As I’ve recounted a number of times (especially here and here), the weather and I have a troubled relationship. Occasionally, we are the happiest of companions in everyday life and moments of adventure, but too often we are at odds, and the likelihood of weather-related disappointment seems to rise with the remoteness of my destination. Drop me into a place I’ve dreamed of for years, somewhere that costs thousands of dollars and double-digit hours to reach, and the tease of a few days of sunshine inevitably morphs into unseasonable cold or precipitation or both.
A long-awaited high-altitude trek in Bhutan was no exception. My pre-trip materials listed daytime temperatures in the 50s to 70s, ideal weather for some steep hiking in the Himalaya and sleeping in our tents above 12,000 feet for several nights. As the trip neared, however, my weather app showed numbers that were half the predicted temperatures, and I tossed an extra gaiter, a second pair of gloves, and a third layer of clothing into my duffel.
In our first few days exploring the capital, Thimphu, and warming our legs up on a few day hikes at 8-10,000 feet, we all breathed a sigh of relief as the cloud, shower, and snowflake symbols on our phones each morning proved totally inaccurate. As the days went on, we laughed, carefree and blissfully ignorant, at the crazy disconnect between what we were seeing with our own eyes and what the forecasters were suggesting. Our trek would be fine! The weather app clearly didn’t work in Bhutan. All of the prognostications were wrong!
Until they weren’t. We started a drive into the remote Haa Valley to begin the trekking and camping portion of our trip, and only an hour or so into our ascent to Chele La, a pass at 13,000+ feet, we were on slushy roads and enveloped in mist and rain, then sleet and snow. We slowed to a crawl – thank god, as I was terrified on the one-lane road with two-way traffic, switchbacking up and down the S-curves with no guardrails – and finally reached our small lodge for the night before the trek began.
We learned the next morning that the weather wouldn’t just make our trek miserable; it would cause the entire thing to be cancelled. I was crushed. Seriously heartbroken. I’d come to Bhutan for two main reasons – to hike to the Tiger’s Nest (a very successful foray – stay tuned for that) and to trek and sleep among Himalayan peaks like Chomolhari, Kanchenjunga, and Jichu Drake. Beyond that, my hiking mates and I had specifically come prepared for the possibility or rain and snow, so when we were told the horses and porters and guide were not up for the trek, we were doubly dismayed.
The next day’s eagerly-anticipated trip on foot became, instead, a slow and bone-jarring drive back east, past Paro and on to Thimphu again, where lower elevations might mean better weather. A frigid, wet night of camping along the Wang Chhu river did not initially bear this out, but our luck returned briefly in the morning, when the rain ceased and the sun came out for a solid day of hiking above the Punakha valley, a verdant expanse of pine forests overlooking lime green and yellow rice paddies below. A little extra consolation was a chance to see Punakha Dzong, an impressive fortress at the Y of two rivers, site of the original capital of Bhutan.
My spirits rose. Surely we would wake to another balmy day in the valley, get in one more good, long day of replacement hiking, and finally be able to at least see Chomolhari and the string of mountains visible from Dochu La, the pass on the high road we would retrace as we returned to Paro yet again. We celebrated in our dining tent with beer, wine, and numerous rounds of 505, the Bhutanese card game we had learned from our guide the night before. My unrelenting (some might say unreasonable) optimism filled me with a bubbly buoyancy; our group’s courteous reaction to disappointment and our lack of anger and complaint were being rewarded. I’m prone to karmic explanations in everyday life, and being in Bhutan, coached daily on Buddhist precepts by our guide, had reinforced the idea that we get what we deserve.
A crack of thunder in the early hours of the next morning shattered that notion. Seconds later, a torrent of water lashed my tent, and I leapt to close the ventilation flaps. The rays of hope that had lulled me to sleep were as obscured as the plastic window out the front of my clammy abode. I stared past fat droplets of water to a low-hanging mist and abandoned any thoughts of an adequate hike again that day. We packed up the camp, walked desultorily on a short muddy path to a small temple (another in a string of temples that became poor substitutes for outdoor exertion) , and clambered into the van for the return trip over socked-in Dochu La. In ten days in Bhutan, I never once laid eyes on the high peaks I had come to see, never hiked a full, long day to collapse contentedly into my tent, ready to get up the next day, and push forward again, and again, over the 14,000-foot passes and through the rhododendron forests, high meadows, and rarefied air that I crave for years until I can get back to the Himalaya. It had been 6 1/2 years, and for all I knew, it could be 6 1/2 more before I’d get back to this part of the world.
