Round
Annapurna Trek
The Round Annapurna trek is a Nepal Classic. It
is a trek that is a "must do" for any serious Himalayan trekker. The
trek takes you from the lowlands of Nepal, up through alpine villages and forests, across a
high pass, and down to desert-like country on the other side. You then walk
through the deepest gorge in the world and descend from desert to lush green
foliage within a day's walk. We did this trek in November 1987 on a trek which
I organized for the Singapore Adventurers’
Club. There were 12 of us on this trek and we had met many trekkers from
all over the world in the lodges that we stayed in. At Phedi, the last village before
crossing the pass, we even had a big dancing party in the lodge. It is one of
my most memorable trek. (picture on left shows me and my wife -Therese
somewhere on the round Annapurna Trek).
Picture on the
left shows Therese, near the top of the Thorong La (5416m). We started out at 3am to cross the pass and made it down to Muktinath only
at 6pm the following day. It was one of the longest treks I
have done. The temperature dipped to well below zero and our water bottles were
frozen solid. We had no water to drink the for entire day.
The trek takes about 17 days and encircles the
entire Annapurna massif. The starting point of the trek is at the village of Dumre,
half-a-day's bus ride from Kathmundu on the road to Pokhara. There are local
lodges along the entire route, so you need not carry any tents with you. Many
villages before crossing the pass are Tibetan, so you will get to understand a
bit of Tibetan culture and the Buddhist religion.
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