Dhaulagiri Base Camp and Dhamphus Peak

The concerns with the stove continued, as Arjun's backup stove with the butane canisters was a poor substitute. We worried about fuel shortages with the canisters, in spite of us being burdened with a litre of diesel each. Arjun likes to leave the stoves running when he isn't using them, so we had to be careful about wasting fuel.

First impressions of Italian base camp is that it is a simple hut of stone, yet the hospitality that was given to us makes me remember it as a warm and cozy haven in a cold and harsh place. Whenever the sun was down, either in the morning before 10pm or at dusk after 4pm, we would either be in our tent or rushing to the shelter of the hut. Warm tea and big meals of rice and lentils greeted us in the cozy shelter.

Dhaulagiri base camp was somewhat less inviting, with lots of garbage strewn from previous expeditions. Everything from oxygen canisters, metal tables, a welcome mat, and broken kerosene stoves littered the place and filled the areas between tent sites. There was no cozy hut here, and no one to greet us. Yet, due to my massive headaches on the night at our arrival, we stayed two nights to allow for acclimatization. The views from the camp, however, were unparalleled, as the massive south face of Dhaulagiri I towered above us, and the ice fall and glacier were directly in front of us. During the day we stayed there, we went ahead on the trail towards French Pass, and climbed to 5100m, the height that we could camp at Hidden Valley. The remedy for altitude sickness, beginning with severe headaches like I had, is rarely to go up, but that is exactly what we did for the day trip, and then slept the night exactly where we had slept before. It seemed to work, though, as my appetite returned and I was able to get a good sleep that night.

The trip to French Pass, at 5300m, was filled with spectacular views and great clear weather. We could see more of Dhaulagiri I as we went up, and it looked more impressive all the time. Tukuche Peak, at around 7300m, was also spectacular, just across from us, and the weather and lighting couldn't have been better to take in the views. It was tough going up, and I was suffering under my load as we went up the final push. Gasping for breath, I would take 3 steps for Hans' two, and take frequent rests. Getting to the top was a huge reward of views in every direction, and we could see the trail down to Hidden Valley camp far down the valley.

We found an expedition of one Japanese guy with 13 support staff - a combination of guides and porters - doing the same trip we were, but in reverse. We also met up with a couple who was doing our trip but without any help of a guide or porters (we had a guide) and all it cost them was one extra day of route finding. Quentin and Christine would join us for the next couple weeks of trekking, and we were happy for their company. After a cold night of camping and cooking (on our semi-functional stove), we attempted to climb Thapa peak, a trekking peak requiring a permit at just over 6000m. Our guide, Arjun, had never climbed before, so he was following our lead for this section of the trip. We got to the sub-summit at 5800m, and the winds and blowing snow were too much to bear, so the choice to turn around was an easy one to make. We got back to camp and made a delicious lunch of the treats that each group brought, including bread brought by Quentin and Christine.

The next couple days of descent were filled with new views as we went over Thapa Pass and caught first sight of the Nilgiris. While the winds were high, and the snow blew into our backs, we stopped and took photos and took in the views for extended periods. It was a long and meandering descent, though, and we gained and lost elevation due to ridges on numerous occasions. Our camp at Yak Kharka (Yak Place), was also the location of a feast, as Quentin and Christine pulled out the gems of canned tuna and Thai tuna sauce for the pasta. The last day was steep and we arrived in the small town of Marpha just in time to gorge ourselves for lunch.