The weather and I will always knock heads, it seems, but perhaps our guide, Sonam, was right when he said that karma does not mean good or bad luck; rather, karma simply takes us where we are meant to go or be, and in our case, this was perhaps the Punakha Valley, one of the most compelling landscapes in Bhutan and one that we were sorry we were going to miss because of our far-western trekking route. Maybe we needed to be present on the prayer flag-draped suspension bridge where one of our group members scattered the ashes of her late husband.
Or bonding with five new friends in a dripping tent, united in our shared frustration. Perhaps we were meant to visit the Sunday produce market in tiny Haa, a town and valley that only opened to outsiders in 2001, or the home and farm of our guide, where we ate breakfast and played darts with his elderly father in the yard.
Maybe we were just supposed to learn not to cast blame for decisions we might not have made ourselves, or to see that other treasures exist outside of the places we expected to find them. Maybe all I was meant to learn was that if the weather is the biggest of my problems, I am a pretty lucky gal!
More on Bhutan’s many charms in upcoming posts.
restlessjo said:
I have to say, Lex, frustrating though it undoubtedly was, that your last sentence pretty much echoes what I was thinking all the way through. The landscapes you have captured are more than adequate. And you’ve been to this part of the world twice! In my dreams 🙂 🙂
LikeLiked by 3 people
lexklein said:
Oh, I’m sure it sounds whiny, but after so much effort, it can feel a bit frustrating to have the main activity cancelled altogether. I might have also lamented hiking in the rain and snow, but at least I would have done what I went to do. Truth be told, my frustrations are probably more with the trekking company’s decision than the weather!
LikeLiked by 1 person
restlessjo said:
Life’s rich pattern? I was feeling glum because my youngest was here for a week and the weather did NOT behave itself ☔😭
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
I tend to be affected by the weather in general, but believe it or not, I have gotten much better about adjusting expectations and response. This one just devastated me because of the expense and distance, but I’m already focusing on all the good parts!
LikeLike
restlessjo said:
That has a lot to do with us being in the Algarve 😎🌺🌻💕
LikeLiked by 1 person
Anna said:
Remind me to never travel with you! Lol. You poor thing, bad weather seems to really love you. What you did see still looks magical though! X
LikeLiked by 2 people
lexklein said:
Seriously! I am a human weather curse! And you are right that it was still a dream come true in many ways.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sreejith Nair said:
Such a beautiful post and it’s really interesting to read about your love-hate relationship with weather 🙂
I have been dreaming about Bhutan for long and yet to get a chance to explore this magical land.
Waiting to read your upcoming posts …
Thank you so much for sharing and have a great time 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thanks, Sreejith! It really is a magical, mystical place and yet the biggest surprise was how modern and with-it the country is also. Impressive place in general; they seem to be focused on all the right things in life.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sreejith Nair said:
I think, the best thing about Bhutan is, they are following their tradition by Choice rather than by any compulsions, right ?
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Very true. And Bhutan was never colonized, so it has determined its own path. It’s done a great job, from what I have read and what I could see.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Suvi said:
What an interesting trip you’ve had! I’m sorry it didn’t go exactly as you had planned but sounds like you left richer with experiences nevertheless. What I will take with me from this post is what your guide told you “karma does not mean good or bad luck; rather, karma simply takes us where we are meant to go or be”. 🌹The words really touched me as I’m prone to crushing disappointment if I miss something I wanted to do/go to 💓 I will keep these words in my heart for future reference.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Those words on karma really helped me also. I often let uncontrollable things like weather affect my mood and my enjoyment of things in a disproportionate way. Our group was really good overall at accepting a decision we were unhappy with, and we all threw ourselves into enjoying the alternatives. It’s a beautiful, happy land and we were all so lucky to have been there at all.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Green Global Trek said:
Oh my! What a HUGE disappointment. Kudos to you though for ultimately turning it around to find the silver lining to the clouds.
it is SO hard I think when we have expectations that get crushed like that. And like you say, you travelled so far to do something that was so important to you. AND that you have waited for… Some things are just out of our control. But perhaps we first need to go through those feelings of anger and pissed off-ness before we can find the beauty which awaits as we replace those feelings with acceptance.
Such a wonderful collection of photos of a place I have only as of yet dreamed of. So looking forward to seeing more. That last photo is truly fabulous and I love the scenery and well, all the photos….
