95 #177
Wet and cold at the “Doshong La Base-Camp”, we were ready to leave Pemako.
95 #178
Here the climbing to the Doshong La Pass began in earnest.
95 #179
Todd filters water as we climb higher into the mists.
95 #180
Chombi (shirtless) and fellow Sherpa climb on by. These guys were tough!
95 #181 & #182
Our porters were unfathomably strong.
95 #183
Porters inching their way up the Doshong La Pass.
95 #184
Todd moves on ahead.
95 #185
Visibility was difficult as Todd disappeared into the clouds.
95 #186
There was too much water in the streams to be close to the Pass?
95 #187
Gil & Todd working their way up to the Doshong La Pass.
95 #188
Precarious hiking in the ice fields.
95 #189
The porters push on. It was near here that we saw the dead man.
95 #190
Troy poses for a quick picture on the Doshong La Pass.
95 #191
Leaving Pemako was just as dramatic as entering it three weeks earlier.
95 #192
The road! Todd & Troy relish in the moment.
95 #193
The end of the Pemako trail.
95 #194
Todd, Gil & Troy. The outpost of Pei. Finally civilization!
95 #195
In the village of Pei, Chombi Sherpa (right) had the thankless job of calculating porter wages. When nobody was around, Troy, Todd & I gave Chimed Gompo (middle) a large tip. He literally saved our lives.
95 #196
As we ready for the long drive back to Lhasa, Christiaan has a celebratory smoke and entertains the residents of Pei with a juggling act.
95 #197
Gil can’t stop smiling. “We made it. We made it. We’re finally out of Pemako!”
95 #198
High on a hill just outside the town of Tsethang, sits Tibet’s oldest fortress/castle - Yumbulakhar.
95 #199, #200, #201
Some of the interesting Tibetans we passed on our long drive back to Lhasa.
95 #202
Left: Raktayamari & Vajravetali - Yab (father)-Yum (mother), Middle: (to follow), Right: White Tara
95 #203
Eating in an actual restaurant. We were all smiles.
95 #204
Known for serving American style food, we dreamed of eating at Mike’s for a month. Our breakfast lasted for two hours and ended with hot fudge brownie sundaes.
95 #205
Still not feeling that well, Todd gets some fresh air atop our Hotel Marshyangdi overlooking Kathmandu. Later that evening he would have a severe intestinal relapse.
95 #206
Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche and an unforgettable lesson in Buddhist Dependent Origination & Emptiness.
95 #207 & #208
A final fun night in Kathmandu.
95 #209
Three very strong shots of tequila were in order upon landing at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. We were home!
1997
97 #1
In the military town of Bayi, Gil gets a mohawk and Hamid emerges hairless from the Noble Lady Beauty Shop.
97 #2
Left to Right: Troy, Bunny, Pasang and Gil with his newly acquired mojo Mohawk. (Bunny would rarely look at the camera.) The fading double rainbow in the background burned brilliant a few moments before indicating the passing of a high Buddhist lama.
97 #3
Injecting an anticoagulant, leech bites can bleed for hours.
97 #4
“Landslide Alley” The geologic instability of the Great Bend area rendered vehicular travel extremely dangerous.
97 #5
As the ground continued to crumble under the trucks rear wheel we all new this vehicle was doomed.
97 #6
The monks were spellbound by the photos of our 1995 Dorje Phagmo pilgrimage. Ani Rigsang, the tantric Tibetan nun, looks at the camera on the right.
97 #7
Ian negotiating porter selections and daily wages with the head Bhakha Lama.
97 #8
At the Bhakha Monastery, Ian becomes frustrated with the porters’ increasing wage demands.
97 #9
Lining up at the Bhakha Monastery for a departing photo, many would not look at the camera. Standing in the back row on the right, Gil and Troy in white shirts, then Ian and the head Bhakha Lama (with yellow sleeves). Ani Rigsang, the tantric Tibetan nun, is on the far right of the back row.
97 #10
Entering the jungles of Pemako brought back many painful memories.
97 #11
Waterfalls were everywhere as we headed up towards the Su La Pass.
97 #12
Troy hiking the ice fields up to Su La Pass.
97 #13
Left to Right: Pasang, Gil, Troy & Ani Rigsang on top of the Su La Pass. According to Ian, we were the first Westerners to hike this Pass since the British explorers Bailey’s and Morshead’s clandestine dash in 1911.
97 #14
There was water everywhere. Here Troy negotiates a slick two log bridge over a tumbling cascade. A slip would have been disastrous.
97 #15
Arriving at the end of the day we found two porters and Ani Rigsang enjoying a cup of tea at Cabin Camp. It had been a long day with over 4,000 feet of climbing. Soon the others staggered in and the cabin was stuffed with bodies. Nobody minded – at least it was dry.