Stage 1 Chosang to Ghami

We leave Lomantang in the 4x4s and drive up the valley to the nearest point we can get to the Chinese border. Before we leave, our hostess blesses us all with white scarves. At Chosang, you can see some Chinese buildings on the mountain top  in the distance but non Nepalese are not permitted to get any closer. 

We prep the bikes, take a last pee and the Trans bit of Transnepal finally starts. It feels like I have been on this trip for ages just to get to the start point. It has been nearly a week and we have already pedalled uphill for 3 days.  We line up across the road, take one last pic and we are off! Or some of us are at least….Chris and I wait for the organizer of this event go go back to the truck to take off his down jacket. 

Downhill and with a following wind, we set off under clear blue skies. We soon catch the early starters and pull ahead as we get near Lomantang and the first hill of the day bites. It’s not big but it reminds you that you need to respect the altitude.

We wind through the village and hit the first serious hill. It’s a bugger. Steep and energy sapping. Chris’s lungs are taking a beating and he says it feels like he’s doing an FTP test on the Wattbike though his pulse is barely 130.  He has low energy on the hills. We have made a pact to ride together on this trip. I wait for him uphill and he waits for me on the descents. 

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We eventually get to the top at 4000m and begin the long descent.  The track is rough and my hands take a pounding. I rubber neck and stop to take pictures when something even more astonishing hand the usual hoves into view.  We pass a small herd of yak who pay us little attention. Hardy buggers that roam the wilderness up here.  

At the feed station at 23k, we see Phil who has almost no brakes. He doesn’t see over concerned but it would have me crapping myself. Judging by the way he hoes downhill, I can sort of see his logic. A top up of brake oil has him stopping again. 

We leave town and start the last climb of the day.  It’s another grind up the rough road to another 4000m pass. Chris is feeling the pain and says he has a headache. Probably altitude related. He grinds on.  We meet one of the support trucks and find out that a couple of the guys have decided to take a lift to the top. I see some large cat paw prints in the dust on the side of the road. Apparently there are leopard up here. 

We crest the pass and know that we can finish the day now as it’s all downhill from this point. (Apart from the nasty kicker at the end) More amazing scenery flies by and if I stopped to take a picture of all of it, I would never finish. The GPS has a nasty habit of triggering its emergency alert when I decide to stop for a pic. This delays me more than once. I think it’s because if the rough road and sudden stopping. 

We drop into the valley and suddenly there are 5 of us again.  We have caught up with the two on Gravel bikes who restarted at the top of the last pass and Phil has caught us. We throw ourselves at the last little kicker, some on foot some on bike and eventually arrive up at our lodging for the night.  The one with the electric blankets! Hurrah! The local farmer burnings his goats through the streets in celebration…not. The animals are kept indoors at night hence the amazing variety of turd on the floor. All the big ones are dried and used for cooking.