An award-winning UK based travel photographer, captured gripping photographs of central Nepalese tribe members engaged in a dangerous and ancient tradition honey hunting.



For most of us, a pot of golden honey is only a supermarket away.

But for these people of Nepal, gathering the sweet stuff involves a death-defying climb on home-made ladders and a four hour mission to extract the precious nectar.

To make matters worse, the daredevil hunters come under attack from swarms of the world's largest bee while perching 250ft up the side of a cliff.

Twice a year, the honey hunters ascend to the base of cliffs in central Nepal and ascend them to collect honey.

They use the same tools that their ancestors did hand woven rope ladders and tangos, the long sharp bamboo poles that they use to cut the honey filled hives off of the face of the cliff and drop them into baskets waiting below.

After lighting smoke fires at the base of the cliff to smoke out the bees, they climb their ladders and collect their honey.







http://www.boredpanda.com/honey-hunters-nepal-andrew-newey/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2584541/Sticky-situation-The-amazing-honey-hunters-risk-lives-foothills-Himalayas-collect-honey-hives-worlds-largest-honeybees.html

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

Wow
My God!!

First the group collects foliage to make huge fires to smoke out the honeybees from their hives.

Once the bees are driven off and sedated, the dozen or so hunters begin to harvest the outsides of the hives.

The Nepalese tribes say the most difficult job isthe 'cutter' the beige suit-wearing men who climb up a 50-meter rope ladder that’s been secured at the top and bottom of the cliff.

They then uses two bamboo sticks, known as tangos, to gather the honey.

With one he slices at the exposed honeycomb while using he uses the other to catch the falling honeycomb.


Honey hunting is among the oldest known human activities.

There is an 8,000-year-old cave painting in Spain that portrays aman climbing vines to collect honey.


The honey hunters use sharpened bamboo poles toslice through the honeycomb before dropping it to the ground for others to collect

Looks hot....I lost my glasses

The hunyers carry their equipment to the cliff where they will forage for honeycomb

Risky venture... Not gonna stake my life for any honey..

Most of the nests are located on steep inaccessible, south-west facing cliffs to avoid predators and for increased exposure to direct sunlight.

Besides the danger of falling, they also happen to be harvesting the honey of the largest honeybee in the world.

The Himalayan honey bee can grow to be up to 3 cm (1.2 in) in length.

how come they don't get stung by those bees.

Head, hands and feets exposed.

Seems they have antibee repeller or something... Lol

More

Me climb this high for honey? I dey craze carry on o jare

All this risk just for Honey.
Why not start Apiculture at home

Very impressive physical feat but I'd be remiss if I did not say this: after decades, maybe centuries of doing this, why have they not radically improved on what is essentially an agricultural process ? That is the difference between dark and white skinned races.

I want to believe Explorers is not limiting himself to NL alone. 'cause some researchers don't even do half of what he's doing and making serious money.

...aaaaah...gugu gaga!

Omoh this people get mind oh. See suicide mission.

The lenght we can go to put food on our table, imagine the risks, such heights and a face off with multitude of bees. Goes to show that anything can be achieved with willingness and dedication.

On a lighter note, the pics of those honey combs really lit up my appetite, I just de swallow saliva anyhow.

I saw this in the remake of 'The Jungle Book'

Wow!!!!

Karleb:
I want to believe Explorers is not limiting himself to NL alone. 'cause some researchers don't even do half of what he's doing and making serious money.

Honestly you're spot on here bro. Explorers over to you

Wow!!!!

Explorer you are one of the very few people still keeping me on nairaland. We need more of your work on front page. We have too many nonsense on front page nowadays and the earlier the mods realised this the better.

Holy moses..

chai

Explorers I hail thee.

all this stress for honey? wow

Nothing good comes easy

Wow!

Maka honey, okwaya
Darling, don't worry, we can do without it
See daring heights

I'll show these to my babe.
So that whenever I called her "honey"; she'd appreciate me with loads of kisses.
.
.
.
Cos with all these daring escapes, that name "honey" shouldn't be called for free.

Mr Explorer how do you do it. I mean these researches pls pm me

IamaNigerianGuy:
Very impressive physical feat but I'd be remiss if I did not say this: after decades, maybe centuries of doing this, why have they not radically improved on what is essentially an agricultural process ? That is the difference between dark and white skinned races.

I did not know the people of Nepal are a dark skinned race. Where exactly in Africa are they?