Paragliding

Thirty minutes of paragliding costs $100.  I did it last year but the weather was cloudy and the Himalayas were not visible, yet it was still worth $100.  This year?  Priceless.

A jeep took us up to a mountain ridge where we walked up a trail to the launch.

  A paraglider is taking off from the mountain just as we arrive.  I did a tandem paraglide.  Unlike skydiving, paragliding is much more relaxing.  Rather than hang attached to the person you jump with, in paragliding you actually sit in a seat and allow your feet to dangle.

The view from the air was incredible; Himalayas in the distance and rice farms up the mountainside right below us.

This was the first good day for paragliding in weeks so there were many out.  The updrafts were strong.  We could have remained aloft indefinitely. 

Farmers in this picture are harvesting the rice.  The large black spot is a shadow from our parachute.

My feet are at the bottom of this picture just before we land.  My tandem guy nailed the landing better than a Chinese gymnast.

This is a short video I took of the trip.

Himalayas by moonlight

The Eco-village is a difficult place to get to with amazing views of the Annapurna range of the Himalayas.  We arrived there after dark on a clear night.  The moon was nearly full.  I borrowed a tripod and set my camera to 30 second exposures.  The result is a set of pictures that almost looks like daylight.

 It was nearly pitch black at the time I took this with the Himalayas shimmering in the distance.

How the trees here appear green is quite amazing to me... they were black to my eyes.  

I love how the Himalayas seem to float with stars above the plants and flowers in the foreground.  This may be my favorite picture I've ever taken.