To the Land of the Thunder Dragon!

The year we turned 30 -- 2001 -- we ran a half-marathon on the Great Wall of China. It was an incredible experience, both physically and mentally challenging in ways we'd never experienced. For our 40th birthday year, we decided we needed an equally daunting challenge to meet.

Enter the Land of the Thunder Dragon -- Bhutan.

On 6 April we'll fly to Bhutan for a twelve-day trip, the centerpiece being a eight-day trek in the Himalayas. Most of the trek will be over the 10,000-foot / 3,000-meter mark, with the highest point of our trek coming at the Bang Tue La pass at 15,600 feet (4,700 meters). We've never trekked at these kinds of altitudes before, nor have we tackled mountains as difficult as the Himalaya. So we're excited -- and a little nervous, too.

Of course, we've had to invest in some more professional camping equipment for this trip, including a set of 0F (-18C) rated sleeping bags. Sarawat has taken the testing process quite seriously:


Her verdict? Snuggly!