Tuesday 1st June
1982: Thore Pati to Pati Bhanjyang
(16 miles)
We had another late start after a good night’s sleep. There were excellent mountain views from
south of Thore Pati, including Everest and Kachenjunga in the distance, although
the clouds soon came in and blotted them out.
We slowly walked to Kutumsang (8000 ft) birding on the way without seeing a tremendous
amount. We arrived there at 15:00 but
the village was deserted so we decided to push on keen to avoid another night
sleeping in a hut or under a rock. We ended
up hurrying on to Pati Bhanjyang (5800 ft) to get to a decent lodge and then have an easy walk to
Kathmandu the following day. The trail
down to Pati Bhanjyang was very bad with loose gravel and rocks all over the
place but we made it in 3.5hrs when our guide book suggested 5.5 hours for this
section! From Thore Pati we had descended
6000 ft and for first time ever I found ascents much easier on my lungs and
legs. On the ast section the climb from
Gul Bhanjyang (7000 ft)
of 1300 ft must have been done in record time for me, following Dave & Nick
all the way and hardly dropping behind at all (usually I find myself going much
slower up hills and consequently get left far behind). When we arrived at the lodge I had 7 of my 38
packets of biscuits left – just about enough for another day! I finished off my letters in the lodge so
they could be posted when we returned to Kathmandu. Tomorrow I’ll have been in Nepal three months
and my visa will have expired, although hopefully it won’t be a problem
renewing it. It has been a really
excellent visit with most of my target species seen but I’m ready for a change
of country. I will also be glad to see the
end of trekking for a while as great as it is, and I’m really pleased to have
done the three treks I have, I’m not and never have been too keen on carrying a
rucksack around most days.
Birds
recorded: Kestrel h, Common Hill
Partridge h, Impeyan Pheasant 1 male, Large Hawk Cuckoo h, Cuckoo h, Oriental
Cuckoo h, Little Cuckoo h, Mountain Scops Owl h, Himalayan Swiftlet 40,
White-throated Needletail 1, Fork-tailed Swift 5, Darjeeling Pied Woodpecker 1,
Rufous-bellied Woodpecker 1, Red-rumped Swallow 3, Asiatic House Martin
2, Upland Pipit h, Olive-backed Pipit 5, Rosy Pipit 5, Long-tailed Minivet 2,
White-cheeked Bulbul 5, Rufous-breasted Accentor 1, Golden Bush Robin 3,
White-browed Bush Robin 3, Stonechat 1, Grey Bushchat 1, River Chat 2,
Blue-headed Rock Thrush 1, Chestnut-bellied Rock Thrush 1, White-collared Blackbird
3, Aberrant Bush Warbler 1, Rufous-capped Bush Warbler 1, Golden-spectacled
Warbler 2, Blyth’s Crowned Leaf Warbler 1, Orange-barred Leaf Warbler 3,
Siberian Flycatcher 2, Ultramarine Flycatcher 7, Streaked Laughingthrush 1,
Black-faced Laughingthrush 2, Red-headed Laughingthrush 1, Hoary Barwing 2,
Chestnut-tailed Minla 2, White-browed Fulvetta 5, Black-capped Sibia 2,
Stripe-throated Yuhina 4, Rufous-vented Yuhina 4, Rufous-fronted Tit 2,
Red-headed Tit 10, Black-crested Tit 4, Green-backed Tit 2, White-tailed
Nuthatch 2, Fire-tailed Sunbird 5, Fire-breasted Flowerpecker 1, Black Drongo
2, Nutcracker 4, Large-billed Crow 6, Common Myna 2, Yellow-breasted Greenfinch
1, Dark-breasted Rosefinch 5, Pink-browed Rosefinch 3, White-browed Rosefinch
4, Allied Grosbeak 2, White-winged Grosbeak 8.
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| looking west to Gopte and Laurebina Pass from Thore Pati, the roof of our hut in the foreground |
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| a similar view showing more of the hut at Thore Pati |
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| view south from above Thore Pati |
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| view east from above Thore Pati, Everest and Lhotse on the horizon to the right |
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| view east from south of Thore Pati, Everest and Lhotse centre left, Kachenjung centre right |
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| distant Himalayan views on descent to Kutumsang |
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| close up
Himalayan views on descent to Kutumsang |
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| mountains soon to be obscured by clouds |
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