Hiking on Top of the World

Timely on-line content material has by no means been my robust swimsuit. 

“No shit. You’re no great shakes when it comes to posting regularly, either”, reply 98% of long-term readers of The Hiking Life.

Case in level, the next introductory put up for Wanderlust Himalaya: Hiking on Top of the World, my “latest” ebook with gestalten publications. Released earlier this yr, it’s a 300-page espresso desk ebook that showcases 26 of the best hikes from the world’s highest mountain vary (together with a handful from the adjoining Karakoram Range). The featured trails embody established classics such because the Annapurna Base Camp, Markha Valley, and K2 Base Camp Treks, together with lesser-known excursions corresponding to Bhutan’s Jomolhari Trek and Tibet’s Ganden to Samye Monastery Trek.

At roughly 2,400 km lengthy and as much as 400 km vast, the Himalaya is a high-altitude wonderland par excellence. Consisting of 5 nations (India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bhutan, and Tibet/China) and residential to greater than 52 million folks, it includes a patchwork of historical cultures and commerce routes, and its mountains and valleys are dotted with precariously perched monasteries and characterful, off-the-beaten-track villages. Wanderlust Himalaya shines a highlight not solely on the area’s pure wonders but additionally on the cultural, historic, and religious parts that assist distinguish the Himalaya from different mountain ranges world wide.  

As with the opposite titles within the sequence, Wanderlust Himalaya was very a lot a collaborative effort. The ebook options photos from an array of wonderful photographers, Florian Bayer supplies the illustrations, Bureau Rabensteiner takes care of the map design, yours really chipped in with a handful of photos and all the written content material, and the crack enhancing group at Gestalten (led by Anna Diekmann) put all of it collectively. 

Overview map and a listing of featured trails.

From a private perspective, writing Wanderlust Himalaya was like taking an extended sequence of walks down reminiscence lane. The alternative not solely to revisit a number of the extraordinary landscapes but additionally to reminisce in regards to the equally memorable folks I encountered throughout these journeys. From curious Buddhist monks to extremely hospitable villagers to stoic nomads, sharing meals and dialog with the area’s hardy residents is in some methods as a lot part of the Himalayan expertise because the unbelievable mountain surroundings. One of probably the most vibrant characters I met throughout my time within the vary was an previous German bloke (most likely the identical age as I’m now) on Ladakh’s Markha Valley Trek. Accompanied by an indefatigable donkey, each time the eccentric Teuton would attain one of many path’s 5,000 m-passes, he’d unload his devoted quadruped, notice the energy and course of the wind, and paraglide from the highest. I truly thought he was having me on till I noticed him take off into the vast blue yonder.

Markha Valley Trek, “A Journey Through the Heartland of Little Tibet.”

As famous within the introduction, the ebook additionally consists of a number of treks from the adjoining Karakoram Range. It might not technically be a part of the Himalaya (it’s separated by the Indus River on the Himalayas’ northwest limits), however the adjoining mountain chains share a lot in widespread altitudinally, environmentally, culturally, and traditionally. The Karakoram is just superb, and the months I spent there in 2000s charge among the many finest experiences of my climbing life. The following excerpt is from the Snow Lake Trek (aka Biafo Hispar Trek), a rare traverse of the abutting Hispar (49 km) and Biafo  (67 km) glaciers, which collectively signify the world’s longest glacial system outdoors of the polar areas:

“While Snow Lake is no longer the unknown quantity it was in the time of Conway and Shipton, it remains one of the world’s least visited natural wonders. Less than 200 trekkers a year make the strenuous journey along Biafo and Hispar Glaciers, yet in the Karakoram and Himalaya, the Snow Lake Trek remains second to none when it comes to pure wilderness. No signs. No manicured trails. No tea houses. Just a raw and captivating mountain landscape in which the challenges are more than compensated for by unparalleled rewards.” 

p.142-143 »Photo Feng Wei, Wanderlust Himalaya, gestalten 2022 // PHOTO: Melt pond on Hispar glacier, Snow Lake trek, Karakoram Range, Pakistan.

Final ideas on “Wanderlust Himalaya”

Like many different hikers, I typically discover myself musing about locations I’d love to go to sooner or later. Far-flung and typically closer-to-home locations that should be skilled on foot. Wanderlust Himalaya is mainly an thought generator for a type of dream locations. As with its predecessors, it’s not an in depth planning information you’ll take with you out on the path (Hint: It weighs about 2 kg); it’s geared toward inspiring relatively than enabling. Yet hopefully, inside its pages, there’s something to pique the curiosity of just about everybody, from weather-beaten vets to wide-eyed newbies.

And with that, I’ll go away you with some extra photos from the ebook:

p.84 backside »Photo David Ducoin, Wanderlust Himalaya, gestalten 2022 // PHOTO – Mongor Dzong (fortress-monastery) in jap Bhutan (near the Merak-Sakteng Trek)

p.268-269 »Photo Jamie McGuinness, Wanderlust Himalaya, gestalten 2022 // PHOTO: Larkya La (5,106m), the best level on Nepal’s Manaslu Circuit.

Bhutan’s Taktsang Monastery Trail (aka Tiger’s Nest Trail).

p.177 prime »Photo Pakawat Thongcharoen, Wanderlust Himalaya, gestalten 2022 // PHOTO – Fairy Meadows with the mighty Nanga Parbat (8,126 m) looming giant within the background (Fairy Meadows and Nanga Parbat Base Camp Trek).

Images from the Phugtal Monastery Trek in Ladakh, India.

Dramatically situated in a pure amphitheatre excessive above the Kyi Chu Valley is Ganden Monastery (est. 1409 / altitude 4,300 m) (Ganden to Samye Trek, Tibet).

The otherworldly serac freeway alongside East Rongphu Glacier (Advanced Everest Base Camp Trek (Tibet)).

The Wanderlust Series (2017-2022)

With the discharge of Wanderlust Himalaya, the sequence now numbers six in whole. In order of their launch, the primary 5 books have been as follows: 1. Wanderlust: Hiking on Legendary Trails; 2. The Hidden tracks: Wanderlust off the Beaten Path; 3. Wanderlust USA; 4. Wanderlust Europe, and; 5. Wanderlust Alps. The latter two publications (Europe and the Alps) have been put collectively by Alex Roddie in collaboration with Gestalten. Alex is an completed hiker and author from the UK who’s an editor at Sidetracked journal (Note: The subsequent installment within the sequence – Wanderlust Nordics – is sort of completed and will probably be launched subsequent spring. I ought to have the introductory put up for that one prepared someday in 2034).

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