And so it begins...in just a few days our trekkers for Zanskar spring start arriving, and after that it is non stop all the way to September, when I get a quick break to get back to the UK.
So firstly some links to guide you.
Reading
We carry a well stocked library on our trek...but here are some must reads.
A short walk in the Hindu Kush
Eric Newby
Ladakh, Crossroads of High Asia
Janet Rizvi
Kim
Rudyard Kipling
When Men and Mountains meet
India Discovered
Into India
The Great Arc
John Keay
Trespassers on the Roof of the World
The Great Game
Peter Hopkirk
Tournament of Shadows
Karl Meyer
MOVIES...
The Cup 1999
The man who would be King 1976
Silent Holy Stones 2006
Caravan/Himalaya 1998
Arriving
Please be sure to let us have your flight details as soon you have them...for our spring trek, Joel will be travelling out to the airport to meet trekkers with our drivers, and we will be supplying you with his mobile phone number if he misses you. This may sound a little odd but Delhi airport after 11PM most nights is a zoo, with literally hundreds of drivers from the hotels, with signs and as Joel is only 5ft 6in...you could miss him; keep an eye out for probably the only westerner in the arrivals hall with the 'Project-Himalaya' sign.
Immigration
Have your passport and a pen ready as you have to fill in an arrival form, then get in the line...some airlines hand out the forms before landing; their is a bottom, tear off strip that you need to fill in for customs with your amount of bags; you present that at customs as you go through after you have claimed your luggage.
Missing Luggage
We hope not! If it does not arrive, there will be airport staff on hand with the requisite forms. These days they can track it quickly, and they will give you a tracking number...do not leave the terminal without your paperwork!
Other forms of travel
If you are arriving early or coming via another city (for example via Bombay or Calcutta in which case you will arrive at the domestic terminal) do tell us in advance.
Gizmos!Just A guy thing? Not really...ipods, solar panels, cameras, feminine urinary devices, battery chargers, coffee presses, thermal cups, pillows. Gosh. This section has them all, with some good, scathing, and semi serious, plus serious pre trek advice.
Cameras.
Endless discussions on the right model, but one thing most trekkers these days agree upon is that digital is the way to go; 35mm, APS, instamatic, (seriously) all have their adherents, but the ease of use plus the ability to review and delete, and of course edit pictures, is the big advantage.
The sheer portability of the new digital compacts is, of course, the other big factor.
So you have 3 options in the digital world; compacts, pro-am compacts, and the SLR camera.
Just to get an idea, here is a link to an example of each.
Compact; The Olympus Stylus 800
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/olympusstylus800/Pro-am compact; The Canon Powershot G7
(basically this is a high end compact that comes very close in quality to the SLR cameras)
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canong7/SLR; The Olympus E500
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/olympuse500/These reviews really do tell you all you need to know, going far into technical realms. I (Joel) trek in incredibly varied areas, and also bike and travel a lot in my spare time, from minus 40c on the Chadar to the sandy beaches of Dorset to the muggy foothills of the Indian Himalaya...
Some of the cameras I use, and why!
Olympus C8080 wide zoom
A collectors item, but one worth looking for. Fast start up time, a digital viewfinder (saves incredibly on powers) and a magnesium and rubberised body; 8 mp, plus takes both XD and CF cards, plus takes an excellent battery pack, plus a 22-100 wide angle. And something fast vanishing from the Digital market, a folding viewing screen - waist level shooting- and that Olympus lens.
Look at
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/olympusc8080wz/Olympus E500 SLR
Nearing retirement, my first digital SLR was really well used, but I needed to revert to the sturdier E1 (see below) the plastic body rapidly was worn out by sheer use, and the buttons likewise. Nevertheless, with the added viewfinder magnifier, an excellent camera, easy to use, and of course, light, with a really bright and clear picture viewibf screen.
look at
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/olympuse500/Next, charging is not possible once the trek has begun; villages in the Indian Himalayas have no mains supply, and the solar systems they do have are not set up for western gadgets.
If you need to charge your camera, you should look at different solar panels on the market, but make sure that they have an adaptor to fit your camera or battery charger.
Here are some options.
The Solio solar charger
http://www.solio.com/v2/Comes in at $99, and is a small tear dropped shape pod that opens into a solar panel array; unlike most solar panels, it has an internal battery. so that you do not need to wire your camera, ipod, etc, on the trail, but keep it charging on your rucksack all day long, then charge up in the evening. It comes with a range of adaptors and leads to suit whatever your are using, including the car type adaptor.
And it comes in pink!
Brunton solar panels
http://www.brunton.com/product.php?id=256Come in a range of sizes with prices from the reasonable to the downright silly - these are worth investing in if you are really going to be spending a lot of time in the outdoors; very sturdily made, but they are really only usable on arriving at your campsite.
Silva Solar Panels
http://www.silvacompass.com/solar2batterycharger.htmlYes, from the people that brought those compasses...
They do a few models, all designed to charge AA or AAA batteries; they are good but the plastic cases are easily breakable.
GEAR!
There is a full list of gear on our website at;
And a few more links...
