Sitting in the tea shop part way up the mountain we should have had our first good look at Taktsang Lhakhang, it's up there somewhere.   Over a cup of tea with biscuits we discussed the climb.  Barbara decided to go no further.  

Three minutes later the clouds parted and there it was, our goal for today.  

I was going for sure and Raine was desperate to go too.  Although she has been a hiker for many years in the rarified air of Calgary she has asthma and this would be a challenge for her 

The sign on this little chorten  built over the entrance to a cave told us that the  "Late H. H. Je Khenpo Geshey Guenden Rinchen was born in Fire Tiger year 1926 in this cave.  To father Kunzang Dorji and mother Dorji.

Someone has thoughtfully provided a ladder so the faithful could post offerings through the window.

Slowly but surely we climbed.  Forty five minutes after leaving the tea shop we reached this lookout point above the monastery.   

It is spectacular and truly lived up to all the hype,  although it is hard to accept what lay before us was so recently re-built.

Some of the later starters had caught us up, some took their photos and headed back down.  Another one crossed off the bucket list.  

But we were determined to continue, we had come that far, we knew we could do it.