Peta
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thanks, Peta! It’s funny how my emotions (and the others’, too, I think) fluctuated as the disappointment was unfolding. We were all really good at staying calm and kind at first, and it was only after the trip was almost over that we began to feel the weight of our loss. Bhutan is not the kind of place that one can easily jaunt off to again! But of course we all knew and accepted that we could not control the weather or the decisions of those who are in charge in their own domain, so we had to keep smiling and try to enjoy the other things we were able to do. I would not have seen that sparkly little man if we had done the trek!
LikeLike
Mabel Kwong said:
To have the main even cancelled, having traveled so far for it and waited so long, such a disappointment. After all the preparation, the waiting, the hoping, the timing to be with your hiking group…no big hike I guess the guides cancelled it due to safety reasons because of that wild weather. However good to hear the other part of the trip and later treks went well. It is interesting to read of karmas as how the locals in Bhutan see it – we might not get what we want, but we get what we need.
Agree with Jo what you have captured on this first part of the trip is amazing. Looking forward to reading the next part 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
You said it well, Mabel. And you mentioned the preparation … most of us trained hard for the big trek, and we felt so ready to do it, even in the snow or rain. I think they might have been more worried about the horses than us! 🙂 I know that what I did do and see was still amazing, and I look forward to sharing it here!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lisa Dorenfest said:
“As the days went on, we laughed, carefree and blissfully ignorant, at the crazy disconnect between what we were seeing with our own eyes and what the forecasters were suggesting”
This sentence harkens to those movie scenes where passengers are bursting with joy as they drive along without seeing (as we the watchers do) the cliff which they will drive over in short order.
I am so very sorry that inclement weather was your cliff and had you fall short of your goal. The first thought of my forever optimist was ‘‘well, at least you didn’t ascend and get stuck up there when the bad weather materialized’
But then I read on and realize that you didn’t fully ‘beat the weather’ and getting down was quite a challenge and seriously depressing to boot.
Like you, my next step when my optimistic hopes blow up (after anger and/or depression make an appearance) is to consider ‘what lessons are on offer’.
You have come up with some beautiful ones here (memorializing a late husband, bonding with new friends, awesome photo ops at the market, and just how blessed you are.).
I share your disappointment from afar, celebrate the joys of the friggin awesome images (and experiences) that you did manage to get (that last one makes me cry with envy and awe), and hope that you will return someday to have your hike.
Love from Brazil
LikeLiked by 3 people
lexklein said:
I love your cliff analogy! And yes, that’s just how it felt; we were so sure we would not be caught up in some weather disaster even as we kept seeing the forecasts, and then BOOM, we were toast. I think at first we were all kind of numb, and that probably helped as we tried to stay positive and kind and adaptable. I know I’m not done with hiking in the Himalaya; it’s my proverbial “happy place.” But I know it’ll be a while because it’s so darn far and expensive.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lisa Dorenfest said:
The forever optimist in me thinks that when you finally do this hike you will say to yourself ‘it was meant to be this time’.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
I hope that’s true for a number of reasons!
LikeLiked by 1 person
awtytravels said:
Damn, that’s bad luck Lexi. I’ve insofar always been lucky, in these occasions, that no porters had ever been required for me and that, of all the people, I was the least properly dressed. But I can relate to that! In over 2 weeks in Sri Lanka the only day when it rained was the one when we went blue whale watching. Or, in Peru, it pissed with rain on our way up to Machu Picchu. I think that this makes it all the more compelling to return (or to go to high altitude deserts… Tajikistan beckons!)
Fabrizio
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
A great solution … just go to deserts! I will keep that in mind as I plan future treks. 🙂 Seriously, when I look back at the trekking I’ve done over the years, I’m sure I would find that I’ve been more lucky than not. It’s just that the bad luck ones stand out more, and for some reason, for me, they have all occurred when I am the farthest from home and cannot reasonably make plans to go back. It was still amazing, and as I said to someone else, there were places and people (like that adorable little man) that I would not have seen if we had stayed west, high up in the mountains, for the time we were supposed to.
