TRAVEL FEATURE - N e p a l
CHRISTOPHE NOEL
WILD HONEY
Under the thrum of distant
drums , two men in traditional Chettri attire escorted me to a stone house and through a low doorway . My eyes strained to adjust to the darkness , the figure of a slender man with a bright smile , barely visible in the shadows . He motioned to an empty chair and before I could sit , he reached down to his side and with an abrupt thud dropped a massive jar of wild honey on the table between us . It was a presentation choreographed for dramatic effect and it worked . The jar glowed as if lit from within . I had to have it .
For the next ten minutes we exchanged offers and counters , both enjoying the back-and-forth as much as the eventual rewards . Wild honey is a coveted commodity in Nepal , particularly now . Once common , generations ago , few men still forage the hills for it . And yet there I was in a far-away village haggling over three
kilograms of Himalayan liquid gold . I wasn ’ t too bothered by the high asking price and despite my charade of a negotiation , would have paid anything for the experience . Without a second thought I slapped my stack of rupees on the table , grabbed the sticky jar with both hands , and returned to camp to share the spoils with my friends .
When I started adventure riding twenty years ago , my travels seldom deserved the adventure designation . Most of my routes through Ecuador , Peru , Chile , Baja , and my home turf in the American West were well-trodden , and for good reason . Bucket-list rides are worth doing , and I ’ m glad I did them , but the more I travelled the more I sought something unique . I wanted unscripted adventure far beyond downloaded GPS tracks . I wanted to be a Himalayan honey trader , if just for a day .
I found my untravelled paths in
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