Hiking Route: Daman, Markhu to Thankot
Date: 16th to 18th of September 2005
Participants: Rudra, Mohana, Amit, Amulya, Anjana, Bhaskar, Bidyut, Bijay, Bikal, Binay A., Binay N., Biswa, Charu, Govind, hitesh, Nilesh, Niraj, Pawan P., Prabhakar, Prajwal, Raju M., Rasju S. Rashmi, Sanjeet, Santosh, Sarad M., Sewa, Shashi, Shekhar, Siddhi, Siris, Sudeep A., Sudeep K., Surendra, Thakur, Tika, Vishnu and Yalamber.
Duration: A total of 11 hours and 30 Minutes.
Photo: Team
Caption: VishnuK
Report: VishnuK and BhaskarB

As the day was making its way towards evening, we left the office heading for Daman to spend the night at the Everest Panorama Resort. Daman is situated at an altitude of 2400 meters above the sea level. As soon as we reached, we checked in. After refreshing ourselves after approximately 4 hours of traveling, we all were gathered in at the courtyard where bonfire flared up to keep us warm along with hot and cold beverages. Later on Yalamber and Hitesh started to tune up their guitars. Other teammates soon joined making the atmosphere more lively. For making the party alive and kicking, we unclosed beer can and some grog. With the company of these most of the folks began to open themselves with their hidden talents. All of us sang a lot of old and new tunes accompanied by guitar and madal. After the enjoyment we went to banquet where Chinese dinner was set in a buffet. After the dinner, some of us went to the dance floor to shake their hips while others gathered around the bonfire reflecting the serenity of the place and singing to old soft numbers on the guitar. The rocking and rumbling entertainment at the both side continued until 1 PM. Slowly the participants began to move to their rooms to rest themselves after a hectic day of driving, dancing and drinking. However for some of us the party continued well into the early morning hours.

Early next morning (17th of September) at 5:30 AM there was a wake up knock on everyone’s door to make us to watch the sunrise towards east at the top of Mt. Everest. As the weather was ending of rainy season, the view was not that spectacular but we were fortunate enough to see the beauty with majestic Everest. The sunrise was giving the message of new aspiration to continue our odyssey through ups and downs like the sunrays that manage to escape through up hurdles on the way, ultimately reaching us to give pleasure to cherish within. From Daman, one can see most of the 8 of the world’s top mountains. We could easily spot Everest. Between December-February, when the snow falls, this place is one of the best in the country to watch the sunrise and sunset owing to the crystal clear skies at that time of the year.

After having delightful moment and sipping the morning tea, 21 of us went for a trek to Rikeshwor Mahadevsthan. After taking the darshan at the temple, 6 of us – Rudra dai, Surendra, Bhaskar, Vishnu, Prabhakar and Govinda took an unknown hiking route trying to find the Bhutanese Monastery. This monastery is said to contain Buddhist practitioners who have been meditating constantly for 15, 20, 25 years! The only contacts they have with the outside world is with their immediate family and spend all their time in meditation. This was a very treacherous trail to say the least because the way was not clearly marked and the plants and shrubs were up to the thigh and even higher sometimes. In this ordeal we reached the highest point from which we could see the place called Baghmara (on way to Hetauda). We hiked for 3 hours but were unable to find the Monastery. However, we also took that as a blessing and a challenge for the next time we come around these parts.

After the hike, we returned to the Resort where all of us were having breakfast. After the breakfast some began to enjoy playing cards, some went on a sight seeing and some were busy with their chatting.

At 1:00 PM the Nepali lunch was set on buffet table and everybody rushed to reach the meal. During the lunch time, Bhaskar proposed another hike from Daman to Kathmandu itself. Surendra, Bhaskar, Raju, Vishnu, and Rudra decided to join and commenced on another unknown journey to Kathmandu. We left Resort at 2:00 PM in a car for 20 kilometers to begin our journey to explore yet another experience. We were to start from Bajrabarahi village near Tistung, hike to Markhu village near the Kulekhani dam, rest for the night and then begin the final journey to Thankot.

For this purpose we commenced our walk from a place called Gahate at 3: 00 PM, which was a village associated with agricultural activities. Most of the walk was passing through similar type of villages inhabited by smiling and friendly people. From time to time, we had to climb over rocks, cross small river streams and walk along the river shore. Around 6:00 PM we arrived at the place called Markhu that is situated at the bank of Kulekhani, the first reservoir water dam to produce hydro-electricity power. It was Asian Development Bank project with expertise of Japanese and Korean engineers. At Markhu we spent the night at small hotel that was called Krishna Lodge and Resturant. We cooked ourselves fresh fish from dam water to feed ourselves, accompanied by dal, bhat, tarkari that was prepared by cheerful hotel owner along with traditional homemade grog.

On 18th, early in the morning at 6:15 AM., we left the hotel with the sip of one black tea. Wonder walking through fertile villages around 8:30 we reached a place called Chitlang, which is famous for growing potatoes and cauliflowers. Near the village of Bhandarkharka, we stopped for a quick breakfast of tea and cookies. After a short while, we continued our journey and began to climb the very steep Bhanjyang hill. It took us nearly 2 hours to reach the top. The climb down from the Bhangjyang hill was a killer! It is one of the steepest routes in the valley. After an hour’s descent, we reached Thankot and took a local transportation home.

This journey also ended with insufficient words to describe all the beauty and charm of its. However, the journey left a lasting impression to march ahead again.

