Feet Like a Deer

Well, I’ve made it back safe from my week of trekking in the Himalayas. This week has made it to the top of my list for all time amazing life experiences! A lot of you have heard me say that I’ve always wanted to be Indian Jones….well I finally got the chance! Questionable jeep rides through rough terrain, climbing landslides, wading through streams and waterfalls, snakes….. Danger and adventure at every moment…I love it!

Day 1
I started my journey at 6:30am on Friday, September 7th by driving from Kathmandu to Pokhara. This was my first glimpse of Nepal outside of the hustle and bustle of a big city. There are huge green hills everywhere and big trucks taking corners at an alarming speed. We got to Pokhara and found that no gas was available, so KP, his wife and I took a taxi with 2 other people up to Beni. This was interesting….6 people in a little Toyota turning around sharp corners, driving through waterfalls and dodging cows….the girl in the back seat actually vomited out the window while we were driving. I thought what did I get myself into?? But the sights were unbelievable. I couldn’t figure out if I should look at the views or the people, both were fascinating! We stayed in an inn in Beni for the evening.

Day 2
The day started out with another Indian Jones style Jeep ride up into the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains. I’m pretty sure there were several times we could have tipped over and fell far down into the raging river below. Maybe I was just paranoid and am totally exaggerating, or this really was the ride of a lifetime! I prayed the entire time as I tried to enjoy the endless amount of cascading waterfalls coming down the mountain sides.

I started to realize how poor the people of Nepal are. This remote hillside village living is totally different than the city of Kathmandu! I remembered a quote from Missionary Robert Moffat that seemed a sadly true reality… “I have seen, at different times, the smoke of a thousand villages—villages whose people are without Christ, without God, and without hope in the world.” The mass amount of unfinished work to carry out the great commission seemed daunting to me as I walked through these hills. It was a heavy load to carry.

We stopped to get some lunch (rice and dal-the staple Nepali diet) along the road way. KP is an amazing evangelist, sharing the love of Christ with most everyone he comes into contact with. I found myself mostly just praying for him because I didn’t know the language and the people. The woman who made us lunch had a two sons that were hanging around and so we started conversation. KP shared the love of Christ with the older boy and by the end of our lunch time he had decided to accept Christ! Praise the Lord! It was such a joy and honor to pray with this young man! His name is Prakash which means “light.” Pray that Prakash can be a ray of light in a dark place and that he can grow in the Lord and be an effective witness for him!

Prakash is the one on my left. His mom took the photo and she had never taken a picture before, so that is why we are all crooked!

We crossed many foot bridges like the one in the picture below and stopped to play with the local kids. I’ve discovered that bubbles are the universal language for kids! I made friends with a family from India that was making their pilgrimage to the temple at Muktinath (where Hindus believe salvation is possible, this is too complex to explain now, but do ask me about it when I get home). After trekking for 10 hours we stayed the night in Dana.

These foot bridges crossed over the massive river below.

Playing bubbles with some of the kids....notice my fantastic fanny pack!

I thought this baby was adorable!

Day 3

By this time I’ve learned so much about Hinduism and Buddhism. Interesting and strange religions these are. I could write pages on the things I’ve heard and learned. I got to walk for a bit with a couple Sadhus. Sadhus are basically wondering pilgrims that go from temple to temple, asking for food and have given up everything for their spiritual search. They had a Hindu religion student with them that we got to discuss theology with, that was exciting!

I look a little out of place...but I made friends with these Sadhus!

This was probably my most difficult day physically. Because of the numerous amounts of landslides, the pathway was not always that easy. We had to take an alternate route across the river and up huge hills. I also had to pretty much scale the side of a hill and I was scared out of my mind that my feet would slip and I would fall down the hillside. I kept remembering that somewhere there was a verse about God making your feet like a deer, so that was what I was praying. Then later I read it and never thought that this verse could actually literally pertain to me! Habakkuk 3:19 “The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills.” I thought climbing Pike's Peak this summer was difficult...that was just preparation for what God had in store for me in Nepal!

We stayed the night in Leto and the next morning I woke to this sight.....

God's majestic craftsmanship....I saw beauty that a camera couldn't capture.

Day 4

From Leto we took another Jeep to Jomson. About 10 minutes into the ride, something on the bottom of the jeep completely fell off. I wasn’t surprised…they cram the jeeps with about 20 people and all their stuff. So we had to wait over an hour as they repaired the jeep right their on the road. Good thing the scenery was breathtaking. I got to watch the sun rise up over the mountains! But this is where I had my snake encounter….it was a close one! Jomsom was a completely different feel than the rest of the towns. Higher in the hills, I have entered the land of the Tibetan Buddhists. The houses look different and the climate is much windier and cooler. We walked 2 and half more hours to reach our final destination of Kagbeni. I had never been so happy to reach a destination before.

Our jeep being repaired. Yeah they get 20 people in that thing!

Jomsom...the beautiful Himalayans in the background.

I have written a lot and I am exhausted from my journey…so I think I’ll stop there. I have a day of rest tomorrow, so I’ll write more about my time in Kagbeni. Nepal is growing on me…this is a very unique place. A lot to unpack and processes, so much God is teaching me! Pray for a good time of rest as I regain my physical and spiritual energy tomorrow!

Erica