We decided in the end to pack all our equipment for the horse trek in the one bag that had a rain cover, rather than destroy our two small bags and take more for snacks. We hurried to find breakfast and got some sugary pastries filled with a sort of jam, and some more Chinese food for Guy. At the same time, Leia haggled down the price of a beanie for Guy to half what the saleslady was asking. We'd bought some gloves for Leia from the same place the day before.
The horses departed at 0930 sharp, but we walked alongside them until we were out of town. The backpack was unbalanced and kept slipping down Guy's horse's side, clearly inconveniencing him. Eventually Guy got the guides (who also speak little to no English) to tie it more securely. Since we had a very light breakfast we got very hungry riding on the horses, and we couldn't reach any of our food or water tied onto them. We didn't stop for food until late in the afternoon when we made camp. On the first day we rode through some Tibetan villages nestled in a little valley, and saw some yaks and piglets. Yak husbandry seems to be the main industry around here.
All the horses were very docile and well-trained. They simply follow the horse in front of them, or if there is no horse in front of them, they follow the trail, which they know well. Some of those muddy mountain trails seem better suited to goats than horses. Guy's horse was the most responsive and well-behaved, and the only white one. Leia's brown horse was the leader (behind the one guide who could speak a little English and Hebrew, in which he delighted.) The horses seemed pretty scrawny to be carrying so much baggage, food, camping supplies, and people all on their backs up the hill, and some of them were wheezing near the tops. They were the real heroes of the expedition. We rode the horses up, and walked them down the hills.
They put sleeping bags in the tent and coats on top of them as blankets. The sleeping bags were not only gross, but also fit for a Chinese child. I was in so much pain from my bent knees and pressure on my side that I got very little sleep. Luckily, Leia brought her own sleeping bag and slept like a baby butterfly in a cocoon. The second night, she was magnanimous enough to trade with me, and I slept while she squeezed into the baby bag. Unfortunately, that night the rain got through the tent and soaked Leia's sleeping bag and my fleece.
Once at the top of the snowy mountain, we had to dismount and slide down through the mud (or it might have been liquid horse poo - probably a mix) for nearly two hours. It was extremely uncomfortable and somebody fell. We got lots of mud above our ankles and I got some inside my shoes, so we can't imagine how it was for everyone else with their sneakers. The area would have had a nice view of a valley if only it wasn't so cloudy. That day we also never stopped for water: the guides simply don't drink water, nor get cold apparently. We mounted the horses again only when we were back at the villages where it was completely flat. We got back to town quite grumpy and filthy at 1300 just in time to miss the last bus out of this dump to Jiuzhaigao.
I found another guesthouse nearby that wasn't in the epicenter of construction sites, and 50 yuan cheaper, but Leia didn't want to budge from her spot and we ended up taking the twin room in the same stinky guesthouse where our bags were staying. Then we made much-needed use of the bathroom and went out to seek a little lunch. There was still no power or hot water yet so we're still dirty as we write this, and can't do essential laundry yet. We actually ended up changing rooms to an even dingier, smaller room with mold, because the toilet couldn't flush.
For dinner we tried to find some won-ton soup that we'd had on our first day, but couldn't find the same place. We wandered up and down the street and Western-looking people kept saying hello to us. Eventually I asked a group of four American girls if they knew a good place to eat, and we ended up going out to dinner with them at a good restaurant with a rotating table (Lazy Suzy) and sharing dishes. The girls; C, J, K, and M, were very nice company and chose tasty food. Most of them teach "adventure tour" groups of children, and they said two of their husbands were stuck on a bus with those children while they stayed in Songpan. M is just visiting them, and she offered us some peanut milk to taste. Leia and I also tried the famous Sichuan peppers, which are not hot but simply numb the inside of your mouth.
The horses departed at 0930 sharp, but we walked alongside them until we were out of town. The backpack was unbalanced and kept slipping down Guy's horse's side, clearly inconveniencing him. Eventually Guy got the guides (who also speak little to no English) to tie it more securely. Since we had a very light breakfast we got very hungry riding on the horses, and we couldn't reach any of our food or water tied onto them. We didn't stop for food until late in the afternoon when we made camp. On the first day we rode through some Tibetan villages nestled in a little valley, and saw some yaks and piglets. Yak husbandry seems to be the main industry around here.
All the horses were very docile and well-trained. They simply follow the horse in front of them, or if there is no horse in front of them, they follow the trail, which they know well. Some of those muddy mountain trails seem better suited to goats than horses. Guy's horse was the most responsive and well-behaved, and the only white one. Leia's brown horse was the leader (behind the one guide who could speak a little English and Hebrew, in which he delighted.) The horses seemed pretty scrawny to be carrying so much baggage, food, camping supplies, and people all on their backs up the hill, and some of them were wheezing near the tops. They were the real heroes of the expedition. We rode the horses up, and walked them down the hills.
