Early morning panoramic view across Pokhara, Nepal, showing colourful residential buildings, lush green gardens and surrounding forested hills, with the snow-capped Annapurna Himalaya visible in the distance
After an early morning rise, I started my five-day Annapurna Circuit trek with my guide/porter. He offered to carry my bag if I’d carry his much lighter one. Sounded good to me! We swap from time to time, but he seems happy to carry mine. He’s guessing it’s about 13 kilos, which really isn’t that bad – but his bag is only about 5 kilos.
The first rays of the morning sun illuminate the snow-covered slopes of Annapurna South (7,219 m), Annapurna Himalaya, viewed from Pokhara, NepalThe first rays of the morning sun illuminating the summit of Machhapuchhre (Fishtail Mountain, 6,993 m), Annapurna Himalaya, viewed from Pokhara, Nepal
Today is the first really clear day I’ve seen in Nepal since I got here. Last night’s thunderstorms seemed to clear the skies. It was very nice to wake up this morning and see all the snow-capped mountains from my hotel room.
Early morning panoramic view of the snow-capped Annapurna massif, including Annapurna South (7,219 m) and Hiunchuli (6,441 m), rising above the forested Himalayan foothills near Pokhara, NepalA rocky mountain stream flows through a picturesque Himalayan valley, with a winding dirt road, scattered rural buildings and terraced farmland along the beginning of the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, Nepal
So far, the hike has involved a lot of climbing, but it’s been very tolerable with someone carrying my pack. The trail started as a dirt road, but became more of a mule track as we gained elevation. There are nice guesthouses all along the trail with comfortable mattresses, squat toilets, hot showers, meals, and electricity. So far, we have passed mostly terraced farm plots used for rice in summer and other crops like wheat and vegetables at other times of the year.
A Nepalese woman carries a heavy sack on her head along a rocky village path, followed by a young girl, near the beginning of the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, NepalA Nepalese woman washes clothes in the clear, fast-flowing waters of a rocky mountain stream near the beginning of the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, Nepal
My guide has been very nice, bright, and a good English speaker. He is from the country where his parents still live, but now lives in Kathmandu with his own family. He guides people regularly on the circuit I’m on, as well as on a more difficult, higher-altitude trek to Everest Base Camp. Today we climbed from about 800 meters to 1550 meters, taking the first few kilometres by taxi out of Pokhara and up to the Annapurna trailhead.
22Traditional Nepalese guesthouses with colourful wooden balconies surrounding a stone-paved courtyard in a Himalayan village along the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, Nepal
My guide resting amongst traditional Nepalese guesthouses with colourful wooden balconies surrounding a stone-paved courtyard in a Himalayan village along the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, NepalA caravan of pack mules carrying supplies along a narrow, stone-paved street lined with traditional guesthouses in a Himalayan village on the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, Nepal
Day 1 Hike of the Annapurna Circuit
Map of the route “Annapurna Trek Day 1”: 10,576 m, 585 m of climbing and 112 m of descent, elevation between 1,026 m and 1,531 m, time 03:44:54. It starts at 28.29621, 83.76791 and ends at 28.34913, 83.74099 (latitude, longitude).
In the evening, the guides got together for a private dinner, but only after making sure their clients received their dinners, had all their questions answered, and had their needs addressed. I ended up eating and talking with a young American engineer from Minneapolis, working in India for six months, and his travelling companion from the UK, who met for the first time in Kathmandu a few days earlier.
A caravan of pack mules carrying supplies along a narrow, stone-paved street lined with traditional guesthouses in a Himalayan village on the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, NepalColourful Buddhist prayer flags hang above the sunlit wooden balcony of a traditional guesthouse overlooking a restaurant courtyard along the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, NepalA colourful flowering vine cascades over the windows of a traditional stone-roofed guesthouse, with potted geraniums and an outdoor washbasin in the courtyard along the Annapurna Circuit trekking route, Nepal
