Day 76 - We can't be on it everyday
It was perhaps a sign of things to come when our planned relatively early start included us sitting in the sun at 8:40am. We often complain that breakfast slows us down in the morning, and it does, but this morning breakfast had long finished and we still hadn't moved. We'd even done all of our required bike work while waiting for breakfast and were perfectly ready to leave, but we were just sitting there!
In fairness to us, it was a comfy place to sit!
Things didn't improve after we stopped for an early lunch half way up...wait no I mean down the descent.
That did serve to somewhat improve energy and focus levels, and we set off up the first pass of the day trying to ignore how late we were.
As I was once again sweltering in 30+ degrees it occurred to me that this just doesn't count as "winter", sorry! 30 degrees for most of the day is not "winter". 3 maybe! 30? Nope.
Funnily enough the climbing actually went very quickly and easily, despite me stopping to talk to a friendly and well-spoken chap measuring the road for lines, then higher up getting stuck trying to catch up with Emma "for 1 minute" (he meant 10) while a truck was loaded with gravel. I got chatting to the supervisor who explained the road building project and, after my curious questions, exactly how they build it! Slightly further up, still not caught up with Emma I saw the supervisor again who said we'd taken the wrong fork and the road was bad. Unable to get Emma on the phone I continued up. Eventually I establish contact, and after a brief discussion we decide to let fate make the call, with Emma representing up and me back down in a winner-takes-all sudden death game of rock, paper, scissors. It was actually very nice not to have to make a decision having decided that both options are relatively equal, and so when Emma's paper surrounded my rock we continued up.
It was a very pretty and quiet ascent, which, when finally stuck into it, went well with warmed up legs and we reached the top happily, despite the rough road. Of course there was another stop there, this time for a "pride rock" photoshoot 😅.
On the way down the rocky descent my tire suddenly felt spongey. "Hmm, I just pumped that up" I thought. Once again we stopped, scant seconds after the top, and confirmed the worst - a puncture, once again in the side wall 😨. That's not what we needed as we stopped again and again to pump and fix as the sealant failed, then the plug blew out, each time resorting to a more drastic solution. Eventually, as the light was fading and we were just trying to make progress we stopped to put a tube in, the 1200m pass looming large above us.
Descending down the weather felt decidedly autumnal (a season we've missed this year!) and, in keeping with the struggling impetus of the day we were both craving just being inside and cosy...and a bath! Funny how we often align on these things, although I suppose that's to be expected given we've lived the same for close to three months!
I just don't think three wheels is enough wheels for hairpin descents, but they get around!
Sadly, or perhaps luckily for our progress, Nepalese towns are not built in the narrow valleys, but on the high ridges (the opposite to in Europe) so we were commited to (another) cold, late finish. About 300 vertical metres from the top my tire once again went down- arrggggggghhhh! We can't complain too much given this kind of thing should have happed the whole trip, but it's still fustrating in the cold and dark. We decided to do something that we both knew never works - pump it up and keep going, in the hope that we'd reach the hotel not 2 miles away and deal with it in the morning. So we pumped up and I sprinted off. To my utter amazement and a gratefully received bit of good luck it stayed up the whole way and I was finally at the hotel!
Seems to be a theme of vegetable statues on roundabouts in towns round here!
It was hairy coming into a dark, cold town with just a couple of Google pins to try, but the place looked nice enough on arrival and was open...but noone was there! After some fruitless phone calls and dodgy signal research I finally found someone in an open kitchen and we were off to the races! (Or rather, back from them 😉). I couldn't work out why she was translating "rice" before I'd even established there was a room, until I realised she was already on catering! The place was nice, clean, and had a washing machine! The latter is not only good because our lycra was a few very sweaty days old thanks to not wanting to wash it and put it on damp in the cold, but also because it means the sheets are definitely washed, and washed well! There was no heating and no hot water (at least not in the guest room) but we persevered and Emma not only washed, but in an achievement which recognises her progress and shocked me in equal measure, beat me into a cold shower!!!
A massive and tasty dinner later and we were soon sound asleep under layers and layers of blankets!
Food spend today: 14.00 euros
Tea consumption: 5