LikeLiked by 1 person
thirdeyemom said:
Wow, what an experience so far Lexi. I know you did get to see the sites you dreamed of thanks to your IG pics. But the start of your trip sounds so disappointing with the terrible weather. I’ve had that happen as well. I can’t wait to read more. Is there something about the time of year you went or is weather just that unpredictable in Bhutan? Your photos are incredibly by the way. I will desperately await your next post!!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thanks, Nicole. There was much to be happy about in Bhutan despite the bad luck with weather and trekking decisions outside our control. I would strongly advise going to Bhutan in the fall (October). It is a more stable season in the Himalaya in my opinion (I did my Everest Base Camp trail hike in October, and we had no major weather problems, and my other trips to Asia have also been in the fall, with no issues). Bhutan does get a lot of rain in general, but we were prepared for that. Hiking in the rain and snow are no fun, but at least you are doing what you went to do, so I would also recommend you research your guide company to be sure they have a “go” attitude. I can go into this more via email when you are ready to think about a trip!
LikeLiked by 1 person
thirdeyemom said:
Looking forward to talking more via email about your trip. So much I want to ask!
LikeLike
Leslee Jaeger said:
I had this same experience in Bhutan 5 years ago. Beautiful days at the beginning of the trip and for our hike to the Tiger’s Nest, but clouds and mist when we started our trek east along those impossibly winding roads. Despite multiple attempts peering thru binoculars, we never viewed the peaks of the Himalayas in the distance. Our flight from the eastern reaches of the country back to Thimpu was cancelled and we had to travel those same roads over a very long day to return to where we had started. Still loved the trip and if not for the price, would return again soon.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Yep, the price is a killer! I think that and the time investment are what made us so sad about aborting the trek. It’s not exactly an easy place to go back to. Thank goodness one of our top experiences (Tiger’s Nest) was able to be done and seen in good weather, and our replacement region – the Punakha Valley – was so pretty that we felt lucky to have gotten to see it. I’ll have to check out your blog to see what you might have written about your trip!
LikeLike
lexklein said:
I can’t find a Search bar on your blog. Did you write about Bhutan? If so, send me a link! I’d love to read about your trip.
LikeLike
J.D. Riso said:
Oh Lexie. So sorry to hear about the canceled trek. Especially in a place as difficult to get to as Bhutan. But I love your acceptance of the circumstances- “karma simply takes us where we are meant to go or be”. Yes, none of this deserve or not deserve business. Life sometimes takes us away from our plans to show us what we need to learn. Not always easy to accept. Gorgeous photos that make me dream, especially the smiling monk. Hopefully your next trip will be filled with sunshine.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thanks, Julie, for your understanding of my frustration and your wishes for future sunshiny trips! There are always positives even in the midst of trying circumstances, and my goal is to see them and focus on them asap. I’m not always the best at that, but I’m working on it! I felt surprisingly calm and accepting when it was all going on; it was after I left that I really started lamenting what I missed. Writing about it actually got me back on a better path.
LikeLike
Alison and Don said:
Maybe it was your karma so we could all get to see your gorgeous photos of what you did see! OMG the cat! And the man! So beautifully captured.
Yes, the last sentence – it does make you a lucky person, but I certainly get how high hopes and expectations can bring disappointment. For me it was no water in the terraces at Pamukkele – I was sooooo upset about that. And then we move on, and appreciate what we do have, and what we do see and experience.
Looking forward to more posts about Bhutan!
Alison
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
You are so kind! I do love the cat photo and the temple overseer (the little man), but as you might guess, I also took plenty of so-so shots. I guess we all do in search of a few goodies! I remember very clearly your disappointment at Pamukkele, but you’re right about the fact that we do all move on. In my case, I always hope to do it quickly and get back to all the great things I did and saw.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Curt Mekemson said:
I love that last photo, Lexi. And I feel for you. High mountain weather can be a bear. I remember the number of times I’ve been to Denali National Park and the few times I have seen the mountain. I also remember lots of rain-soaked treks in Alaska. California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains are much kinder. May the forest gods grant you better weather on future trips. —Curt
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Isn’t he the sweetest-looking man?! I always feel like I have exceptionally bad weather luck, but now that you mention it, I do often visit mountainous places, and that’s where most of that bad luck has found me! I also LOVE mountains, so not getting to see them is more upsetting to me than not seeing, for example, a city or a beach or something.
