Upcoming Nepalese parliament elections caused strikes all around Nepal and we (me and Marek) decided to run away from it. Left in Pokhara with no transportation we chose Panchase (2510 m) and it showed as a great decision. Walk around the lake was long but as soon as we began the climb, views kept opening with every stair. Yes. From some 800 am to 2510 am we walked almost all the way on the stone stairway. Painful...
Fortunately we got lost just once and the local children sent us back to trek.
In the saddle where we planned to spend the night, we had lunch and got ready for the late afternoon final climb. Leaving some stuff in the lodge made walking easier and half an hour up the stairs felt like nothing :-) The top of Panchase is sacred place and it deserves it. You can see Daulaghiri, Annapurnas, Fishtail, Manaslu and even Langtang area (Everest range is so far that we couldn't see it much) and on the other side are all the hills of western Nepal. Simply the view that makes you sit still and watch in astonishment. Imagine staying for the sunset...
Cold night made it easy to get up at 6 a.m. for the sunrise, enjoy all the views over and over again and start walking quite early. The trek back led us along the ridge and took us to few more sacred places. Legs were becoming heavier and the distance to Pokhara didn't seem to shorten...
