Interview at Chame

I was better today, but still a bit weak. We walked down to the local Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) office where we met Sherjung Gurung, the local conservation assistant. At short notice Sherjung managed to call in Tashi Dhindu Lama, Chairman of the Forest Management sub-committee in Chame. He talked about declining snow levels and the importance of forest conservation. He saw good and bad things with less snow. Less snow and higher temperatures means more crops can be grown and more grass for grazing. But bare rock is not good, it makes the mountain gods unhappy, it makes those local people who respect and understand their environment unhappy.

They’re doing their best to protect the forest but the pressures are great. This interview inspired me and gave me real confidence that all the challenges of this journey so far would be worth the effort. I felt much better as we walked from Chame in the morning sunshine, with pine forest around us and stunning mountains above. We reached lower Pisang in good time.