LikeLike
Curt Mekemson said:
It helps to have a range of mountains (now snow covered) perched outside my window, Lexi. Even at this time of the year when they are often cloud covered, I know if I wait a day or so they will come peaking out. When you travel several thousand miles to see them and only have a short period of time, it is a different issue! –Curt
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bama said:
When I booked a tour to Bhutan, the local tour company I contacted sent me an email with a long list of information about the country and its unpredictable weather. It even mentioned about the possibility of a flight cancellation if the weather is too dangerous for airplanes to fly in/out of Paro. But what your guide said about how karma brings us to places we’re supposed to go is so true, at least that echoes one of the values I grew up with in my culture. Punakha Valley is so beautiful, isn’t it? And that was where my camera started acting out. So you can imagine my frustration, although in the end I somehow still managed to take some photos of the valley. Look forward to more posts!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Strangely, I was aware and accepting of all the weather and flight warnings for Paro, but I guess I figured in 10 days, I’d surely see all those Himalayan peaks at least once! But all our sunny days were in the valleys, and lucky for us, both flight days were clear. That is a scary airport, especially on the landing, so I guess I did have some pretty good luck!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Liesbet @ Roaming About said:
Oh Lexie! I’m so sorry the weather didn’t cooperate for your big trek. A serious disappointment. I’m trying to find the karma in it and all I can think is that you are meant to go back again, one day, somehow. As I read the post, I was thinking early spring might not be ideal at such a high altitude. We’ve only been at 7,000ft recently and it was icy, windy, and wet!
While you might think you were “whining”, I certainly don’t think so, as this has got to be seen in perspective both ways. Yes, if the weather is you’re only problem, you’re pretty fortunate. Yet, on the other hand, it has got to be observed on a smaller scale as well: you had this short window to do what you set out to do, prepped a lot, looked forward to it, and figured you’d do the trek somehow, even if it meant in bad weather. To have that taken away from you totally, sucks. No way around it.
That being said, I do think you made the best of it and you are a positivist, based on your reaction, acceptance, and realization that good things did come from it. Well done! And, fantastic photos. I look forward to the next installments.
Also, the reason I get how you felt is because Mark and I (on a smaller scale as we never fly anywhere or go on vacation) attract extreme weather as well, wherever we go. I might have mentioned that on my blog. 🙂 We’ve been cold since the end of August when it started freezing at night in Yellowstone NP! Usually, our “luck” is that we have more time and could potentially wait out weather to see something important when the sun is out. Another problem is “expectations”. That’s the killer of all joy, when things don’t work out as planned. Hard to work around it , though. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thanks for your sincere understanding, Liesbet! I know I was so lucky to be able to go to Bhutan at all, so I was a bit reluctant to complain. But I did train for months, and save my money, etc., so losing the biggest part of my itinerary was tough on me. April is supposed to be quite nice in Bhutan, even in the mountains; the local people talked the whole time about the cold and wet spring that was very abnormal. But I know spring here in the U.S. is much less predictable than fall, and that fall was a great time to be in the Himalayas in the past, so I will now schedule any returns for October!
I know you’ve been chasing the sun and warmth with limited success, and I wish you much better weather luck yourself this spring and summer!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Liesbet @ Roaming About said:
Lexie, for years, we keep hearing what a weird spring/winter it is. It “usually isn’t this cold” or “this wet” or “this windy”. 🙂 It’s a running joke between Mark and I now, because – really – I don’t think there is a “normal” anymore these years, due to global warming and climate change. Yep, it is changing everywhere… 😦
LikeLiked by 1 person
James said:
Lex, I’m seriously bummed that you didn’t get to go on that much-anticipated high-altitude trek you’d trained so hard for – and especially after seeing your comments on Bama’s Bhutan posts. I recall the initial uncertainty about whether or not the trip was happening, and then your eventual joy that enough people had booked the same trek to make it a guaranteed departure.
Even last October, Bama and I had a somewhat comparable experience with the weather in Bhutan. We had blissfully blue skies the first few days in Thimphu and then Punakha, until the remnants of a cyclone in the Bay of Bengal drifted over and made for a very rainy, misty, and muddy hike to Tiger’s Nest. We couldn’t even see the monastery until the low clouds parted just enough for us to catch a glimpse of it from the teahouse. Our guides were very disappointed and apologized for the bad weather (as if it had been their fault!). I still don’t know if I actually have a decent shot of Tiger’s Nest given the low visibility and the raindrops streaking across my camera lens on that day; it’s a hike I’d love to do all over again under better conditions.
