NEPAL. My trek in Nepal in 1983 was one of the great experiences of my life. My companions on the trek were sherpas, porters and a friend, Buzz McCoy. We walked for two months, covered, and at altitudes ranging from 2000 to 17,500 feet.. We traversed a wide variety of long established trails. The most difficult we called monkey trails because they were so steep we had to scramble on hands and knees. By contrast we spent time on the great trade route stretching from Tibet through Nepal to India. We saw large caravans of horses, mules, and yaks carrying trade goods. There was no mechanized transport. At times we were bothered by leeches that attached themselves to our legs and if not quickly removed would feed on us.. At higher altitudes we came across summer pastures with herdsmen minding their cattle. On many days walking was a joy. We experienced unusual weather for Nepalwith heavy rainfall, hail, snow and storms. We came across a village where strong wind and hail had flattened and ruined the villager’s crops shortly before harvest. Nearby we came across a landslide that had destroyed crops and terraces that had taken thousands of hours to build. On two occasions we had to turn back because heavy snow blocked our trail.. We saw a large waterfall coming over a high cliff. The wind was so strong that it picked up the falling water and threw it back over the top of the cliff. No water reached at the bottom of the fall. One night a heavy downdraft of wind knocked down one of our tents with porters’ sleeping inside. Fortunately no one was injured. Much of the time we had views of the great snow covered Himalayas. At night the summits would glisten in the moonlight. One morning I woke before dawn, and watched the light change on the high peaks. The sun was behind the mountains shooting great shafts of light up over a summit. Below me a line of clouds drifted slowly along the valley. My response to the mountains was one of great awe, wonder and a sense of reverence. I came home with a wonderful array of memories: We visited a temple built over a rock from which came water, and natural gas, which had been lit as an eternal flame. I attended the funeral of an old woman and participated in some of the ceremonies. We admired the villager’s skills. Hoe they threshed grain at harvest time, weaved, and spun. We watched carpenters using a two man saw make planks from a log. The older children in the villages caried for their younger siblings while their parents worked in their fields Once our campsite was set up in the evening we engaged invarious activities. When we were cold we made a large wood fire for warmth. I would play the mouth organ (harmonica). Sometimes we would all sing, dance, or play games such as arm wrestling, or teaching each other how to tie knots. By the end of the trek we had become like a close family and developed affection, trust and loyalty to one another. The depth of my feelings surprised me when we finally parted.
FLYING SPRAY. In the early 1960s I read about small catamarans that were beginning to be built, mainly in England. They were reputed to be fast and fun to sail. I bought one and after her first outings found that she lived up to her reputation. I was curious to find out how she would perform on a cruise and planned a voyage from Greenwich Connecticut to Boothbay, Maine. The crew consisted of my son and a relative, both teen-agers, and myself. We decided not to take a motor. Our days at sea quickly settled into a routine. We had one-hour watches when we steered and kept a lookout. On three occasions we were becalmed for several hours. Entering the Cape Cod Canal we had heavy following seas. We surfed down the front of these faster than I thought possible for even a cat to sail. It was wild and wonderful and we shouted with sheer excitement and joy. Our cruise covered 350 miles. Omitting time becalmed, our average speed ranged from 3.42 to 6.4 knots.
ENDEAVOUR. At the age of 78, I signed on as a volunteer crewmember on a square rigged sailing ship Endeavour, a replica of the ship Captain Cook used on his voyages of exploration. Our 1000-mile passage was from Bermuda to Tortolla. Although I had previous experience on ships, I had much to learn about working on a square-rigger. My major concern was whether I would be able to go aloft, go out on the yards, and from there take in or set the sail. Before leaving port we new volunteers were shown how to do these things. I was scared and on return to the deck my hands were white with holding on so tightly. Going aloft at sea with the ship rolling, was more difficult, but soon I lost my fear. The permanent experienced crew was friendly and always ready to help. The deck crew was divided into watches. We had a variety of jobs: keeping a lookout, steering, keeping the accommodation clean, and doing maintenance work on deck. We averaged about 16 hours of work per day. During our spare time we mainly slept and ate. We had some days of perfect sailing weather with strong favorable winds. Endeavour was a fine and seaworthy ship, but she bounced around and made it difficult to keep our feet .To help us lifelines were stretched along the deck. Keeping our balance was difficult and tiring.
I feel grateful and privileged have had such wonderful experiences
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