Nepal '05

The Annapurna circuit is a well known trail that connects a few dozen villages, circling the Annapurna range (see image "trail map"). The trek begins at 3000 ft above sea level and reaches it's highest point, the Thorung La pass, at about 18,000 ft. The whole trek took 18 days.

An Annapurna trek is as much about people as it is about Himalayan landscapes. Typically you sleep and eat in village guesthouses, fill your water bottle at the village tap, and have frequent contact with Nepalese villagers every day. The Nepalese I met were unfailingly kind and generous throughout my trek.

Some villages consist of a few sparse houses while others contain dozens of homes and several shops. Most goods move in and out of the mountains by mule or human porter. The mountain landscape and many rivers require several vertigo inducing bridge crossing every day.

At the lower elevations, the climate is hot and the countryside lush with forest and rice terraces, the villages tend to be Hindu, and in general there seems to be a slower pace about things. As you ascend in altitude, rice is replaced by barley, the trees drop away to reveal white capped mountains, and the villages are predominately Buddhist with numerous temples, monasteries, and religious landmarks.

There is a civil war of sorts currently in Nepal and the trek takes you through both government and Maoist controlled territory. The Maoist tend to be quite civil and typically ask for a small donation when encountered (about $1.25 for every day of travel in their territory -see Maoist receipt). There are also several military checkpoints along the way where your trekking permit must be stamped and a small fee paid.

The other trekkers tend to be European or Israeli with a few Australians and Canadians thrown in the mix. I met truly exceptional people during the trek -Maria, Connie, Hans, Wotan & Phuntsok (Germany+Tibet), Torsten & Claudia (Germany), Frank, Michele, & friends (Québec), Sarah & Matthias (Germany), Noy (Israel), Patrick and the teachers at the Lophelling School, and too many more to mention...

Annapurna Trail

trekking permit	trail map	trail altitude
Maoist receipt	bridge near Bhulbhule	rice terraces
mule train	water buffalo	trail near Besisahar
Bhulbhule village	Bhulbhule village	Ngadi village
Ngadi village	porter	rice terraces
Jagat village	Jagat village	sisters
river crab	waterfall	unlucky steer
sisters	trail & fields	Nepali girl
bridge	village water tap	prayer wheels
chicken backpack	typical guesthouse	guesthouse kitchen
guesthouse room	guesthouse bathroom	guesthouse shower
trail companions	lizard	road construction
road construction	Buddhist Kani, Chame	Kani, interior
Buddhist arch	near Pisang	begger
goats	wooden bridge	mani carvings
mani carvings	mani carvings	Ghyaru village
Kani, Ghyaru	Ghyaru village	Ghyaru village
Ghyaru village	barley field, Ghyaru	Ghyaru village
trail dog, Ngawal	Buddhist arch	prayer wheels
prayer wheels	trail dog, Manang	yak horn construction
Québec friends, Manang	Manang valley	Chorten, near Braga
mani carvings	mani carvings	porter
water buffalo	yaks	goat
high camp	high camp lookout	high camp lookout
high camp lookout	high camp	towards Thorung La
towards Thorung La	Thorung La 17,769 ft	mountain lichen
mountain flower	monk picnic	monk picnic
prayer flags, Muktinath	nunnery, Muktinath	nunnery, Muktinath
Hindu temple, Muktinath	Hindu temple, Muktinath	Jharkot
horse, Kagbeni	riverbed	riverbed
mule train	kids, Jomosom	drying tomatoes
monk, Marpha	mountains, Kalopani	moon-lit mountains
moon-lit mountains	Sarah & Matthias	boats, Pokhara
boats, Pokhara	swing, Pokhara	ferris wheel, Pokhara
ferris wheel, Pokhara