But otherwise I am glad there was a silver lining to it all – isn’t Punakha a magical place? – and that you did ultimately enjoy the trip even if what you got in the end was different from what you signed up for. Which reminds me, I still have yet to publish any of my long-delayed posts from Bhutan!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
I remember your Tiger’s Nest hike was looking pretty dismal until the end. We did get lucky that day because the forecast and the preceding day had been gray and rainy. The Punakha Valley, the town itself, and the dzong were real highlights of our alternative itinerary. I had been feeling sorry to not see that part of the country, so getting it as our replacement at least made us feel a little better!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Manja Mexi Movie said:
Simply fascinating, all of it. That bridge is incredible. And the last photo! And the cat! But most of all I love your ending wisdom, you lucky and wise gal. 🙂 Deserving or not, we get what we get. Looking forward to next posts!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thanks, Manja! I was happy with that cat photo, too, and the small man in his doorway was like a little gift! What a sweet face! I’m getting marginally better at accepting my fate, and in this case, how could I seriously complain too long or loudly when I got the rest of that gorgeous country to see?!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Jolandi Steven said:
I feel your pain and disappointment, Lex. But I also admire your optimism, and the fact that you embraced the concept of “karma simply takes us where we are meant to go or be” so beautifully. Looking forward to your next Bhutan installment. It is a place I would love to visit, but for now I will feast on it through your eyes.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
The next installment should be more upbeat! The country was such a gem overall, and that certainly helped me get over the disappointment of what I missed.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Jolandi Steven said:
Glad to hear you enjoyed the country. Looking forward to the next post.
LikeLike
Tina Schell said:
Oh my Lex, what a heartbreaker but I loved your positivity at the end (and that fact losing shot!!!). I heard the same message in a service this weekend. That whatever disappointments we meet on our journey, know that we were meant to be there and it is merely a stop along the way, meant to help us along the way. I love that idea and hearing it twice in one weekend surely sends me a message!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
It’s a message I myself need to be whacked over the head with from time to time! There is a mind-opening and an inner peace that I seem to experience whenever I am in the Himalayas, and that certainly helped me deal with what happened at the time. As I mentioned to someone else, I was quite calm as the weather-related debacle unfolded there; it was only later when I was back in my world that I started to feel more angst over the whole thing. Another lesson in there, I suppose!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Shelley @Travel-Stained said:
Ohhh, that must’ve been seriously frustrating, but I love your karmic take on the whole episode. Bhutan is also super high on my list of places to get to… just remind me not to visit at the same time as you. 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
That would be wise indeed! I am clearly a weather curse. I envy your relative proximity and hope you get to go someday; rain or shine, it’s a beautiful land!
LikeLike
estelea said:
Oh I love your spirits 💖 beautiful pictures and I know great memories too -even slightly different from the ones you had in mind initially;) and great conclusion !
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
That’s also a great way to think about it: that the memories are fantastic even though they are not what I thought they would be. There are many places and people I wouldn’t have seen if we’d spent the time we expected to up in the mountains. I’ll have to savor those!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Cheryl Capaldo Traylor said:
Oh how frustrating and disappointing! I know this must’ve been a big trip with a lot of planning and saving up. It seems like you and your companions made the best of it. And you were witness to some tender moments. Traveling teaches us a lot about ourselves, others, and life—or at least it has me! Awesome photos, and I look forward to seeing more and hearing more about your travels.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Yes, all the preparation – saving, training, etc – is what caused much of the disappointment and frustration. As you so aptly point out, though, travel is a great teacher, and I get a lesson or two out of every trip I take. Sometimes they are painful, but really this one was a good one for me – about making the best of what we encounter and (trying to) refrain from casting blame when things don’t go our way. I’ve been an ambivalent blogger lately, but I do hope to get something more on here eventually about the trip!
LikeLiked by 1 person
carolinehelbig said:
Oh Lexie! This brings my thoughts back to your doomed hike in El Chalten. You are indeed cursed. You end the post on such a lovely note (and so true) but I can’t help feeling terribly bummed for you. Wonderfully written and beautiful photos. That man in the last photo seems to radiate joy…a tough but good lesson that we should focus on our many blessings.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
It brought back the Fitz Roy debacle quite strongly! And a few others …
Someone pointed out that mountains are so fickle, and when I thought about many of my weather woes, they have all occurred at high altitudes in the mountains. The real bummer is that those are the places I gravitate to most, so I guess it makes sense that I get disappointed by unstable weather more than I think others do. I guess I just wish all these dream spots of mine were not so far away so I could get more second chances!
