Rimbik

28th November 2004.

We decided to go to Rimbik with Dominiqe and Monique who were also heading back down the trek. Their guide was very chatty so there was little discussion of the route, its length or anything we might have wanted to know. We think that blindly following the guide added a few hours onto a long days walk... but we still don't really know, as no one has a decent map and Jason had no compass.

By 8am, with a belly full of porridge we were still cold.

The frosty thistles.

Plants thaw in the sunlight.  In the right season, there are rhododendrons and other flowers blooming on the trail.

By about 9am we take some layers off and its good to feel blood going through our toes. Claire is still feeling sick and wished she had recovered more before hitting the altitude.

Beautiful magnolia flowers welcome us to our lunch break in Gurudum village.

The trail follows the river and despite the fact we think we are still in a National Park there seem to be a lot of newish villages appearing along the river banks.

We leave the others and arrange to meet for tea.

The 1,500m descent has left Dominique's knees in need of some TLC.

The villages make us feel welcome.

More forest destruction, but with the cold being as it is you can see why they need so much wood.

Once the trees are all gone and a landslide or other self-induced natural disaster has occurred then these guys will take there queue to save the people from the ravages of Imperialism.

What is it with Communism that's appealling to mountain people?

Jason models his new top from Darjeeling.

We stayed the night in Rimbik, where we stopped at the Green Hill Hotel. The man who owns it was one of the nicest men that we have met on our travels, he woke us up with tea at 6am for sunrise, what a sweetie.

Basket weaver we saw on our 5 hour jeep journey back to Darjeeling. 
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