12 days Annapurna circuit trek/itinerary 2020/2021
The Annapurna Circuit has long been considered one of the world’s great treks. Like all the journeys the trek reveals itself gradually, as it climbs through the subtropical jungle to a Tibetan influenced valley and then over the high Thorong La to Kali Gandaki river valley.
The road reached up to Manang east side, and up to Muktinath from the west side of the trekking route. Navigate Outdoor offers our trip from the original trailhead Bulbule _ Nadi using alternate route walk on the old trekking trail.
Starting Annapurna round trekking from the original trailhead Bulbhule – Nadi offer much more cultural experiences and also helps to acclimatize. Along the old trail, there are plenty of teahouses offer hospitality.
The main attractions of the Annapurna Circuits trekking are terrace fields, dense forest, and diverse culture of the people who live thousands of years in the region.
At the beginning of the Annapurna Circuits trekking, we can see beautiful Lamjung, Manaslu and Ganesh Himalayan ranges, as soon we reached Dharapani the trail split into two left side Annapurna round trek and right side goes to the Manaslu round trekking. Annapurna circuits trekking offers endless breathtaking views of the mountains, waterfalls, mountain settlement, and culture.
Staying a few days in the Manang village is worth; explore Manang, and a day hike to alpine lakes, also help to acclimatize before heading to Thorong La passes 5460m.
Muktinath temple is the most popular Hindu temple is in the Annapurna round trekking route at an altitude of 3760m. We offer an alternate route to Jomsom –Marpha instead following the road and the dusty trail we trek to Lubra valley, Thini-gau, and Marpha village where you can experience local apple brandy and apple pie.
If you enough time you can end your Annapurna circuits trekking from Marpha drive to Pokhara 7-8 hours and spent night at the beautiful Fewa Lake and enjoy the Annapurna views from your hotel.
You can also continue completing the Annapurna full circuits trekking drive to Tatopani and continue trekking to Annapurna south base camp and end at the Phedi.
The Annapurna Circuits Trekking combined with Annapurna Base Camp trekking and Upper Mustang Trekking.
- Destination:Annapurna Region, Nepal
- Trip Grade:Moderate
- Max Elevation:5416m/17873ft
- Total Duration:12 -16 days
- Best Time:March- May & Oct - Nov
- Best trekking in Himalayan:5 star
Day 01: Arrive in Kathmandu and transfer to hotel attitude 1380meter.
Day 02: Prep for gear and other personal organization/rest in Kathmandu.
Day 03: Drive to Bulbule and trek to Nadi altitude930 meter.
Day 04: Trek Nadi to Chamje altitude1430meter.
Day 05: Trek Chamje to Dharampani altitude 1860meter.
Day 06: Trek Dharampani to Chame altitude 2670meter.
Day 07: Trek Chame to lower Pisang altitude3260meter.
Day 08: Trek Chame to Manang 5hrs alt 3540m.
Day 09: Rest day (explore around to Manang village & Lakes)
Day 10: Trek Manang to Yak Kharka altitude 4018m.
Day 11: Trek Yakkharka to Thorong Phedi altitude 4450m.
Day 12: Trek Thorong Phedi to Muktinath via Thorong La pass alt5416m{(17872ft) world’s highest trekking high pass} ascent491m(1620ft) and trek down to Muktinath via Muktinath Temple alt 3760m(12408ft) descent 1656m(5464ft)
Day 13: Trek Muktinath to Marpha altitude 2670meter via Kangbeni, Thini Gaun.
Day 14: Drive to Tatopani and stay in Tatopani hot spring.
Day 15: Trek Tatopani to Ghorepani altitude 2860meter.
Day 16: Trek to Poonhill altitude 3200meter(Poon Hill see a view of Annapurna, Dhaulagiri, and Nilgiri from the south side of Annapurna early morning), back to hotel have breakfast and trek to Ghandruk.
Day 17: Trek to Potana and stay at Potana.
Day 18: Trek to Phedi and drive to Pokhara 1 hours and stay in Pokhara altitude 820 meters.
Day 19: Fly to Kathmandu and stay in Kathmandu.
Day 20: Sightseeing in Kathmandu and stay in Kathmandu.
