Annapurna VI

This is the trek out of Manang, all routes out are actually treks, so that's a bit of a misnomer.

The lake you see near the bottom didn't exist 50 years ago. It was created by the glacier above it melting. After a time the natural dam which holds the lake in place will collapse. The dam is strong while the water among the rocks acts like a cement when frozen. Once the temperatures reach such a point that the ice melts then you get an event called a GLOF (glacial lake outburst flood). Essentially the dam lets go and millions of tons of water flood down into the valley.

Lunch time around a wood stove.

Local kids... like the adults they may smile when you talk to them, smile when you ask for a picture, but go deadpan when you actually try to take the photo.

This little shack is actually a store, run by sisters who also run another store we would pass by later.

This bridge seems to go straight into a cliff... thing is there is a path, albeit a narrow, steep, terrifying one up the face. Ahead of us were some men who were deciding whether to take the donkeys up it. They decided that one of the most surefooted, and four footed at that, animals couldn't make it up the "path"... we did.

There were two ways to take, the low road, and the high road. We took the high road, which was a mistake. The low road was down hill the entire way, the danger was the risk of avalanches. The high road had nice views, and was "safer" by not being below the avalanches. As it turns out the high road means climbing almost 1 kilometer up and going back down again. Yes, the views were nice. No, it wasn't safer. By taking the high road you don't risk being hit on the head by falling rocks, you risk being the rock which is falling and hits some poor schmuck on the head.

Below you can see the low road.

This was the path down, in the safest part we had reached where I felt comfortable putting down my pack to get out my camera. You can barely discern the path, and that's Jacqueline, one stage down on the switchback.

I've gotten into the habit of taking the occasional HDR photo. So here it is.