An Introduction to Nepal

Arrival

Arrive in Kathmandu

Boudhanath and Pashupatinath

We have a half day tour visiting two of the most important temples in the Kathmandu Valley. Boudhanath is one of the largest Buddhist stupas in the world and is surrounded by several Tibetan Buddhist monasteries. Pashupatinath is the most important Hindu temple in the valley and all Hindus should visit it once in their lifetime. Set on the banks of the Bagmati the funeral pyres burn every day. Brightly coloured Sadhus, or holy men, wander round the temples all day.

Fly to Pokhara

The excitement begins with a 45 minute flight from Kathmandu to Pokhara with good views of the Himalayan range on a clear day. As we approach Pokhara the skyline is dominated by Manaslu and the Annapurnas. After a short transfer to Khare, we meet the porters, have lunch, then it’s time to start our trek. The trail leads through terraced fields to the village of Deurali where we spend the night in our first lodge. 3-4 hours walking.

Trek to Ghandruk

Today starts with an easy walk to Landrung from where we descend to the river. The trail then climbs steeply on a well built stone staircase passing neatly terraced hillsides to Ghandruk (1,951m). Ghandruk is a large, prosperous Gurung village and we have time to explore the maze of narrow alleyways separating neat slate-roofed houses and watch the ever changing sunlight on Annapurna South and Machhapuchhare.

Trek to Tadapani

From Ghandruk our trail enters the forest and we climb up to Tadapani, a small clearing with excellent views of Machhapuchare and Annapurna South. There is time in the afternoon for those interested in birds to explore the surrounding forest.

Trek to Ghorepani

From Tadapani we continue climbing through forest. Past Banthanthi the trail reaches a small col from where we descend to Ghorepani. Meaning ‘horse water’ Ghorepani was the stopping place for the huge trains of horses carrying goods into the Kali Gandaki Valley.

Poon Hill sunrise walk

We walk early in the morning for the sunrise walk to Hille. At just over 3,000m it is the high point of our trek and what a view. As the sun raise the whole of the Annapurna range comes into view. We can also see Dhaulagiri and Machhapuchhare, the holy Fishtail Mountain. Reckoned to be one of the best viewpoints in the Himalaya we have plenty of time to take in the scenery before descending to our lodge in Ghorepani for a well-earned breakfast. We then descend all back into the forest down to Banthanthi. Descending further we emerge from the forest at Ulleri from where 3,600 stone steps bring us to Tirkhedunga. From here it’s a short walk to our lodge at Hille.

Trek to Birethanthi

A short easy walk takes us by the river to the end of our trek at Birethanthi. We meet our transport at Naya Pul and have a short drive to Pokhara. We stay in a small guest house close to the lakeside.

Pokhara

A free day to explore this pleasant lakeside area. You can hire a bike and explore the lakeside or take a walk to the Japanese Peace Pagoda set on a hill opposite the lake. Or you may like to hire a rowing boat for a couple of hours on the lake. There are plenty of shops and lakeside restaurants to sit and enjoy the views. Guest House night stay.

Chitwan National Park

We leave Pokhara this morning for the drive to Chitwan. The road heads east towards Kathmandu for a few hours and then turns south and follows the Trisuli River to Chitwan. We should arrive at our lodge by lunchtime and in the afternoon we will have the first of our jungle safaris.

Drive to Kathmandu

After a short early morning safari and breakfast we return to Kathmandu arriving usually mid afternoon.

Kathmandu

This morning there is the option to take the scenic flight to see Everest (weather permitting). This can be booked and paid for locally. Late morning we will drive 17km to Bhaktapur, one of the other medieval cities in the Kathmandu Valley.

Depart Kathmandu

Transfer to Airport. Depart Kathmandu.