Day 11

Monday 8 Oct 218

We started the day with the regular routine of bed tea at 5:45am, washing water at 6am and breakfast at 6:30am. Snow fell on wet ground as we descended through forests then with a series of undulations, finally climbed to the isolated village of Laya at an altitude of 3800m. This is the furthest extent of Bhutan’s great network of electric power and it is easy to forget that the closest roadhead is a challenging two day walk. The architecture and bright painted decoration  of this village match the backdrop of great mountains all around. Tiger Mountain to the West from where we had come and Masang Kang to the East. There seemed to be as many houses under construction as there are completed - suggesting a wealthy village.

As with a number of communities in Bhutan, people in Laya have a licence from the government to harvest the precious Cordycep. This is a caterpillar infected by a fungus and the combination is highly prized in Chinese medicine- the value being more than Gold. The people of this village were very friendly, most are dressed in national costume which is called a Kira for the women and Gho for men. The older women also wear pointed wicker hats which are intended to mimic the shape of a stupa or the sitting Buddha. 

The owner of our campsite is a prominent figure in Bhutan as he is the official monitor for the Takin population. This is a cow/goat creature and is Bhutan’s national animal, they are endangered with just 100’s remaining in the wild. We were treated to eat inside the owner’s house while we rested in Laya. As with all Bhutanese houses the walls are adorned with images of past and present kings. When the highly revered 4th king abdicated in 2006 to make way for a democratically elected government, most of Bhutan was outraged and pleaded with him to revoke his decision. It has since been the task of the Oxford educated 5th king to travel the country to educate the population about the importance of this new development for Bhutan. Meanwhile the retired 4th king is taking a well earned rest in which he has completed the Snowman Trek and spends much of his time mountain biking, not bad for someone in his mid sixties.

Distance 10km 5hrs

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