Annapurna Khayer Lake Trek

Welcome to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. A Lantang Ri Trekking & Expedition representative will greet you at the airport and transfer you to your hotel.  When you are ready you will be collected from your hotel lobby and driven to our Thamel office where you will be formally introduced to your Trekking Guide.  We will go through all your trek itinerary and arrangements with you an ensure every detail is in place.  We will also ask for your passport photographs and any other details so that we can organize any permits required for your trek and the region you will be exploring

Drive or fly to Pokhara. The flight is an optional extra for this itinerary. Pokhara is located about 200km west of Katmandu on the shores of the beautiful Lake Fewa. Pokhara is a mixture of restful and busy.  It has the atmosphere of a relaxed “resort town” where visitors take it easy seeing the sights and resting before their Annapurna or Mustang trek and once again upon their return.  But is also a busy place with all these visitors arriving, leaving and exploring the lake and nearby sights of Pokhara.  The option to drive from Kathmandu to Pokhara provides an opportunity to experience more of the real Nepal beyond the national parks and trekking trails.  The scenery and people you will meet on the drive is also worth the experience. 
 

A short and scenic twisting road takes you from Pokhara (915m) to Nayapul (1,050m) at the southern entrance to the Annapurna Sanctuary. From there it is time to lace up the boots, pull on your day-pack and begin your trek to Ghandruk (1,940m) via the main northward trekking trail that continues past Ghandruk all the way to Annapurna Base Camp. There are a few villages you pass through today and they make a great place to take a break and enjoy a cup of Nepali tea.  The villages you pass through are populated by the ethnic Gurung people and their religion is Buddhist, so you will often see carefully tended stupa along the way.
 

Today our trail turns westward from Ghandruk as we depart the trail that heads for Annapurna Base Camp. We gain altitude steadily today but every step higher rewards with an even better view of Mount Machhapuchhre or Fish Tail (6,997m). So take is slow and stop often and look over your shoulder to this magical Himalayan peak that is sacred to the local people. Mount Machhapuchhre is so revered that mountaineers are actually banned from attempting to climb it.

This is the day we start heading off-the-beaten-path as we head more northward towards the icy peaks of Annapurna. The day starts with a short descent down the valley side of the Kimrong River.  The trail takes us through dense Rhododendron forests was we head northwest and work our way along the southern side of the valley.  The trail ascends as we go and occassionally we reach cleared grazing fields that allow spectacular uninterupted views to the Annapurna peaks and Mount Machhapuchhre.  The trek takes about six hours to complete today and eventually we arrive at a small ridge-top clearing and the tiny village of Bhaisi Kharka. You hard work is now rewarded with fantastic views to the east and west todards towering Mount Dhaulagiri (8,167m). While you pull your boots off at the end of the day spend some time soaking up this marvelous view.

While the net altitude gain by the end of today is just 100m we have more work to do than this might suggest. Today we have a series of valleys and ridges to cross as we head north west towards the main farming village of Sistibang and then ascend up to the tiny settlement of Upper Sistibang just below the crest of a very high ridge – our target for tomorrow.  So take your time today and conserve energy where you can as the trek starts to get a bit more challenging.

The trekking today should only take a few hours but just about every step will take you a little bit higher until you reach the spectacular vantage point of Khopra Ridge at 3,870m altitude. Altitude sickness can now become a risk so you must follow the advice of your guide and take it slow and rest often.  The slower you ascend the safer it is and the more time you also have to admire the scenery.  By the time you reach Upper Sistibang you will be well above the tree line and on the ridge itself you will have amazing views to all the Annapurna peaks to the east and Mount Dhaulagiri to the west – this is where you get the feeling you could almost reach out and touch these gorgeous mountains.

 
This is another “wow!!!” day as you head even higher and even closer to Annapurna. Make sure you have your camera all charged up and ready for this huge day. Get up early and watch the sun rise from behind the many Annapurna peaks to your east and make sure to also catch the first rays of the sun to hit the face of Mount Dhaulagiri to the west. After breakfast and comparing sunrise photos you will trek up the steep lower slopes of the Annapurna Massif itself.  Take it very slow again today as the altitude gain will be over 1,000m. This is another challenging day but every step is rewarded by the most stunning of Himalayan mountain scenery. Your turn-around point will be a tiny perched lake, Khyer Lake, sitting in a steep valley with Annapurna high above – lots of amazing photo opportunities here. When standing at the lake you will be just six kilometers from the summit of Annapurna South – it towers above you with all the power of one of the great Himalaya mountains. But eventually you will need to retrace your steps and descend back to Khopra Ridge.

It is all down, down, down today so some different muscles will get a workout. The trek takes you back into the oak and rhododendron forest and then down into the beautifully terraced hillsides as you pass many small farms and clusters on homes.  You may even come across water buffalo and their keepers out working their fields. After five or six hours of trekking you should reach Swanta and take a well earned rest. 

The scenic highlights of this trek are not over yet. The objective today is to reach Ghorepani and be ready for a pre-dawn start the next day at the Poon Hill Lookout (3,180m). But first we have some walking to do today. The trek initially is pretty easy as we walk a gently ascending trail along the valley floor to Chittre.  The trail continues further south-east through more farming communities until you reach the main valley wall leading up to Ghorepani.  Time for some hard ascending.  But by now you will be so fit you wil relsih the challenge and soon make it to the high vantage point of Ghorepani. While the views from here are great, just wait until tomorrow morning. So start charging the camera again and get a good night’s sleep. 

Today you will need to rise well before dawn and ascend to the vantage point of Poon Hill just to the south-west of Ghorepani. Your goal is to arrive on Poon Hill just before the sun starts to rise over the Annapurna Massif peaks.  Poon Hill is about 500m higher than Ghorepani and the hilltop provides uninterrupted views in every direction.  Watch the first rays of the sun hit the summit of  Mount Dhaulagiri (8,167m) to your west and the other icy peaks of the main Annapurna Massif – Tukuche Peak (6,920m), Mount Nilgiri (6,940m), Varaha Shikhar (7,847m), Mount Annapurna I (8,091m), Annapurna South (7,219m), Annapurna III (7855m), Machhapuchhre (6,993m), Annapurna IV (7,525m), Annapurna II (7,937m), Lamjung Himal (6,931m) and many other gorgeous Himalayan peaks. Make sure you have fresh batteries in your camera, you’re going to leave Poon Hill with lots of fantastic photos and memories that will last a lifetime.  But once the sunrise show is over and you catch you breath it is time to descend the hill and trek down to Hile and then return to Pokhara.

After breakfast in the morning you say goodbye to Pokhara and head back to bustling Kathmandu by road.  You may also choose to fly back to Kathmandu as an optional extra to your itinerary. You will be delivered back to your Kathmandu hotel at the end of today’s travels.