Most people consider the climb over the Thorung La Pass (at 17,769 feet) to be the most difficult day of the Annapurna Circuit trek. You start before the sun is up and will not arrive in Muktinath much before sun down. It is a long day with a huge ascent and an even more punishing descent. For me it was a piece of cake compared to yesterday because the trail was not nearly as treacherous. The downside of doing this trek in December is that it is very cold and the winds can be very strong. My hydration reservoir water line froze in my first five minutes on the trail. A rookie mistake, I failed to blow air back into the tube after taking my first sip. That mistake cost me dearly as it meant no water until it thawed at about 2PM, 8 hours later. At the top of the pass, I paused briefly for pictures.On the trail the winds seemed to be in the 30 mph range. At the top of the pass I would say they were closer to 50 mph and the windchill was insanely cold. My gloves came off for only a millisecond as I set the timer on my camera and tripped the shutter. I had to spread the legs of my tripod to their most extreme angle to prevent the wind from knocking my camera over. The descent took its toll on my knees but with every step the air got thicker, the winds weaker and the temperature warmer. An entirely new set of views appeared and a real sense of euphoria set in. Perhaps this or the lack of water caused me to take a wrong turn. I descend down the wrong side of the valley and had to add an hour to an already very long day to correct the mistake.