Rachana Thapa
8.00 AM we got off from office van at Mulpani, a small village town that lies at the East-South of Gokarna, from where we climbed a gentle ascend to reach the CahnguNarayan Temple. Changu Narayan is a pagoda-style Hindu temple dedicated to Vishnu in his incarnation as Narayan. It is one of the oldest temples in Nepal, but because it is a bit off the beaten track, it is seldom visited by tourists. Originally built in the early 4th century during the Licchavi dynasty, Changu Narayan was rebuilt around 1700 after the temple was destroyed by a fire. All of the stone carvings in the temple courtyard were done between the 5th and 13th century, which makes this one of the single-greatest concentrations of ancient art in Nepal. After enjoying the graciousness of this sacred temple, we had a quick local breakfast. As soon as we finished with morning refreshment, proceed ahead. Striding for two hours on vicissitudes trail, we reach at Telkot, which is a small junction for the buses that run between Nagarkot and Kathamandu. From there we took the left route towards Palubari. Though it was a long way, we met few tourists who had come there for hiking and were enjoying the beauty of Nature on their way. Health Benefits of Hiking SLOWING THE AGING PROCESS Research shows that what we once accepted as a natural part of growing older a decline in physical activity and strength does not have to accompany aging. An article in the April 2001 American Journal of Public Health identified the relationship between reduced mortality risk and moderate recreational activity. A study of two groups of 15 middle aged men was conducted between 1969 and 1992, during which time one group exercised regularly, while the other group exercised for the first five years and then stopped. When researchers tested these men at the end of the 23 years, they found that the non-exercisers lost 41 percent of their aerobic power, while the exercisers lost only 13 percent. Aging does not decrease the body’s ability to be physically active and healthy, but rather leading an inactive and unhealthy lifestyle accelerates the aging process Descending from Telkot to Palubari for an hour was a pleasant walking down. It provides views of fertile land of the village as well as sights of Sankhu Bazar time-to-time David was adding joyous to it with his humors. From the mid section of village, we had to climb the ascend of Tauthali. That required us for 30 minutes of climbing to meet its top. At the top of Tauthali we munched some biscuit and cheese with water. After, a little rest and chatting with teammates moved again. Some 20 minutes of walking from this point, we encounter with Tauthali Primary School. Where, we distributed some notebooks, pencils to students and a table pencil sharpener to Principal of the school. As soon as we finished with a small humanitarian aid, still we had to walk but we were not aware of how long we had to. Any way we kept walking. After one hour of ascending, we happened to be at Nagarkot Saili Didi, the owner of Berg House Café, who is an expert for preparing the Nepali cuisine. Where, hikers divided in different groups according to their taste. Some were playing card, some reading palm and some drinking beer and playing guitar before the lunch was served By the end of the day and our hiking, it was raining heavily. That made the weather chilly but We droved back in the warm van. I believe that walking long way for almost 6 hours through out the day seemed worth as we all shared the beautiful memories of the day had given to all of us.
