We arrived in stands of evergreen trees in a grassy hillock called Shephard’s Kharka (3760m) at 15:40 after climbing 1220m in three and a half hours, I looked across the deepest gorge in the world at Dhaulagiri and Tukuche Peak (6920m). The porters quickly set up my tent, and I crawled in to rest and read. A half hour later, they brought me milk tea and biscuits for my afternoon snack. Now, this is living! The porters had walk for half an hour each way to get water for dinner and breakfast.