Day 21: Final departure to your destination, drop you at the International airport.
Cost Includes
- Experienced local Nepalese guide.
- Flights Pokhara to Kathmandu one-way.
- Ground transportation Kathmandu to the trek start point.
- Airport picks up and drops.
- Hotel 4 nights in Kathmandu & 1-night hotel in Pokhara twin sharing room with breakfast.
- Essential group First aid.
- Trekking permit and TIMS (Tourism Information Management System)
- Our staff’s guides and Porter's salary, food, accommodation, and insurance.
- Food during the trekking, Lunch, Dinner, Breakfast and hot drinks tea & Coffee.
- Accommodation at local tea-house twin sharing room during the trekking
Cost Excludes
- Travel/ trekking, accidental/ health insurance (mandatory)
- Personal Expenses (e.g. snacks, coke, Mineral water, chocolate during the day etc)
- Mineral Water and Alcohol and all bottled beverages.
- Lunch and dinner in Kathmandu, accept sightseeing and other activities.
- International airfare and airport tax, Visa fee
- Guides/ Porter’s tip.
- Emergency evacuation.
Please be ready and keep in mind that adventure in the Himalayan Mountains requires an open & emphatic mind. During your trek you are lacking some of the basic need like attached bath, hot shower and electricity. Due to weather conditions, health issues, and other general issues of the group members or sudden natural disaster like landslide, snow storms, and other natural aspect we may to change your route. We try our best to follow our original plan when you booked your expedition, but your safety is our primary concern. In case the trip need reroute of your trek is necessary, our group leader/ guide make final call or decision. Essential Gear
- Camera, water bottle, extra money, sunscreen, sunglasses, sunhat, hiking loose fitting shorts/ synthetic T-shirt etc.
- Hiking boots, sports shoe, 3 to 4 pairs woolen socks, 1 pairs gloves, warm hat,
- Day backpack 35 ltr to 50 ltr , and a duffel bag for your clothing.
- Warm layers, down or synthetic jackets, fleece, hiking pants, Thermals.
Sam & Jenn Nicholson Montana USA
Mani; Clearly you are chosen & Choose across the globe to make a lasting impact on our children. Your strength, calmness, guidance/wisdom, and patience are so evident. We will forever be grateful for the effort + Impact that you have made on our son. Thank you from our bottom of our hearts for this. It’s unbelievable. Peace & love to you forever. Sam & Jenn Nicholson Montana USA 2018.
Journeying a river: Jai Karnali, January 2020
How did river Ganga come to be?
Mythology says that there was a noble King who requested that Ganga descend from heaven to bless humanity and quench the thirst of the land and its people.
Pleased to shower the world with blessings, Ganga rushed down with such gusto that people feared that all that came in the way would be washed away. The God Shiva came to the rescue and stopped the momentum of the water with his long thick long hair. Because of this, Ganga flowed smoothly and satiated the thirst of all beings and showered blessings on the land with each drop of precious water.
Ecologists interpret this myth as a metaphor- Shiva’s thick long hair is synonymous with dense jungles that help check the floods and stop the land from washing away as the river accelerates down the slopes from the melting glaciers.
Rafting down the river Karnali in Western Nepal last month, it felt as if the myth was true! In our group of 11 people were some seasoned sailors, kayakers, river guides, and rafting experts, but a few like me had never been on a raft. I am also not a strong swimmer; so, it was an act of faith and surrender to the river and expertise of our leader Mani, and river rafting expert Manu to go on the trip.
We put the rafts in the river after about 4 hours drive up the town of Surkhet at an altitude of about 800 m. The rafts and the equipment, including the tents and rations, were supplied with the generous support of NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) in the States.
This expedition was conceptualized and planned by Ravi, NOLS India Programmed Director, and Mani ( #navigateoutdoor Nepal) NOLS senior Instructor and who co-led the expedition. The two kayakers, Ganesh and Nanu Kayaks and were in the tumultuous waters of Karnali watching and guiding our rafts at each and every rapid that came along. They were plenty of challenges to varying degrees!
