Who's riding ?

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Anne DUSSERT

Currently a high school teacher in a small town in the French Alps, I am fond of travelling, cycling, photography and anything which has to do with mountains. I grew up reading Alexandra David-Neel's narratives of her adventures through Tibet.

My first encounter with the Himalayan high plateau was in 2005. I immediately fell in love with this enchanting and fascinating world which inspired me some long term photographic work. I returned in 2007, and in the winter 2008 for a short cycling trip in the Lhasa area. First 5000m passes, intense emotions ...

The Indian Himalaya then offered me some wonderful ground for adventure in the summer 2008 : 1,300km and 20,000m of climbing, by bike and on foot across the regions of Spiti and Laddakh.

On the strength of this experience, I now set off for the new adventure "Transhimalaya - three wheels to the roof of the world".

Previous adventures and travels :

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Cycling across fields, ...................Mountain biking in Guangxi.
Yunnan (China), 2005 .........................(China), 2003......

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....The Reunion, 2004 ................Madagascar, 2004 .................... Finland, winter 2003

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Canada, 2003 .................... Benin, 2000 ..................... Mali, 1999

summers 1998, 1999, 2000 : humanitarian- oriented projects in Burkina Faso (renovation of a children's hospital in Ouahigouya, then set up of a summer activity centre for kids, supported by the NGO "Jérémy" and several partners). Publication of a photo report on Burkina Faso in the French magazine "Photo Amateur".


1998 - 2002 : based in Cayenne (French Guiana). Several trips to the Amazonian basin (French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Brazil). Trekking in the Andes (on the Venezuela side). Several photo exhibits.

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Sept 1996 to April 1997 : Gap Year, backpacking in the Pacific (L.A. – French Polynesia – Fiji – New Caledonia – New Zealand – Tonga – Samoa – Hawaii)

Summers 1992, 1994, 1995 : Working and travelling in the United States as part of the "Work and Travel" programme (summer jobs in Colorado, New Mexico and Hawaii, followed by some travelling across the US and Northern Mexico).

1993-1994 : Erasmus student at the University of Liverpool, England.

Eté 1991 : First big solo trip away from home, to French Guiana.

Itinerary

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1) Indian Himalaya (Laddakh - Zanskar) 1,200 km by tricycle and 10 days of trek, climbing Mentok (6000m and something).
See pages Ladakh 2009 of this blog.

2) The Pamirs and Wakhan (Tajikistan – Northern Afghanistan - Kirgizstan : road from Dushambe to Osh, with a side trip on the Afgan side of the Wakhan Corrigor, then Irkeshtam pass towards Chinese Turkestan) 1,200 km by tricycle and a 7 day trek.

3) North Karakoram (Chinese Turkestan – North Pakistan : from Kashgar to Gilgit, via Karakul lake and the Hunza Valley) 800 km by bike and 10 days of trek (Hunza Valley, Batura glacier).

4) West Tibet (Kashgar – Lhasa via Mount Kailash). Without a doubt one of the hardest cycle-touring roads, bordering the Taklamakan desert, crossing the Kun Lun mountains and the controversial Aksai Chin desert above 5000m of altitude on several hundreds of kms. I will stop by Mount Kailash, the most sacred mountains for Bouddhists, Hindus and other religions, for a trek along the kora. 3,250km by tricycle and 4 days of walking.

5) Friendship Highway (Lhasa – Kathmandu via the Everest Base Camp). A cycle-touring classic, with some more 5,000m passes and spectacular scenery. 1,350km by tricycle plus a 2 day trek.

6) Trek to the Nepali side of the Everest Base Camp (3 weeks of trek during the winter time).

7) Sikkim (region marking the Eastern edge of the Indian Himalaya, and the end of this adventure) 500km riding the tricycle and 4 days trekking before heading back home.

This itinerary is subject to change depending on the situation in Tibet as well as in Pakistan, which change from day to day.
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Calendar

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The first stage (test ride in real conditions) took place in Ladakh during the summer 2009. See pages Ladakh summer 2009 on this blog as well as the photo albums and a few videos.

The big trip is scheduled to start in July 2010.

Rough schedule :

• Pamirs and Wakhan : mid July - mid to late August 2010.

• North Karakoram : mid to late August- early to mid September 2010

• Kashgar - Lhasa : mid September - late october to mid November 2010

• Lhasa-Kathmandou : early to mid November 2010 - early to mid December
  

• Népal : December to early or mid January 2010

• Sikkim (Inde du Nord) : January 2011

I was able to try the tricycle for the first time in December 2008. The training has been taking place in the Alps since January 2009 with several cycle-touring rides and a few passes (approx 5,000km):

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