Under the Himalayan Sky : Establishing Sagarmatha National Park: A New Zealand Family’s Experience

Contents: Introduction. 1. Hello Asia. 2. Setting in a steep learning curve. 3. The joys of spring. 4. Monsoon. 5. Auspicious occasions. 6. Tigers and ticks in the Terai. 7. To Sikkim in a Peugeot. 8. Butterflies, clouds and summer Chang. 9. Demanding days for a housewife. 10. From one extreme to the other. 11. Adventures to end the adventure. 

Sagarmatha National Park is a stunningly beautiful part of Nepal, which includes the world’s highest mountain. It also home to the Sherpa people who originally traded goods across the Himalaya and lived a traditional life of agro-pastoralism. These were some of the reasons the park was listed as a World Heritage Area in 1979. 

Today, 35,000 tourists and mountaineers flock to the park every year. Their expectations of modern comforts are largely met by large lodges, electricity, cafes, helicopters, running water and easy access. 

Few visitors pause to reflect on how this magnificent park, and the lives of its people, were when it was established just over 40 years ago. The changes since then have been profound. 

This book offers a glimpse into that earlier traditional way of life, which has rapidly succumbed to commercial pressures and globalisation. (jacket)