Isn’t that man just the picture of joy in life and other people? And I would have never seen him if I’d taken the trek.
LikeLike
Dave Ply said:
And I thought I had reason to be grouchy getting rained out at the Isle of Skye! You’ve got that beat in spades, clubs, or any other suit of importance in the game of 505. Still, when life gives you lemons – sounds like you found some lemonade. And good pictures too, I particularly like that last shot.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thank you for validating my grouchiness! I traded my high-altitude trek and all those peaks I went to see for a beautiful valley and that sweet old man. A decent trade after all. (But I still wish I could get back more easily to do what I trained to do!)
LikeLike
AndysWorldJourneys said:
if only we could control the weather! not just rain but clouds and mist…. can alone be a bummer. especially if you have a very short time in one place and it’s one youve been looking forward to taking photos of. like Macchu Picchu… lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Yep, that might be one of the super-powers I’d wish for! Ugh – sorry about Machu Picchu; we got pretty lucky there after rain and clouds on the trail in for four days. I guess we all get our bad days somewhere!
LikeLike
CompassAndCamera said:
So sorry you missed the hiking and camping you had planned, Lex. It seems like the frustration of weather increases exponentially with the remoteness of the destination, and whether we expect we’ll ever return. I ran into the same situation when we tried to climb Kinabalu a few years ago. It was a torrential downpour and everyone had to turn back because it was too dangerous. There were eight of us and I had arranged the whole trip. I felt so responsible and disappointed even though it was out of my control. Anyway — great that you at least got to see the Punakha Valley instead and make some local connections (love that last photo). And the Himalayas aren’t going anywhere. This just means you’ll have to plan another hiking and camping trip there, which isn’t such a bad thing, right??? Can’t wait to see your post about Tiger’s Nest! Such a magical place. Happy weekend! ~K.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Oh, man, if I’d been the organizer for a friends trip and the main event got rained out, I’d REALLY be a crybaby! (Even though I’d know perfectly well, as you did, that the problem was totally not my fault.) The Punakha valley really was a gem and a nice substitution for us. The way you put that – “the Himalayas aren’t going anywhere” – put things in perspective for me! I CAN go back (although not right away) and see the peaks I missed. I need to get busy on additional posts about Bhutan, and the hike up to the Tiger’s Nest will certainly be the highlight, as it was on the trip. Happy weekend to you guys, too!
LikeLike
Sue Slaght said:
You do indeed seem to have weather challenges Lex. Of course you travel to some of the most remote places i nthe world that perhaps are prone to unsettled weather? It is one frustration of travel we can do nothing about. It seems that you embraced what you could. The guide sounds wise. Loved what he had to say about karma.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Exactly, Sue. It’s not like I’m going to Florida! When I sign up for these remote trips, I have to know that the weather might mess things up. I think a large part of my (and our entire group’s) frustration stemmed from the fact that we DO know about volatile weather in the mountains and we did pack and train accordingly, but our guide – who said some wise things about karma but was otherwise not as capable as we are used to – nixed our trek for reasons that we didn’t totally buy. But things don’t always go our way in life, and we learned a big fat lesson about dealing with disappointment!
(Speaking of bad weather in the mountains, I was shocked to read of the three avalanche deaths near Banff this week. So terrible. The mountains are unpredictable places, and we need to respect them.)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sue Slaght said:
Lexie is understandable. For those of us who have done multiple adventure trips know there are guides that are good and then there are guides that are superstars. It’s one thing if an activity is called off for safety reasons but if it is just about discomfort with weather that is a frustrating issue. Especially as you say when participants have the right gear and are trained for it.
As to the three climbers caught in an avalanche here in Banff yes a complete tragedy. A most epic route they were on and we have had late season snow making avalanche danger very high. As you likely read the route has only been completed one previous time. Their loss is very sad.
