So before we moved on to Manali, we finally managed to climb Triund out of McLeod Ganj. It took just 4.5hrs to climb around 1150m and then another 3 to descend. It was a great walk to start to trekking part of this trip when reaching the top exposing the Himalayas soaring even higher behind. Some amazing views were to be had and plenty of photos were taking. We had, inadvertantly, accumulated a Korean girl on the way up not sure of where she was going and wandering with large camera and flip flops - the crazy fool! Having siad that, she coped amazingly well and appeared less warn out than Steve at the end of the day.

Now in Manali there appears little to do. Yesterday we walked, the long way, to Vishisht where there are some hot baths fed from thermal springs. Now Ive been in hot springs before and they've all benn fairly warm. After our long walk in the midday sun we were so looking forward to a refreshing dip, and that's not exactly what we got. I could barely put my feet in the water it was so incredibly hot. I could feel the skin being scalded and burnt. There was an American there also and not to be outdone by him, we had to get in completely. We hadn't come all this way to be shown up by him. Getting past the feet was the hardest bit and I can't describe the pain. Then passing the crown jewls was the next hardest but after that it got better and eventually dipped my head under. Getting out, however, proved harder than getting in. I collapsed on the side feeling light headed with pins and needles soaring through my arms and legs. It took a long while just sitting propped up against the temple's wall before I could bear to stand! So on the bonker-ometer, I'd say that that was fairly bonkers. Only need to do that the once!