Fall in the Himalaya is a magical time. High pressure weather systems sweep across the land, making for seemingly endless sun-filled, blue sky days. Nepalese villagers are hard at work harvesting their buckwheat, rice, apples, pumpkins. Yak bells sing across snow-swept mountain sides, morning frost coats tent flaps and mountain grass tufts.
Gold leaf trees accent the backdrop of the Tibetan Plataeu
Last fall when we journeyed along the Annapurna, our OWT group passed through a village called Jarkot. Located on the northern side of the legendary Thorong La pass, Jarkot borders the Tibetan plateau and is surrounded by arid, brown desert mountains. It also has a host of deciduous trees, the leaves of which turn gold beneath the autumn sky. We strolled through the the mudstone huts of the village and into the entrance of the central monastery there–a large monastery filled with Buddhist relics and thonkas. After touring the spiritual site, we wandered down into the arid hills of lower Mustang, energized by the crisp fall air, enthralled by the desert-like beauty around us, heading for the peaks in the distance, the largest of which was Dhaulagiri.
- Inside the Monastery