01 Departure time. Who’s in Who’s still finishing the daily report	02 Jimmy Page. For those unaware, best rocker in town – Yalamber tuning to go
03 Arriving at the Everest Panorama Resort in Daman	04 Ah … looking forward to some fun after a hectic week’s work!
05 We want the best room, best food, and a guaranteed sunrise tomorrow Mr. Rai	06 Okay we’re in the band too
07 Country roads take me home, to the place I belong, West Daman ..	08 This is what happens when Santosh is in the mood for party
09 Nevermind that the beer tray went out in 1 minute. I’m going for the good stuff	10 There are 2 cows. One facing east, other west. There’s a bundle of grass between them. How do they eat it (No pun intended)
11 Mohana didi telling Sewa the virtues of waiting for the good wine	12 Rudra dai’s grand entrance
13 I found it	14 Relaxing
15 Ladies in the house	16 The fountain of eternal Wine
17 Rudra dai busy with Antakshari	18 Lalupate phulyo banaima ..
19 D2TV Unplugged. Yalamber and Hitesh making it a memorable night for all of us	20 Antakshari warfare
21 Mohana didi with the traditional dance	22 Madal
23 Antakshari final. All of us having a great time!	24 Its dinner time. Dinner on 09-16-2005 Friday was Chinese
25 Vegetable Fried Rice, Chowmein, Bamboo soup, Fried Chicken, ..	26 Enjoying the dinner
27 After dinner, it was disco time. Rudra dai remembers the 80s	28 And Mohana didi too
29 Some more moves	30 Mr. Surendra suddenly achieves Nirvana
31 All of us were given a wake-up knock on the door at 530am on Sat 09-17-2005 to watch the sunrise expected at 555am	32 We could see most of the 8 tallest Himalayan peaks from here
33 Rudra dai with the sunrise in the background.	34 Finally the sun came up. In about 1 month’s time when the monsoon ends, the sunrise would look really spectacular from here
35 Beautiful backdrop	36. At 630am, after the morning tea, enthusiasts getting ready for a hike to Rikheswor mahadev temple. Some of us were happily enjoying the morning sleep at this serene place after an all night party
37 RC101 Rudra dai giving a practical lecture on Rock Climbing.	38 RC101 How to look cool and smile while Rock Climbing.
39 Cottages at the resortr	40 Walking up to the tower.
41 Getting ready for the hike to Rikeshwar mahadev	42 Starting point for the Rikheswar Mahadev hiking.
43 On the way to Rikheshwar mahadev.	44 Another Brick In The Wall. The trail to Rikheswar was really a short and a sweet one.
45 Ladies on the trail	46 What are we waiting for
47 Very pleasant trail indeed	48 Reminder that the monsoon season was not yet over. Slippery
49 Entering the periphery of Rikheswar Mahadev	50 On the final assault towards the temple premise
51 Offering prayers to the Mahadev	52 Perhaps Tika should have considered running for the German election
53 Flowers	54 Bhaskar trying to find the trail to get to the Bhutanese Monastery. Rudra dai, Vishnu, Bhaskar, Prabhakar, Surendra and Govinda instead of returning to the resort hiked an uphill uncharted trail trying to find the Monastery
55 View from the highest point they had reached	56 This trail was really treacherous
57 Be careful its a steep one	58 Guys take hold of the branches and come down slowly
59 At this descent everybody had to slide because it was too steep to walk downwards	60 All of us, Bhaskar taking the snap
61 Bhaskar’s shoe got trapped between the rock and the tree. He fell down, you can see his feet	62 Beautiful snap. Any flora and fauna expert in D2 We need big-time nomenclature
63 The Sign Board	64 Lunch time. Traditional Nepali cuisine was on the buffet.
65 Rudra dai, Raju, Bhaskar, Vishnu and Surendra embarked on a hike from Daman to Thankot. The trail that we took is highlighted by the transparent red mark on the map that highlights the contours	66 Kuncha village past Gahate village
67 Walking by Cauliflower fields in the village	68 Very little rain in these parts this year
69 Bhaskar (L) and Vishnu (R) before descending to one of the tribulatory that would merge to form the Phalung river	70 We were leaving the village beside and moving towards the river
71 Descending to the river	72 After walking for 3 hours, we reached the beginning of the Kulekhani dam
73 Sediment preventive weir, marking the start of the Kulekhani dam	74 Where in the world is Boston, Rudra dai ponders
75 On the way to Markhu village before we reached the Suspension Bridge	76 The Markhu Suspension bridge
77 Kulekhani reservoir	78 Beautiful dusk reflected in the Kulekhani reservoir
79 Vishnu steps in to prepare an excuisite Japanese fish dish	80 On Sun 09-18-2005, we begin our upward hike to Thankot
81 The hike from Markhu to Chitlan was really awesome	82 Soothing landscape as well
83 Local	84 House near Bhandarkharka village
85 Ancient stone temple carving on the upward slope to Bhangjyang hill	86 This trail from Bhandarkharka to the Thankot was filled with 2 things – lush vegetation and leeches
87 From the height of Bhangjyang hill, we could see our hike route all the way to Chitlan	88 At the top of the Bhangjyang hill
89 Mist covered the hill	90 Towards the descent to Thankot
91 Ceremonial stone carving	92 That is Thankot. Finally
93 Where we came from	94 You take a guess