Rafting and Golf

Tuesday 8th November – White Water Rafting, Upper Seti River

Today’s adrenalin rush is a short dose of grade 3 to 4 white water rafting with the Paddle Nepal company. The advantage of this trip is that it is only a 30 minute drive from Pokhara’s Lakeside, this short and sweet rafting adventure offers 1 ½ hours of non-stop adrenaline filled rapids. The company has its own bus and sure enough we arrived at the Seti River pretty well on time. They geared us up with a helmet, life jacket, a much appreciated waterproof jacket and of course a paddle. It was a pretty thorough safety briefing covering all aspects including what to do if you fall overboard. Big James Phillips was allocated the prime front position which I secretly coveted. Alas, when they look at me they see a skinny old man who should be placed at the back. James thought that the Swedish guy who was next to him paddled like a wimp.

As soon as we launched into the river the fun began. Mother Nature seems to pack more rapids into 90 minutes on the Upper Seti than some other rivers provide in 2 to 3 days. It was like being on a roller coaster with non-stop action. There are fantastic Annapurna mountain views, crystal clear Himalayan whitewater and a beautiful gorge decorated with a suspension bridge and prayer flags. One section was considered too dangerous for us so we had to walk around this particular rapid. The bonus was that we got to jump off a cliff into the icy waters of the Seti. I gave a good impression of the famous Kawaku Dive or in this instance jump. After completing our last rapid James and I thought that rafting the Upper Seti River is the ultimate half day rafting trip in Nepal. It is definitely more fun than the Trisuli River. The cost of the trip was Rs 5400 ($67) and I would really consider a two or three day trip with them next time I visit.

www.paddlenepal.com/rafting-upper-seti-river. Upper Seti River Rafting is a short and sweet paddling adventure which offers 1 ½ hours of non-stop adrenaline filled class III+/IV rapids.

Lunch was provided so on arrival at Pokhara we returned to the hotel. After a short rest I ventured down to the Busy Bee for 90 minutes of stretching at the Yoga class. This session I think that I was a little more flexible but the old knees go into shutdown mode on a couple of the stretches. At the end of the class the instructor said that I was reasonably flexible. She left out the part “for an old guy”. After the class James and I went up to the Godfather Restaurant so I could have a couple of cheap beers. We ordered a garlic pizza which was delicious. Unfortunately, James stomach cramps hit him straight after eating so he had to return to the hotel for rest. I kicked on for another hour before returning to the hotel.

Wednesday 9th November – Time for a Doctor

James had another bad night with stomach pain so this morning he has arranged with Shekhar to see a doctor. His appointment is for 13:00 so he killed some time by booking us in for an early evening massage. Meanwhile I headed off for a 10:00 yoga class for some more stretching. The only pose that I had a problem with was the Warrior 3 where I just could not stretch and balance on one leg at the same time. It was a good class and with only three students I had plenty of room to hide my inadequacies.

I went out for lunch whilst Shekhar escorted James to the doctor’s surgery. James’ prognosis after his visit is that he has a gastric issue and needs to eat bland foods and take some prescription drugs. Hopefully they will kick in over the next couple of days and kill the bug. This afternoon was spent relaxing and keeping an eye on the weather. For the first time in weeks the sky is overcast and it may rain.

For something different this evening we went for a massage at the Jiva Spa. James who is feeling a little better has opted for the 90 minute Swedish massage whilst I went for a hot stone massage. This is a more gentle form of massage and the hot stones help to relax the muscles. The only problem was that some of the stones were way to hot and left a few red marks on my stomach and chest. Nevertheless I did enjoy the fact that a lot of essential oils have helped rejuvenate my skin. Afterwards we adjourned to the Moondance which is one of Pokharas premium restaurants. We had booked a table on the balcony which gave us an excellent repository to view our surrounds. James has to avoid meat and spices so he opted for an enchilada with plain rice whilst I went for the more expensive wild boar stew with a red wine and tomato base. Both dishes were excellent and even though it is slightly more expensive here the overall cost for both of us was well under $40.

Thursday 10th November – Peace Pagoda, Pokhara

There was no urgency this morning as we are quite flexible with our plans. It is another gorgeous day and coupled with James’ health improvement we have decided to hike up to the Peace Pagoda that stands sentinel high on the hill overlooking Phewa Lake and Pokhara. A little prior to 10:00 we sauntered down to the lake and hired a boat with a paddler for a return trip across the lake. The cost was Rs1120 ($14) which included the two hour wait on the other side of the lake whist we clambered to the top of the hill. The major surprise for the trip across was that the person who was the designated paddler was a female. With two big buffoons in the canoe she powerfully stroked her way down and across the lake. We had a great view of the island temple as well as the snow-capped mountain range.

When we reached our disembarkation point we jumped out and started our slow steady climb to the summit. It wasn’t a walk in the park but given what we had scaled in the last few weeks it wasn’t a difficult ascent. James and I soon found our slow but steady pace and soon passed the climbers who need to stop to catch their breath. At a couple of points on our ascent there were some great panoramas and hopefully our photographs will reflect what we saw. I was a little in front of James and reached the Pagoda a little after 30 minutes. When James did not arrive I surmised that he had taken a wrong turn and gone to the viewpoint. Whilst James was off taking in the Himalayan views I was relaxing at the Peace Pagoda and soaking up the tranquility of the site. About 25 minutes later James arrived after his sojourn to the view point. Even with his wrong turn we were in front of our two hour schedule. After the obligatory photographs we thought it was time to start our descent back down to the lake.

