarded though, as the trail traversed through beautiful pine-forested mountainside well above the road, our footsteps quiet against the pine-straw carpeted path. Across the valley, the rushing Marsyangdi far below us, waterfalls cascaded down the rockface, plunging into the ravine. We also met Isabel from Germany along this section, whom we would cross paths with almost daily all the way to Tatopani.
Eventually the trail rejoined the road, leading us into Bhratang, where apple orchards lined both sides of the road, hidden behind tall log fences. Bhratang was small, with simple stone houses, and the central Bhratang Tea House was packed with trekkers and locals alike, making a tea stop and enjoying the fresh apples for sale.
Continuing down the road past Bhratang, we were eventually rewarded with a view of the impressive Paungda Danda, a stunning, smooth sheer rockface that curves around the surrounding landscape like the side of a bowl, rising over 1500m (4921ft.) from the river. According to our guidebook, locals refer to the impressive rock slab as Swarga Dwar, meaning gateway to heaven, and believe that spirits of the deceased must ascend the wall on their journey to heaven. It was not hard to see why locals would place such significance on such a stunning and imposing feature of the landscape.
Continuing along the road, we eventually crossed back to the south bank of the Marsyangdi, after which a steep trail of rocky switchbacks flattened at a small and welcome snack stall, roughly placed in the middle of nowhere. We enjoyed hot coffee and snacks before heading down the trail through forests of blue pine, passing by large groups of rock cairns and prayer flag en route to Dhukur Pokhari.
At the far end of Dhukur Pokhari, the trail splits, and it’s a bit difficult to tell at first which route to take, though some guidebooks should mention this split and you can also consult maps.me. The trail to the left takes the low route/road, heading to Lower Pisang (from which you can still continue to Upper Pisang) and the trail to the right climbs directly to Upper Pisang (also offering better views). Since we were heading to Upper Pisang, we took the trail to the right.
Crossing a suspension bridge back to the northeast side of the river, the hard-packed trail lead around the mountainside and through wide expanses of grasses and pine trees. It was amazing to think of the landscapes we had traversed in just the first five days of travel – from sub-tropical climes with terraced rice fields climbing the hillsides and the occasional palm-fringed waterfall – to bamboo forests and ferns – tall grasses, wildflowers, and rhododendrons – and finally pines as we climbed higher into the mountains. This is a good point to mention that I am no botanist and my tree and plant identification skills leave A LOT to be desired, but even so, it was amazing to watch the landscape change before us.
I was relieved when we finally rounded a corner and saw Upper Pisang (3310m/10,860ft.). Simple, rough stone homes and buildings composed the whole of the village, with small walkways leading through the maze of structures. We walked clockwise around the chorten at the base of the village and continued up to the very highest of the lodges along the mountainside – the Mt. Kailash Lodge.
Exposed to the brutally cold wind that whipped through Upper Pisang, the lodge was nice, but chilly. It was clear that it was fairly new and construction was still ongoing as they finished up a rooftop seating area and hauled in newly constructed wooden benches that would go in the outdoor patio areas. We spent our afternoon here in the dining room with a warm pot of tea.