For the next seven days we were out on the river, and camping at some of the most beautiful banks. We witnessed a vast expanse of pristine natural habitats along the way both on land and in the waters. We parked the rafts often to take a walk over to beautiful villages and bought fresh vegetables, fish, milk and yogurt, etc. from the villagers. We savored some delicious meals in cottage eateries that you can find along the traditional walking routes of the shepherds, traders, and village folk, that connect the plains with the high Himal region in the kingdom of Nepal and beyond on the Tibetan plateau. The river crisscrossed some of the most wonderfully crafted hanging bridges on these routes as well.
We saw how the simple and rich life of fishing communities sustainably harvest the bounty of fish from the river. They fish in their dug up canoes made from tree trunks. The fish from Karnali is famous across the region and fetches amongst the highest price in Nepal’s capital city of Kathmandu. High value and low volume seem to be the guiding factor – it can be 2-4 days walk to sell and transport the fish, so, the fish is dried or smoked creating a very special, niche type of produce from the villages along Karnali.
Agriculture and livestock rearing is still flourishing in the villages. It was amazing to see some of the most appropriately designed dehusking, pounding, and winnowing equipment still in use – that has perhaps not changed in the last thousand years.
It is indeed a living culture that uses and maintains the landscape, in harmony with nature, using indigenous knowledge to enhance biodiversity and what we call ecosystem services. Our faith in the concept of the Gross National Happiness index was further strengthened. The common Human Development indices merely emphasize infrastructure and access to institutions such as hospitals and schools- but there is so much to be taken into account for true sustainability. While the intent is not to romanticize the old, biocultural heritage, the wisdom of the old seems to be working harmoniously and should well complement human development in a more meaningful way.
Some of the big questions being discussed in conferences and seminars across the world could be answered in a much more eco-friendly and happy way by experiencing the life and values of the community here and of other indigenous peoples across the world.
The modern idea of development as highly individualistic has become increasingly crippled with outdated notions of competition, rather than collaboration, also creating massive disparities in income and consumption of natural resources.
We could learn from the communities here, and take lessons from the past into the future: the dignity of physical work, interdependence, and interconnectedness are three principles that need to be central to human endeavor- there is no sustainability without equity and dignity.
Gradually, we descended down with the flow of the river, as it slowly calmed down in the Terai region. It’s a rich habitat for tigers, rhinoceroses, elephants, and another charismatic megafauna. The very sight of these deep jungles invokes awe. We got off the banks of the mighty Karnali at the little town of Chiso Pani.
We deflated the rafts, packed the gear, washed, and rushed to one of the many restaurants in this little town. Some of us relished the delicious fish from Karnali to their heart's content! For others like me, the restaurant served fabulous fresh greens with dal-bhat; as they say in Nepal “Dal Bhat power, 24 hours!”
May the river Karnali have a long life and continue to bless humanity as the King had anticipated in the ancient times. May present-day leaders start to wake up to the wisdom in conservation and sustainable utilization of the river, rather than damning it and threatening the sheer existence of these communities. May we all learn from the life of the people here; all the wonderful ways to weave a close-knit community and flourish together with nature.
Thanks for the whole team Chura Mani Aryal, Manohar, Nanu and Ganesh river experts, and beautiful Karnali River, and people from the river corridor.
Ajay Rastogi
Majkhali India
"I want to thank you and your guides and employees again for the wonderful memories I have of the Manaslu trek and the lovely side trip into the Tsum Valley. The scenery and experiences were great and I especially loved the variety of forests, the wildlife, and of course the incomparable mountain scenery. I want to add a special thank you to you for the special care you gave me when my foot and leg became very swollen. Your help and knowledge allowed me to complete the trek with minimal discomfort. I still experience the problem to a minor degree but still, look forward to further adventurous travel when the situation allows in the future. Conversations with you about Nepalese history were also an enjoyable and informative aspect of the trek".
I would like to thank Navigate Outdoor for organizing such a joyful and safe trip to the Tsum and Manaslu region. I'd like to thank Mani and his entire team to make our trip such memorable and extra care to all of us on the trekking. I really enjoyed having my own personal time exploring the side valley taking pictures and interact with local people on the trail. Mani is an experienced leader who allows space while trekking. He helped, and always available for other trekkers they need medical attention. I saw him support others and interact with them in a really professional way. I appreciated and enjoyed the 24 days trekking in the Tsum valley and Manaslu round trekking.
