ANNAPURNA BASE CAMP TREK

Today you arrive in Pokhara. Meet our team and there will be a briefing and introduction session. Overnight in the hotel.

Today is the first day of the Annapurna Base Camp trek and our destination is Ghandruk, a beautiful Gurung village. We start with a 2-hour road journey to Nayapul from Pokhara. On reaching Nayapul, the trail first drops down to Birethanti, crossing an old suspension bridge over the Bhurungdi River. Birethanti is a beautiful village, where trekkers will have to fulfill the necessary check-in formalities at the office of ACAP. Then, the ultimate upward walk begins towards Ghandruk. Initially, the trail climbs gently on a dirt road till Syauli Bazar. Leaving the dirt road and the river bank from Syauli Bazar, you will start climbing a series of stone steps till Kimche. You will cross the dirt road a couple of times as you climb the steps to Kimche. From Kimche, the gradient eases out a little, but you are only done with half the climb. It will take another 2 hours to reach your lodge at Ghandruk, which is one of the cosiest villages on the trail. Ghandruk also houses a museum of local Gurung culture. If the weather is clear, you will be able to see the Hiunchuli and Macchapucchre peaks from your teahouse in the evening.

Sinuwa is the destination set for today. Today’s hike is a roller coaster on foot. Once you hike through the entire village of Ghandruk, the trail climbs up 200 m gradually to reach Kimrong Danda, a small village perched on top of a ridge. The village offers panoramic views of the surrounding mountains. From Kimrong Danda, you descend 400 m sharply through oak and rhododendron forests, crossing the Kimrong Khola at the valley floor. Once you cross the river, you will pass through the lower Kimrong village before climbing up again to Chhomrong. It is a 500 m climb to one of the biggest villages (with authentic Italian coffee) in the valley – you will have to stop at an ACAP Check Post here. Chhomrong stretches from the top of the ridge down to valley floor, and you will descend 400 m through the entire village down to the stream. The day is not yet done, and you must climb another 200 m up steep stone steps to reach Lower Sinuwa, our halt for the night.

You will start from Lower Sinuwa today and climb 250 m to the upper village. Upper Sinuwa offers brilliant views of the higher valley. The trail is level for the first few kilometres, passing through dense bamboo and rhododendron forests. If you are hiking here in April, the rhododendron trees are in full bloom and the forest is alive with red flowers and birdsong. This section is one of the best parts of the trail. Once you reach Kuldigar, you will descend to Bamboo on the valley floor. The bamboo forests get denser as you climb gradually towards Deurali, passing through the villages of Dovan (look out for a giant waterfall crashing onto the river just across the village) and Himalaya – yes, that’s what the village is named. Just before you reach Deurali, you will pass the Hinku caves next to the trail and traverse a fan of avalanched snow and debris. The climb from Bamboo to Deurali is a whopping 900 m and should take 4 hrs – if you’ve prepared well! Deurali is a small village just at the base of Machhapuchhre – one of the most perfectly shaped mountains in the world.

Today is one of the shorter days of the trek. Although people generally used to hike up to Annapurna Base Camp on the fourth day of the trek, that is not possible anymore. Most of the teahouses and lodges at ABC were destroyed during the winter and spring in 2019, which makes it impossible to stay at ABC. We will hike up till Machhapuchhre Base Camp today. You will climb up 500 m , crossing the Modi Khola twice, and passing through sparsely vegetated slopes. As you climb higher up the valley, you will have to climb through accumulated snow from the winter. Machhapuchhre Base Camp offers excellent views of Macchapucchre, and even Annapurna South if you take a short walk from your lodge. Overnight at MBC.

Wake up two hours before sunrise today, and hike the last few kilometres to ABC. You will gradually ascend over the right lateral moraine of the Annapurna glacier. The trail is an easy, pleasant climb. As you reach ABC and the sun starts coming up, you will realise you’re surrounded by massive 7000 m and 8000 m peaks. ABC is right at the foot of Hiunchuli and Annapurna South (7,219 m). To the right, you will see the main Annapurna (8.091 m) peak. To the east of Annapurna are Khangsar Kang, Tare Kang, Gangapurna and Annapurna III. A gigantic wall of steep rock and ice rises up from the glacier to the summit of Annapurna. It will be one of the best sunrises you will ever see. After enjoying the mighty Annapurna Sanctuary, we retrace the same trail that drops all the way down through Deurali, Himalaya and Dovan to Bamboo. After walking for about 6 hours, we finally reach the destination of the day, that is, Bamboo.

Jhinu Danda is the destination set for today. From Bamboo, we first hike up to Kuldhigar, where the office of ACAP and the visitor center is located. We then hike down to the bridge across the Chhomrong River passing Sinuwa. We cross the bridge and enter a beautiful Gurung village of Chhomrong. From Chhomrong, a steep descent will take us to Jhinu Danda. The Jhinu hot springs is 15-20 minutes downhill from Jhinu Danda. A 15 minute descent from the village to the riverbed takes you to the hot springs – three pools brimming with naturally heated water – the perfect balm for your aching legs after 6 days of hard trekking!