Day 5: Sunday, July 31, 2016:
Our final day of trekking to Thame was finally here, and so
was the cold, wet weather. We left around 10am, probably not the best start to
a day in the Himalayas when trying to avoid rain. Before heading to Thame we
needed to run a few errands that we were unable to complete the day before
since the banks and some stores were closed on the weekend.
Errands done, the next climb began. Slowly, we made our way
up the western side of Namche stopping at the top of the ridge to get one last
look at the mountain city before beginning our next week of the journey.
Standing on the edge feels like you are standing on top of the world, which is
closer than I have ever been to doing so at over two miles above sea level.
Even with the cloud cover you could see the lower halves of the mountains for
miles and the view of the city was incredible.
The climbing continued as the rain started as a drizzle then
quickly changed to a steady rainfall. We passed several more villages before
stopping for lunch in hopes that the rain would abate in that time. Wet and cold,
we ordered lunch and told jokes and stories to pass the time. Almost two hours
later, a drizzle still persistent we made our final push to Thame.
Most of this final stretch was very cloudy so the views were
not as clear as the days before, but we were also too exhausted to pay
attention to much more than our path.
Thirty minutes before our arrival we came over a hill,
looked down and saw a raging river cutting through two 200 to 300 foot stone
walls, one of which had several hand-drawn paintings of Buddhist gods. The most
terrifying part of this segment of the trail was the truss bridge that crossed
the river which was visibly bowed (a sign of fairy serious bridge damaged).
Surviving yet another obstacle we were rewarded by a steep
several hundred foot hill, the last before Thame. By the top I was almost
crawling and most of us sounded like billows as we tried to catch our breath.
After letting everyone catch up, we rounded the corner and saw the entrance to Shangru-la
Thame. I would try to describe it but a photo will describe it much better than
I will.
Giving us new energy, we walked through the entrance gate
and up the walkway and saw the first of the village. All I can compare this
region of Nhumbu (the Nhumbu region is the area of the Himalayas we stayed in
during our trip) to is the Shire from Lord of The Rings. Houses and farms were
surrounded by stone walls, many of which were grown over with flowers, grass,
and shrubbery. The walkways were made of dirt and stone and dozens of rivers
and streams cut through the small expanse of land situated between the
mountains and ridges.
Six days, 20 plus miles of walking, 12,500 feet, and three
plane rides later we were here.
Day 6: Monday, August 1, 2016:
Our first day working on the bridge. The bridge connects the
two neighboring villages to Thame, Thame-Teng and Yullenjung. Like the rest of
the areas we have been, the location of the bridge is beautiful. Today our
mission is to survey the bridge and surrounding area so that we can develop a
profile of the bridge which will allow us to develop a plan for repairs.
The bridge was in really bad shape. After doing the math we
discovered that the middle of the bridge deflected just under two feet. In
layman’s terms, the bridge was ready to collapse. As a 52 foot long suspension
bridge, an acceptable deflection is only a couple of inches so two feet is
disastrous.
In 2015 an earthquake struck the Nhumbu region bringing
major destruction to the communities in the area. The bridge was no exception.
There were two towers that supported the two cables of the suspension bridge.
When the quake hit, the tower on the Yullenjung side collapsed, releasing the
cables and taking all the vertical support from the bridge. The abutments
(stone blocks on both sides of the bridge on which the bridge deck rests) were
the only supports left for the bridge. Holding up the bridge frequently used by
children, trekkers, and several hundred pound yaks were about a dozen bolts
connecting the decking to the abutments.
Day 7: Tuesday, August 2, 2016:
After finishing all of our calculations, brainstorming
ideas, and talking with a few members of the community we came up with a
preliminary design. Now it was time for a community meeting. Since Yullenjung
was the main user of the bridge we talked with that community. Only about 20-30
people live in the village. Out of that small number, roughly ten came to the
meeting (a few came and went as required by their daily tasks), a very good
showing for a community meeting.
After talking to the villagers we developed a better
understanding for the uses, problems and hopes of the bridge. The current
bridge is located in a very inconvenient spot, requiring the villagers to
travel north to the bridge in order to travel south. This adds up to an hour to
their trips. So we (our team and the community) both suggested a new spot for a
bridge, which turned out to be within the same area.
