Adrenaline Caving Nepal
The sport of caving is relatively a newly discovered
activity in Nepal. In caving, we head into the jungle near to Kathmandu and
enter some relatively un explored caves. By candle and torch light we traverse
the pitch darkness of the caves, along narrow trails and tunnels, massive
caverns and along underground creeks. Sometimes we will come across the
inhabitants of the caves, small bats, mice and spiders, who all abide in this
dark abyss.
The caves we use for caving are located at Chovar which is a
pleasant 30 min cycling trip from Thamel which takes us past the ancient city
of Kirtipur where we can explore the exotic Newar Culture before we head down
for a look at the raging Chovar Gorge, where the river exits the Kathmandu
valley. This is also a very religious place for Hindu people and many locals
can be seen picnicking and enjoying the sunny afternoon here. Hindu people
believe that this gorge was made by one of their gods by the stroke of his
sword. At one time the Kathmandu valley was a lake with the only island being
the hill which Swyambunath Stupa sits upon. The god desired a closer look at
this island which at the time resembled a lotus flower and thus cleaved a gap
in the surround hills with his sword to drain away the water.
From Chovar we enjoy a picnic lunch before we head down to
the caves where we will spend a few hours exploring this magical underground
place before re emerging into the daylight and returning by cycle back to
Kathmandu. Caving makes a suburb day trip for those who have some spare time in
the city.
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