above the clouds and onto paro

...and then we ascended higher, and broke through the clouds. OH MAH GAWD! we were cruising right along side of the snow-capped Himalayas. these are the mountains that form the northern border of Bhutan (with Tibet / china). the Bhutanese people believe the mountains are sacred, and therefore do not allow any mountaineering treks to summit te mountains, making them the highest unsummited mountains in the world. 

highest peak in Bhutan is in the far right, and table mountain is the plateau on the left. 

as we came closer to paro, jumlohari was in front of us (the second highest peak we saw on our drive the previous week)   as we approached, the clouds below broke to reveal the paro valley far below, with jumlohari high above the clouds. amazing, amazing, amazing. 

landing in paro was such a trip. once we started the descent, we cut in tight to the valley walls, and came down on the little runway on the little piece of flat land. 

welcome back to paro! 

the most stunning flight ever!

the flight from bumthang back to Paro was only 25 min long (would have been a 12-14 hour drive), and definitely the most stunning scenery from a plan I have ever seen. 

we ascended up the valley, over the dzong, crooked road we drove into town... and saw the hills and complete valley. 

bumthang airport

the little tiny airport in the town was amazing. just a fenced off runway (to keep the dogs and livestock from getting in), a small tower / terminal building, and a fire truck. we got there and checked in (handwritten tickets) early, and had to wait for our plane to arrive. time is all relative here, and things happen when they happen. 

it was awesome to stand less than 100' from the runway as the plane was landing. it made a high circle around the valley, then disappeared, and came in super low from the end of the valley closest to us. I think we were all picturing a super tiny plane, and were happy to see it was a 2-prop plane, but had 16+ rows of seats. 

after the plane landed, we continued to hang around until they got a phone call from paro clearing us to board and take off. it was windy and cold, and I think we're were all looking forward to it being slightly warmer back in Paro. 

leaving bumthang

the following morning, we were able to sleep in a bit (still woke up with the sun), and chilled before our flight out. it was a little overcast, but the fog cleared out of the valley early, so we were pretty sure our flight would be able to leave. 

the hotel we stayed in was up on a hill overlooking the valley, so hanging out for a few hours waiting was not too bad. 

craziest thing about the rooms in the hotel, we the sliding bolts to lock the door from both the inside and outside of the room. super freaky, because it the bolt slipped, you were trapped in the room. happened to me one morning, and lucky rachel was still just outside.... but definitely NOT fire safe. ha. we made a pact of not locking each other in the rooms. too freaky! 

rich, scott and I strolled down the hill and along the river valley into town with our last hour before heading to the airport. 

shopping in town & downtime

we met up with the bus and the rest of the crew in the center of town, just across the river bridge, walked around for a bit, and popped into a few stores to get some postcards and souvenirs. the shops all have tons of weaving, scarfs, bags, etc, along with a variety of Buddhist paintings, statues, and ceremonial wooden masks. 

it is also fun to see the local shops that have a variety of clothing, foods, and tons of packaged snacks and beverages. just about every sign above the doors is in the same style (and font) with little descriptions of the goods or services they are selling. 

our shopping expedition didn't last too long (the cold water totally drained us all), and we returned to the hotel by mid-afternoon... and enjoyed the free time to chill, write postcards, and read our books by the warm fire in the dining room. we have been on the go so much that downtime was much needed! 

post river picnic lunch

at the top of the canyon hill, the crew started a big bonfire to warm us up, and had yet another amazing hot picnic lunch ready for us as soon as we were changed out of our freezing cold river clothes. the sun stayed out just long enough to keep us warm through lunch. oh what a difference the sun makes in overall temperature! 

following lunch, rich and I jumped onto the bikes with a ashshi (our driver), and biked 10 min up hill to the main road, and then coasted down into town. biking is a really nice way to move around, and see the villages. it is probably less bumpy than being in the bus, and takes about the same amount of time. ;)

rafting the Chamkha Chhu

after breakfast, we geared up in warmer river wear, and walked about 15 min down to the river put in from the hotel. the days was definitely chilly, but we were super fortunate that the sun was out. 

one of the cute dogs from the hotel came along with us, and was very keen to get into the raft with us. at the last min, he got out, but proceeded to follow the boating posse downriver at least 2 miles. such a little trooper, keeping track of the whole group of kayaks and the raft. 

it was fun to have a bigger crew of boaters on the water for the day... but it was also super cold. even though I had socks and gloves on, I had no feeling in my extremities by mid river. 

it was a pretty mellow run, with a few splashy Rapids where the river pinched in the canyon. the canyons was gorgeous however, and as cold as we were, I was happy we went out. 

the last rapid of the day gave us a little excitement and got the blood pumping. we accidentally tipped off an entry rock, got jostled sideways, flipping scott out of the boat, and got sucked into a pinch channel and high sided on a big rock. 

a lot of excitement getting scott out of the water, keeping the boat from flipping and taking the rest of us with it.... and then unloading onto a big Boulder, lining the boat sideways through the channel... and reloading on the other side. 

best part was... takeout was literally 2 min around the corner. 

the porters were there to bring the raft up... and we hightailed it up the hill to the bus just to warm up again.