LikeLiked by 1 person
twobrownfeet said:
You do seem to have a tricky relationship with weather. 🙂 I remember your post (was it at this time, last year?) about a similar situation. I know how it feels. Although, given the number of years it took for you to come back to this part of the globe, I wonder if I can say anything the right thing. 😦 I’m so glad you made it to Tiger’s Nest. Bhutan has been on our list for a long time! Your visuals take me to a magical place. I don’t like high altitudes and can’t imagine hiking. I hope I can get over that fear someday. Until then, I’m going to drool over your pictures!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Yesssss, you are remembering a trip I took last winter – the one-week rain-fest we endured in Ecuador! That was actually much worse, but because Ecuador is inexpensive and only about a 5-hour flight away, it just didn’t seem as bad as flying for over a day to faraway, pricey Bhutan and then getting shut out of our trek. Luckily, there were other charms, and I remain thrilled to have been there at all!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Snow Melts Somewhere said:
Love the last photo! I’ve learned to not try to see everything or be fixed on experiencing a certain thing when traveling. You’ll still get your travel moments, and they’ll be yours alone ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
I’m with you on the first “rule” – not to try to see everything, and I rarely plan a wide-ranging trip, preferring to have small moments in a limited number of places. The second effort is much harder for me – not to be fixed on experiencing a certain thing – because I really research why, when, how, and where I want to do a certain thing in any given destination, and I try to line up all the moving parts to make that work. Of course, weather is an uncontrollable piece of that, and my luck is probably no worse than anyone else’s, but since my dreams involve mountains, and many of those mountains are verrrrrry far away, it ‘s harder to move past a disappointment when one occurs because I may never get another chance. I’ve gotten much better at finding silver linings, though, and that wasn’t even hard in a country as beautiful and welcoming as Bhutan!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Snow Melts Somewhere said:
I’ve recently had rain whenever I do a short weekend getaway to somewhere there’s not a lot of rain at, so I understand!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Ugh – short getaway weekend rain is no fun either! 😦 Soon spring will give way to summer and, I hope, more stable weather for a little while!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Snow Melts Somewhere said:
Let’s hope! 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Jeff Bell said:
That is of course a huge bummer not to get to do the trek, but as you say you got to see and do some really interesting things. I love the photo of the man in the doorway.
This reminded me of a time we went to a village in Mexico to see these performers that jump off high poles and fly around but due to rain it was canceled. We went to a fiesta with a local family and had a unique experience so in the end it worked out. I’m looking forward to more posts from Bhutan!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
There were definitely compensations for the loss of the trek; we got to see what is probably the most beautiful valley and dzong in the country (Punakha), and we got an authentic visit to a local home that would not have happened up in the hinterlands. The man in the doorway was incredibly endearing; he was OK with a few photos from our group but still smilingly firm that we not photograph the inside of his post at the temple.
LikeLike
anotherday2paradise said:
A wonderful post and I love the photos you took in spite of the bad weather. I love this definition of karma, “karma simply takes us where we are meant to go or be.” That’s really quite profound.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thank you! The thoughts on karma were (are) a good message for me – that’s for sure! I needed it at the time of my intense disappointment there, and I can call on it at other times when I set my expectations too high or otherwise unreasonably, both of which I tend to do!
LikeLike
Bespoke Traveler said:
When it comes to making decisions about the lives and safety of others, it’s never an easy road. I feel for your tour guide and reading this reminded me of so many Himalayan and Everest treks where the decision made led to tragedy. So often we think we know what we really want and get disappointed. It’s wonderful that despite your disappointment you were able to see that perhaps there were other things you were meant to experience on this journey.
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Mountain terrains can be fickle and dangerous, and I’m all for making a smart, informed choice, which this may have been … we will never know! I was lucky to be in a country rich in other treasures so that the door closing on our trek meant we could step into another set of experiences.
LikeLiked by 1 person
krc said:
great shots!
👍💟📷
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Thank you!
LikeLike
FastPam@thelifebus said:
Ah Lexie, this is such a bummer to hear. As your kindred sprit for the love of mountains and hiking, I can totally feel your pain in this post – sounds like you handled it with more grace than I would have – tears would have been flowing. Granted, you have to just let it go when things like this happen, but it’s not always easy to do!! Sounds like you got a great cultural experience which is REALLY COOL. The Bhutanese people are so centered aren’t they? Did you try any betel root? haha. I had no idea that was really a thing. That stuff will ruin your smile in an instant. Cheers my friend, the next trip will be amazing….and I think you need to bump the Himalayas back at the top of the list…don’t wait 6.5 years. Get back on the horse!
LikeLiked by 1 person
lexklein said:
Oh, believe me, I had my crybaby moments, too! I know the Himalayas are not out of my system, so I’m sure I’ll be back there again before I know it. The Bhutanese people were great (but yeah, the betel nut chewing was an epidemic and so unattractive on the poor teeth!). I’m getting better at dealing with travel-related disappointment; maybe the more you face it, the more you realize what’s in and out of your own control!
LikeLiked by 1 person