At around 1500 we set up camp in a clearing by a stream: the three Tibetan guides threw a tarp over a frame of wood and built a fire under it: that was their tent. They constructed three normal 2-person tents for the 6 tourists on the trip, and we helped build our tents. These were pretty shoddy tents, with broken zippers, and not quite watertight as we discovered soon. It rained a lot on this trip especially during the nights.
The guides cooked up some vegetable soups: mostly potatoes and cabbage, simple fare but filling. There were also some sort of big bread buns. That first night I tried to learn their names (and my horse's name Kiro) but aside from Knee Shoe (who insisted on calling me "Achi") we gave up on the other two's full names and referred to them as Chazir and Yak. I gained much face by sharing a package of dried yak meat around the camp - sadly, once everyone had a piece there were hardly two left for me.
They put sleeping bags in the tent and coats on top of them as blankets. The sleeping bags were not only gross, but also fit for a Chinese child. I was in so much pain from my bent knees and pressure on my side that I got very little sleep. Luckily, Leia brought her own sleeping bag and slept like a baby butterfly in a cocoon. The second night, she was magnanimous enough to trade with me, and I slept while she squeezed into the baby bag. Unfortunately, that night the rain got through the tent and soaked Leia's sleeping bag and my fleece.
In the morning we swiftly packed up all our stuff from the tent, only to discover we didn't need to because we'd be returning to the same camp, and left one Tibetan to watch over it. Leia and I were pretty cold in our fleeces the first day because they don't cut the wind at the top of the ridges. I asked if we could take the heavy coats, but Knee Shoe insisted they'd be too hot and restricting to walk in, and gave me his coat (he took one from Chazir, who stayed behind in a heavy Tibetan coat.) Leia wore two fleeces, but was still cold by the time we got up to see the Ice Mountain from below.
We rode that day through more pretty Tibetan villages, and the Tibetan women and children said hi to us. We also saw a few more animals, like bunnies, squirrels, pretty birds, and many more yaks, goats, and pigs. It was cloudy with rain showers so we didn't get great views of the mountains, but what we did see was nice. It's all pretty hills and valleys with Tibetan prayer flags near every village.
We returned to the same camp and in the night as mentioned, most tents got soaked through when the rain covers collapsed. That morning we were all just looking forward to the trip being over. I tried to dry my wet fleece by the fire, so it smelled like bonfire for days. The guides didn't tell us which way we'd be going or when we'd be back to town. We ended up taking a longer route back through snowy hills (it SNOWED while we were riding up.) Leia and I were freezing in our fleeces, and none of the other tourists seemed very comfortable either. At least we had the best shoes. Knee Shoe wanted to trade shoes with me after trading coats the previous day. I refused the poor trade.
Once at the top of the snowy mountain, we had to dismount and slide down through the mud (or it might have been liquid horse poo - probably a mix) for nearly two hours. It was extremely uncomfortable and somebody fell. We got lots of mud above our ankles and I got some inside my shoes, so we can't imagine how it was for everyone else with their sneakers. The area would have had a nice view of a valley if only it wasn't so cloudy. That day we also never stopped for water: the guides simply don't drink water, nor get cold apparently. We mounted the horses again only when we were back at the villages where it was completely flat. We got back to town quite grumpy and filthy at 1300 just in time to miss the last bus out of this dump to Jiuzhaigao.
I found another guesthouse nearby that wasn't in the epicenter of construction sites, and 50 yuan cheaper, but Leia didn't want to budge from her spot and we ended up taking the twin room in the same stinky guesthouse where our bags were staying. Then we made much-needed use of the bathroom and went out to seek a little lunch. There was still no power or hot water yet so we're still dirty as we write this, and can't do essential laundry yet. We actually ended up changing rooms to an even dingier, smaller room with mold, because the toilet couldn't flush.
For dinner we tried to find some won-ton soup that we'd had on our first day, but couldn't find the same place. We wandered up and down the street and Western-looking people kept saying hello to us. Eventually I asked a group of four American girls if they knew a good place to eat, and we ended up going out to dinner with them at a good restaurant with a rotating table (Lazy Suzy) and sharing dishes. The girls; C, J, K, and M, were very nice company and chose tasty food. Most of them teach "adventure tour" groups of children, and they said two of their husbands were stuck on a bus with those children while they stayed in Songpan. M is just visiting them, and she offered us some peanut milk to taste. Leia and I also tried the famous Sichuan peppers, which are not hot but simply numb the inside of your mouth.
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