MAhout

25/05/2025

20/04/2025

Happy Easter everyone.....a glorious, sunny day, with the spring flowers, blossom and trees bursting into leaf.

MAhout

17/04/2025

Indian Odyssey.... as we head home from our magical month in the motherland, I leave you with some faces of India. Their welcoming smiles say it all....come to India and be embraced! We've had a fantastic, inspirational time in the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala; the Coromandel and Malabar Coasts; the heart of Madhya Pradesh on the holy Narmada River; in busy Delhi; and the glorious Himalayan foothills of Kumaon, Uttarkhand.

Thank you to all our friends and colleagues, to all those who looked after us and made it happen.....we can't wait to return.

MAhout

16/04/2025

Indian Odyssey.... Day 7 of our Shakti sojourn and the sun sets on our time here and the distant peaks. Time to head back to Delhi, leaving our beloved hills behind. What an incredible week of walking, moon gazing, stargazing, laughing, planning, chatting and feasting we've had. Here are a few 'me' and 'us' shots which reveal just how happy and energetic we've been. Shakti Himalaya has given us a week to remember and the area is somewhere we cherish....we got engaged here, just a few valleys away, 20 years ago. The team at Shakti is beyond compare, including those you DON'T see. To create such extraordinarily brilliant places to lay one's head in remote patches, all over the Himalaya....Kumaon, Sikkim, and Ladakh....is a truly extraordinary feat. Not only is the food different and delicious, but the guides are engaging and supremely knowledgeable, and the comfort level divine. If I could do one thing before leaving this world, it would be a Shakti walk.....it's that wonderful.

I can't wait to show pictures and reveal the names and places of the new lodges......in June!

Thank you Shakti Himalaya
Pujan Rai
Sonam Youdol

MAhout

16/04/2025

Huge congrats and richly deserved

15/04/2025

Indian Odyssey.... Day 6 of our Shakti sojourn and we awake to another day in 'the land of the dawn lit mountains. The sun rose orange behind layers of silhouetted hills and cast its first rays on the eastern slopes of the highest peaks, which glimmered pink in the dawn light. (Nanda Devi and Panchachuli Ranges.) Even I, morning hater that I am, cannot fail to rejoice when confronted with such beauty...from our bed! Today we were put to the test...Pujan set us a challenge he felt sure we could rise to....with a 17km hike in the mountains. A short ascent brought us to one peak with THE most stupendous 360° views. A long, gruelling descent took us through high altitude grazing meadows over landslides, through pine forest and villages, to our welcome lunch spot.....another exceptional Shakti picnic!!! The final push home was a test......600m straight up, on a full tummy! Arriving back at the lodge we felt elated and exhausted and were welcomed with a hot, salt water footbath, hot chai and lemon drizzle cake! That's what Shakti does!....and nobody does it better!

Thank you Shakti Himalaya
Pujan Rai

MAhout

14/04/2025

Indian Odyssey.... Day 5 of our Shakti sojourn dawns clear and bright and at last we see the towering peaks of the Nanda Devi and Panchachuli Ranges in sparkling clarity. What a sight...for mountain lovers it doesn't get much better than this! Setting off from our heavenly mountain abode, we inspected the lodge's admirable veggie garden, and embarked on a glorious 8km hike, winding through the hills, down into the valley, pausing to chat to farmer busy threshing and shouting at the monkeys to keep them off his crops. Babe had a close encounter with a mule AND got his 'Gladiator' moment! Everywhere mountains looked down on us, the sun shone and after the final ascent, we were rewarded with the most scrumptious lunch back at 'home'. A treat of a day with lovely Pujan guiding and cajoling us along. The walks offered here are truly exceptional....with something for everyone, of any distance, duration or gradient. Come here!

Thank you Shakti Himalaya
Pujan Rai

MAhout

13/04/2025

Indian Odyssey.... Day 4 of our Shakti sojourn takes us on a road trip deeper and higher into the Himalayan foothills. The storm clouds are lingering, but they only make it more dramatic. Huge and wonderful views open up as we cross from valley to valley. Hugging the Sarayu River and then the Ramganga River ( where Babe and I skinny dipped in icemelt many years ago 😂), we travel through terraced fields and colourful villages, slowly moving further and further away from it all. Destination, the outrageously lovely new Shakti lodge (name and pics to follow.....watch this space for something truly special to be revealed). The food, the location, the views, the comfort, the walking, the team, would be hard to rival anywhere in the world! After a final downpour, the skies cleared and we gazed in awe at the Nanda Devi and Panchachuli Ranges, under the bright light of a full moon. How lucky are we!? Spending time walking and chatting with old friend and genius guide Pujan....it just keeps getting better and better. Can't wait for tomorrow's walk!

Thank you Shakti Himalaya
Pujan Rai

MAhout

12/04/2025

Indian Odyssey.... Day 3 of our wonderful walk with sensational Shakti Himalaya in Kumaon. We walked through forest, on tracks softly carpeted with pine needles and decorated with rhododendron petals. The wind whistled through the sun dappled pine forest. We spotted herds of wild mountain goats, listened to owls, cuckoos, woodpeckers and doves. We were blessed at a hilltop forest temple prior to a sacrifice being got ready for the pot. We drank rhododendron juice whilst feasting on one Shakti's inimitable picnic lunches. We visited a school and wandered village bazaars. Valleys opened up before us as we traversed their contours up and down and over riverbeds. Huge vistas, hazy clouds and sunshine made for a perfect 21km hike to our next destination...the brand new Shakti Kumaon village house which cannot yet be named or shown but, WOW, watch this space! Details in early June. Can you imagine a better breakfast spot? (Last pic). Even those who don't like mornings had a smile on their face! 😂 Utter heaven!

Thank you Shakti Himalaya
Pujan Rai

MAhout

10/04/2025

Indian Odyssey.... And so we begin our magical Shakti sojourn. What heaven! I would do a Shakti Himalaya walk every year of my life if I could....they're that special. First night's halt is Shakti Kana House. A short walk got us there just before the heavens opened! The ultimate in cosy boltholes, the fact we had only short views simply didn't matter....just being here is treat enough. Wake up to a feast of a breakfast before setting off with our lovely guide, Sonam. Wandering through rhody forests and friendly villages, spending time chatting and drinking chai with a 93 year old and his extended family, listening to the birds, smelling the pine, passing through river-fed forests and soaking up the views is what life's all about with Shakti Himalaya... a world away from it all.

Thank you Shakti Himalaya

MAhout