Mardi
Himal is the name given to the feature of the long rising
ridge and its summit that from the southwesterly lower
slope of Mount Machhapuchhare, the famous triangular skyline
that is seen from the Phewa Lake at Pokhara. As we shall
soon see from a closer and more westerly vantage point,
the mountain hold win peak - thus its name, Machhapuchhare,
which is English means "Fish tail". Machhapuchhare
is the most southerly high point of the Annapurna Massif,
the awesomely majestic grouping of mountains in the central
Himalaya that includes 5 of the 12 highest mountains in
the world - all at close of very close quarters to our
route.
An eight-day hiking through the forest
and on above the tree line and on up to from our high
altitude camp at 4,100 m. from where there are the most
amazing close quarter's views of all.
Now descending first through the forest,
a different route takes us steeply down to the upper Mardi
Khola, the torrent that has been the ice and the snow
of the Mardi Himal. Although remote and still away from
all the much-used trekking routes, our expedition now
takes on the moods of the warm valleys and the friendly
villages. Here, as we make our way along the bank of the
Mardi Khola from the hill- side village of siding, down
through the lovely fields, past the simple farms and over
the "interesting" bridges, there is no doubt
this indeed the idyllic Nepali countryside.
