Zimmy plans the route
Tour dates: 6 Feb to 13 Feb 2006.
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View Diary or Photo Set 1/2 | Set 2/2
Zimmy plans the route
The baggage is loaded
The journey starts with a quick call at Suleiman's house
We toil up the first mountain.
Followed (unwillingly) by the baggage camels.
As we get higher we can look back at base camp
Around us are the first bustans (walled gardens)
Some of the trees have white reflective bark
The scenery is spectacular
Here and there trees thrive amongst rocky soil
We halt for lunch
Then continue through strange scenery to our destination
We approach an area of many bustans
Our camp is to be on the fringe of them
We have the use of a stone built hut...
...which clings to a hillside
Our camels are tethered nearby
They get their evening meal
Suleiman cooks our dinner under a cloud of smoke...
...but actually he uses a big gas cylinder to cook
We sit around the fire,
keeping below smoke level
This starts with breakfast.
Cooked by Suleiman
Three of us set off
Guided by Suleiman
As we gain height we look back over our route
Then turn to finish this climb
The weather is cold and windy
There is a lot of cloud cover blocking the sunlight
The locals have marked the route well
The day continues cold and bleak
When we find ice, it is not melting
Along the way are many uninhabited caves
Inside them you can see how the owners
had worked to keep the wind at bay
Later, after a steep scrambling ascent and descent (no photos)
we had lunch in a semi-sheltered spot
Then we continued our walk
The scenery was still spectacular
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