MONSOON in the Nepal Himalaya:In Nepal, early in May huge cumulus clouds collect in the south, soaring many thousands of feet into the air their neatly coiffured tops curled and re-curled ....much higher than the mountains. At night cracking displays of lightning play within each cloud as if each was in competition. Initially these are silent displays but as the monsoon slowly advances northwards tremendous rolls of thunder accompany their arrival.
So also come the rains but above 3000m altitude the monsoon is never a time of continuous rain. It mostly rains at night with occasional short down bursts during the day and lots of mist. Frequently the mountains disappear for days at a time but the visual compensation for this loss is the profusion of flowers which appear everywhere.
It is definitely not a time of constant rain. It is warm in these altitudes, T-shirt and shorts weather in the lower villages with more protection necessary at night and in the high pastures. Quite often it is sunny and at these times the mountains appear in all their grandeur, often girt by huge cloud formations. More commonly, mountain views are intermittent. Scenic delights at this time of the year are generally more myopic, fields and flowers, butterflies and birds. But what a profusion...!