The walk down was obviously a lot quicker but we still had to take our time as the steeper sections are quite treacherous and slippery underfoot. At the lake our boat lady with a cigarette dangling from the side of her mouth was still patiently waiting for our return. Once on board she wasted no time in propelling us back to the opposite shore. It was after 13:00 by the time we returned so we took a late lunch at a restaurant which does a pretty good coffee. A young trainee was serving us and his speed of service was at least faster than the kitchen staff. There were a couple of people in the restaurant and it appears that they are only competent enough to cook one meal at a time. It took nearly an hour to boil some soup and fry a vegie burger. The one saving grace was that the food and coffee was good.

By the time 16:00 came around I was ready for another stint of yoga. I’m still improving but my dagwood (downward) dog could be better. James’ drugs are working fine so he was up for a curry dinner. We found a good little vegetarian curry establishment and had an exceptional meal at a very reasonable price. Mine was so plentiful that I over indulged to the point of gluttony.

Friday 11th November – Himalayan Golf

Today we have organized a game of golf at the internationally acclaimed Himalayan Golf Course which is located on the outskirts of Pokhara about 30 minutes away. It isn’t really internationally acclaimed but is considered by many to be one of the 10 most unique golf courses in the world. The Himalayan Golf Course is one of only two 18 holes courses in Nepal. The course is well laid out championship course at 6,100 yards yardage with a par of 70. The course for the most part inside a sweeping canyon created by the Himalayan snowed waters of the Bijayapur River. Framed by the towering the Annapurna range, cattle and buffalo roam freely providing most of the grass mowing. The course wanders through aerial cliff drops of hundreds of feet down to the signature island hole within the either tranquil or raging Bijayapur river, full of exposed boulders washed down over centuries from the towering mountains above.

After parting with $US 50 for green fees, clubs and a caddy we had to dip into our pockets for some balls and tees. The club professional convinced us to purchase 15 balls as given our skill level he thought we would need everyone of them. James got the professional caddy who also played off single figures and I was stuck with a talkative and somewhat annoying 12 year old. The plus side was that he didn’t mind searching for the balls that I inevitably sprayed all over the course.

We bypassed play on the 1st and 2nd holes which also double as the 17th and 18th. They are fairly straightforward as these par 4's are laid out on relatively level ground on each side of the clubhouse. Our baptism to the truly unique character of this course came when we stepped up to the 3rd tee to be confronted with a flawless panorama which encompasses the magnificent Fishtail and Annapurna mountain range. Below our elevated tee you see and hear the meandering Bijayapur River some 300 feet below. There are sheer canyon walls dotted with eagle's nests, waterfalls and a barely perceptible flag. Some 300 yards distant and 90 feet below, this small triangular piece of fabric marks the place where your ball should end up after only four strokes. As luck would have it both our tee shots found the fairway and I ended up with a credible bogey. There is no other experience that duplicates or even comes close to the thrill of teeing off on the 3rd.

Our journey over the course was frustrating, infuriating and above all rewarding. At times it was like being back on the Annapurna Circuit as we traipsed uphill and down dale. Our ball supplies were dwindling as fast as the credits on a poker machine and thankfully our caddies were able to find quite a few that we had given up as lost. With no local knowledge and greens that were often not visible we were playing like the Blind Boys from Alabama. My shots were getting progressively worse and in one instance I threw my club at the bag and narrowly missed my caddy. I did apologise but he still gave me a filthy look. The one saving grace was that he did quiet down a bit. After completing the 15th hole we trudged back up the side of the canyon to face the 16th hole known as the Abyss. It is a par 3 and you have to hit your ball 160 yards across the canyon. I stepped nervously up to the tee and hit a reasonable shot that took a lucky bounce off the rock wall. James wasn’t so lucky and his ball ended up in the abyss. We finished off the last two holes with the club professional and acquitted ourselves reasonably well. We finished our round with one ball each and a healthy respect for the course. While we waited for our taxi we shared a cool beer overlooking the canyon and the hole far below.

I was a little disappointed this afternoon as my yoga class was cancelled due to a band performing a late afternoon gig next door. Just too noisy for yoga! Nevertheless I still had my 17:30 massage to look forward to. I must be coming a sensitive metrosexual guy as today I have opted for a body scrub with traditional Nepalese massage. The body scrub was invigorating as the masseuse really worked the scrub into my dry old skin. The scrub was a mixture of coffee, honey, rice flour, olive oil and hot milk. I wished that I could have taken a picture as when I was completely basted I looked like a chocolate brownie. All they had to do was stick me in the oven, set the temperature at 180 degrees and I would have been done. It did however take me about ten minutes to wash myself. The massage was very relaxing and I almost fell asleep. For dinner we treated ourselves to a medium rare steak from the Everest Steakhouse.