After a poor night's sleep due in part to barking dogs - a problem in Bhutan- we got up at 3:45, met for biscuits and coffee at 4:45, and set off in our van at 5 AM. I was wearing long underwear and we had packed our down jackets and other cold weather gear as we are driving up to Chele La, the highest drivable pass in Bhutan at 12,500'.
Tiny offerings placed on stone ledges
We set off from Paro in light rain and drove west and up into the mountains, stopping occasionally to bird - not easy in the rain to hold an umbrella along with all the other stuff one needs to bird. We drove through pine forests admiring the spring wildflowers that are just starting to appear: lavender and purple primulus and scarlet rhododendron. At 12,000' the rain turned to sleet and then to snow. As we reached the pass we pulled over and met our ground crew which will be following us the rest of the trip and providing meals and setting up our tents when appropriate.
Male & female Blood Pheasants in the snow
There was a small tent covered in snow inside of which was a table all set up for us and under a picnic shelter our nice guys were cooking away and heating up water for coffee and hot chocolate. We pulled on our parka and hats and sat down to warm bowls of porridge and honey followed by cheese omelets. Some friendly dogs sat by waiting for scraps. It was pretty amazing and surreal to be picnicking in a blizzard and very nice that none of us was affected by the altitude change
We drove on leaving our crew to clean up. As we descended from the pass the snow tuned into hail. A pair of Blood Pheasants walked by our van - really gorgeous birds! The weather cleared a bit as we made our way into the Haa Valley where we could hear speeches being made and horns playing. Finally we could see a large dzong full of people; today is a national holiday as the new prince who was born recently is to be named, and the citizens are coming to the dzong to be blessed.
We drove into town and parked near the dzong and walked into a large courtyard full of Butanese in colorful national dress. They welcomed us and happily posed for photos. Unfortunately we couldn't stay but it was wonderful to see.
We continued on through farm land full of traditional three story houses, elaborately decorated on the outside. The top floor is for storage, the middle for the family, and the ground floor is shelter for the farm animals.
It was getting late afternoon, but we kept stopping to bird the roadside vegetation as there were so many exciting birds to see! We saw parrot bills and scimitar babblers among many others. Finally at 5:30 we had to take off as it was still a 2-hour drive to the capitol, Thimphu. We wound down steep, narrow roads that don't allow shifting out of second gear for the most part. Finally we came to a four lane highway and could speed up a bit and came into Thimphu which was surprisingly large and full of 4- and 5-story buildings. Our driver said that until recently rice was grown in town, but now they only grow buildings! Even so, Thimphu claims to be the only capitalwithout a stoplight or franchise businesses.
We got to the Riverside Hotel at 7:45 and met for dinner at 8:15. Tomorrow we can sleep in until 5AM!
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