Within the next three years, the Nepali government said it
would be coming to build the village a new bridge, so the hopes were that we
could repair the current bridge to last that long and design and survey an new
bridge in a better location.
We left the meeting with new ideas and a greater respect for
the needs of the people. We had three goals: repair the bridge ready to
collapse using only the materials already on or surrounding the bridge and some
rope donated by the community; survey and design a new bridge; and estimate volumes
of stone in the Khumbu Mountain Center (KMC) that was severely damaged in the
quake for reuse in new buildings.
After the meeting, the village elder, Gyalzen Sherpa,
invited us back to his house for tea. He lived in a traditional Sherpa home, as
described in the Sherpa museum blog, with two rooms. As it turned out, our host
has been on twelve Everest expeditions as a support Sherpa (assist trekkers
getting up the mountain by performing whatever tasks are necessary such as
cooking, setting up tents, or carrying supplies), reaching the summit once.
Day 8: Wednesday, August 3, 2016:
We split into two groups to try and conquer our tasks as
quickly as possible. One team went to the existing bridge site for further
evaluations and brainstorming. The second group went to the proposed new site
to survey and perform a site assessment. When these were both complete, both
teams joined forces to estimate volumes at the KMC.
Done with all of our surveying and calculations we headed
back to the lodge to wrap everything up and to have a meeting with the elder,
Gyalzen.
The design for the current bridge repair was a cable-stay
bridge. Using the cable already on the bridge, the stone from the fallen tower,
some rope, and the fence rigging, we would reinforce the bridge.
With approval of the design by Gyalzen, we were set to start
work the next morning.
Having a few spare hours we decided to do some extra climbing and go to the Thame monastery. There, we were blessed by the 5 or 6 year old Lama and toured the stunning monastery. There were dozens of intricately drawn pieces of artwork (unfortunately I was too focused on the art to take photos).
Day 9: Thursday, August 4, 2016:
The first day of repairs was also our first real day of
sleeping in. Gyalzen Sherpa told us that the best time to start would be 9am
because we would have some help. Unfortunately, most of the surrounding
villages were in the monastery fasting, so a majority of the work was completed
by us and our guides. A few of the local women were amazing enough, as they
often were, to bring us tea.
I do not believe I have stressed how pivotal tea has been
during this try. As a tea lover myself, I soon learned that I was in one of the
best places in the world when it came to tea drinking. Even living in one of
the most remote places in the world, these people had incredible tea all the
time. Every meal and break we had was supplemented by the rejuvenating
substance. Commonly we had lemon, black and milk tea. However, one several occasions
we were able to try other delicious teas such as honey, mango, and my personal
favorite, strawberry tea. This hot nectar kept us both energized and motivated throughout
the trip.
Back on track. Hands torn, muscles aching, and ready to jump
into the cold river we called it a day around 2 or 3pm. We had accomplished
more than we thought possible. The semi-collapsed tower was almost entirely
taken down; the fence was detached where needed from the fencing; and one of the
cables was partly tightened.
At this point we could only imagine how much we would get
down with the villagers help the next day since their fasting would be over.
Day 10: Friday, August 5, 2016:
When I say we had an army at our disposal I literally mean
part of the Nepali military showed up to assist us in repairing the bridge.
Over a dozen villagers, 5 soldiers, 4 children, and 10 student and professors
came together to get the job done. The remnants of the fallen tower stood no chance.
It was removed faster than we could imagine. The cable was reattached to the
bridge; tightened through the pulling of the combined forces of people; and
further tightened by replacing the removed tower blocks under the cable. After
a new approach walkway was created and the fence re-supported, the bridge was
completed.
What followed was something I hope to never forget. The
whole village, including those too old to assist in the repair, came out to
thank us. They brought tea and many snacks. Then the elder, Gyalzen, and
several other community members brought out katas. Katas are scarves that carry
blessings. Receiving these is a great honor and our group received two per
person. It was so moving and heartwarming that I could not attempt describing
it in more words. When it was time for us to head back to our lodge, all the
villagers came together with us to take a photo, shake our hand, and give us
personal blessings. Never have I felt more appreciated by or thankful to have
met a community.
