The Stunning Adventures "Not all those who wander are lost." Tolkien

While traveling, we have been incredibly lucky to meet a full complement of wonderful people; and it was no surprise to us to have fallen into a great bunch of people while getting used to the altitude in Lhasa. We are not exactly sure whose crazy idea it was to go to Nam-Tso Lake at 3:00 a.m. one morning, but that is the situation we found ourselves in on the morning of the 4th of November. Our little group of ten had arranged a minibus to take us to one of the highest lakes in the world in the wee hours of the morning. We met our friend Pete on the road at 2:55 and proceeded to the bus, already feeling the chill in the air. Lhasa was actually quite warm during the day, if you stand in the sun; but gets bone-chilling cold at night. Now, imagine going 3650 feet higher and doing so in the middle of the night; yeah freezing-ass cold!

The bus ride was to take 3-4 hours and we had all woken up just enough to make it nearly impossible to fall back to sleep (awesome!) (Just kidding, it sucked!). We started the trip out all excited and talkative, but reverted into a sleepy lull where most of us were only capable of halfway listening to Adam and Eddie talk incesantly (really, they never stopped; even when the other was talking). Their banter aided in the passing of time, as it was too dark to see anything outside. The plan was to get to the lake before sunrise. We achieved this easily, leaving us time to freeze nearly to death as 6 of us ascended a small hill to get the best view of sunrise that we could. Our toes have never been this cold. We pretty much either lost feeling or just felt shooting pain in our poor little piggies.

As the sun approached the horizon, the sky lit up into a dull grey that in turn illuminated our surroundings. At 15,620 feet, Nam-Tso lake is too cold to be inhabited on a year round basis. The shores are virtually untouched by habitation and provide a truly stunning scene. The view of the lake is only part of the treat. The lake is also partially surrounded by a range of mountains that top out over 23,000 feet. It is a spectacle that is truly awe-inspiring. As the sun continued to rise, it grew lighter and the views only became more spectacular. Once the sun peaked its head over the mountains our poor little toes finally got a little break, just before we were sure we had lost them to frostbite (a slight exaggeration, but they were terribly, painfully cold). The sun provided a reprieve from the cold but now we had to avoid the shadows like kids on Elm Street avoid falling asleep. Our little group took hundreds of pictures and even set up our tripod to get some silly photos. The cold was harsh and the uphill walk (very thin air) a bit difficult, but we were so happy to have braved both. In the end, the 3:00 a.m. departure, which seemed so crazy before, was truly the best way to see the lake. As we finished our time at the lake, the tour groups that would later spill out of thier tour buses to trapse about the pristine lake area had only just begun their journey from Lhasa.