When the alarm went off at 6:00 am, it must have sounded like an old folks' home in our room, with Re hacking and coughing like a 12-pack a day smoker, and me groaning while I tried to figure out how to gracefully get myself out of bed. A quick glance out the window showed that it was a little foggy, but the sun was making an effort. We showered and got the bikes loaded and were on the road by 8:00 am. We do not know how long it will take us to get to Pokhara because the road is reputed to be very twisty and generally slow-going. We took the unusual step yesterday of actually pre-booking a room for the night, just in case we get in late. My other issue this morning is that my GPS does not recognize where we currently are, so it refuses to route anything.

We fired up the bikes for the first time in several days and slowly pulled out onto the road. Both of us are a little trepidatious about today's ride since our last one didn't go so well. Once again, my ribs and I were glad to see that the road surface was in good shape.



The sun was doing its best to push its way through the fog, and the fields were lit with an ethereal light. Once we made our way back to Bhairawa, the GPS picked up the scent and informed me that the ride to Pokhara would be an additional 110 miles. The ride between Bhairawa and Bhutwal was uneventful, and the pavement between towns was in excellent shape. The one thing Re and I did notice in this stretch is how unlike riding in India it was here. Vehicles have brake lights, people used turn signals, other drivers and riders actually looked before they pulled out, and oncoming vehicles actually pulled back into line when they saw us, rather than completing their passes and running us off the road. In short, people were safety conscious and polite.



Once we reached Bhutwal, we knew the ride was going to be fun. Facing us was a solid line of mountains, and the Siddhartha Highway led directly toward them. For the next ten to fifteen miles, the road followed a beautiful river gorge through the mountains. As we twisted and turned along the river, Re and I both found ourselves smiling for the first time in a long time. Then the road climbed up through the mountains and snaked back and forth along cliff edges for miles and miles. Generally, the pavement was in excellent shape, except where there had been rock falls that had destroyed the surface. Here we bumped and bounced our way through, and I was glad to find that my ribs seemed to be doing much better. I found a way to brace myself against the impact, and the ride was actually not too uncomfortable. One section found us descending back down along a river and crossing a bridge over some beautiful, green water. There must be limestone or some other rock in the area to make it such a beautiful color. It was also a very bright, sunny day, and when we were lucky enough to be in the sun, we were actually warm.



We continued twisting our way along through the big mountains, stopping occasionally to take in the scenery. We weren't making very good time, only averaging around 20 mph, but we didn't care. We were actually enjoying riding for the first time in quite a while. With about thirty miles to go, the pavement changed and became very bouncy. The combination of this and the fact that my paracetamol was wearing off made it uncomfortable.

Sometime before 3:00 pm, we made our way into Pokhara and easily found the guesthouse we had reserved. My two goals for today were to make it to Pokhara and eat a big-ass steak. Later that evening, I accomplished goal #2. Re and I went to the New Everest Steakhouse and each ordered a big-ass steak. We ate until we could eat no more, and I am a little embarrassed to say, there was still meat on the plate when we left (it wasn't a steak at the Acropolis, (link is definitely NSFW!) but it was still pretty damned good). The bad news for the day is that Re is still coughing, and I'm getting a little stuffy, but all in all, this has been a good day.

135 miles in 7 hours. It is good to be enjoying riding again.