Nick Green Australia 2018
I appreciate your attitude "Anyway life comes first and business comes second and other things." I can see you are really living that motto when you tell us of the wonderful time you are having with your family.
Dane, and I really enjoyed the trek to the Annapurna Sanctuary. While I have been trekking in the Himalayas a number of times it was nice to do a trek with my son. Dane was very impressed to see the high mountains. Thanks for organizing Annapurna Base Camp trekking for me and my son Dane. Mani, I really appreciated sharing your previous experiences and telling stories about your own life and adventure career. We'll do another trip in the future. We'll share our experiences with our friends and recommended Navigate Outdoor. I can't express the joyful moment I had on the Annapurna Base camp trip you with, and felt 100% safe, thanks for taking care of us in the trekking.
Malcolm and Dane Dwyer Australia 2019
Karnali River Experience.
They say that the journey is better than the destination. That all the experiences along the way are like an accumulation of rocks along a riverbed. This story is another stone in a river.
I have known Mani Aryal for several years, meeting him in the United States, in the state of Utah. Mani and I were both on a work contract to take a group of students down Desolation & Gray Canyon on the Green River. After spending three weeks with Mani I knew that I made a paddling adventure buddy and that he would be a person that I actively stay in contact with. The years have a way of floating by with adventure and intentions. Every time I spoke to Mani he persistently invited me to Kathmandu to see his home and to float the rivers. Three years after saying “no”, I finally could say “maybe”.
Kathmandu is large in legend and small in structure. The shuttle ride from the airport is an example of whitewater: dodging potholes, must-make moves, and pure adrenaline. It’s best not to watch.
There are two options to get to the river when signing up for a Karnali River Expedition trip: 1) take the plane or 2) ride with the guides and gear on public transport. I was on a tight budget, so option #2 was the only way to go. Putting together a multiday river trip is always difficult, especially when you start combining buses, shuttles, and rendezvous. The first leg of the journey was via public transportation to Koholpur. The guides and I, hanging out at the main bus depot, loading all of the gear we would need for the next 12 days was a new experience indeed.
You see a lot of different people and livestock on the long-distance buses. Chickens and goats are not uncommon. If a woman is standing with a baby, it’s a norm to hand a baby to you, a seated passenger, to hold the child in order to give her a break.
The second half of the shuttle was a private bus to the put-in, the small village of Dungeshor that is located straight down a canyon. The route our bus driver picked was shorter to save fuel but longer because of road conditions. Our bus rocked, creaked and moaned down the road for 8 hours only to cover 85km. “Singletrack” may be a better description than “road” as there were only inches to spare between rock walls and open air.
Sideswiping other buses, scouting rock gardens, and pushing our transport were common occurrences that quickly become norms. We reached Dungeshor after 10 pm to hastily inhale some food and beer from a generous restaurant owner who opened his doors after hours. Afterward, we set up our tents on the riverbank to welcome a solid, unwavering piece of ground to usher in some sleep.
The next morning, the guides were in their prime, having already started getting breakfast ready for everyone. Mani was no exception, greeting me with a great, white smile and a coffee to help orient my mind back to my body. The biggest surprise was all of the children hanging about camp. We were all warned not to leave our gear unattended. Later that day, I realized a carabineer walked off to hang out with the children. The guides seemed to include me that much more by laughing and sharing stories of gear gone lost.
Throughout the six days, Mani and his guides were exceptional hosts. It seemed as if they never stopped moving. Always quick to put a coffee in your hand, help you set up your campsite, or to offer a meal. Every morning they would barter with local fishermen to add an extra flair to the menu. On the water, I felt safe and involved in risk management. All ideas were heard until a plan formed to be implemented with everyone on board. The standard followed by Mani was professional.
Six months after this trip, the strongest memories I have are of traveling to and from the river. Once I had oars in my hand and a blue sky above me I knew who I was and how I got there.
The total trip duration from Kathmandu to Kathmandu was 10 days included the bus journey.
Dan Colorado USA.
Thank you, Mani. I look forward to our next adventure.