Prologue
The original plan was to trek to Everest Base camp. But
weather played spoilsport to our plans. The flight that took off from Kathmandu
could not land at Lukla due to bad weather. And not even a single flight could
fly next day. The weather forecast did not look promising in the coming days.
Our return date from Kathmandu could not be changed and buffer days we planned
were all consumed. I and Subbu decided to head to Annapurna circuit.
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Everest Base Camp dream fades as flights to Lukla does not take off |
About Annapurna circuit
It is ‘circling’ Annapurna massif. It takes about 18 days to complete this trek.
But thanks to road construction many people now complete the trek in 8-12 days.
Kathmandu to Besisahar
Besisahar near Pokhara is the starting point of Annapurna
circuit. It is about 180 km from Kathmandu. The Bus was supposed to start at
7:50AM but it was 9:30AM by the time we came out of Kathmandu as the bus was
not full and bus driver and conductor were always looking out for passengers!!
Then a massive traffic jam on the ghat road slowed down the journey. It was 4PM
when we reached Besisahar. Lunch was at a road side restaurant in Benighat.
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Me and Subbu At Kathmandu bus stop |
TIMS card and permit
At Besisahar, trekkers have to register themselves and
provide TIMS card and permit. For more information on TIMS card and how to obtain
it, refer this website. It is also possible to obtain TIMS card at Besisahar check post but it is only
for individual trekkers.
Permit is required as the area we trek comes under Annapurna
conservation area. More information on that is provided in this website.
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Marsyandi river near Besisahar |
Obtaining TIMS and permit may seem complicated but it is
not. You just need couple of passport size photographs and passport copy. For
Annapurna circuit, you can easily get it at Besisahar itself. If you are
trekking on your own, do not think of getting it from travel agents. They
simply charge hefty service fee on top of the standard rates.
Another question is about guides and porters. According to
me guides are not needed especially if you are travelling during April-May and
October-November. The trails are clear with many villages all along the way. It
is a tea house trek meaning that at the end of the day you will get a bed to
sleep and food to eat!!
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'Good' section of Besisahar-Bhulbule road |
But if you are trekking alone, then it would be better to either have a guide or porter more from a safety point of view.
Besisahar to Bhulbule
It takes about three hours to walk from Besisahar to
Bhulbule. But mini buses now ply on this route!! With an hour of day light
left, it was not possible to reach Bhulbule before dark and hence we took the
bus. The road was horrible and it took 1.5 hours to cover this distance!! At
many times we felt that it would have been better to walk than struggle in the
cramped bus.
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Hills near Bhulbule |
The bus stopped in front of Thorung guest house and we promptly
took a room there. Though it was the first day of the trek, we hadn't started
walking yet!!
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A hydro electric plant construction by Chinese |
We had now entered into Dal Bhat area!! Dinner was at 6:30PM and we hit the bed at 8PM.
Labels: Annapurna, Himalayas, Nepal, trek