Nepal

My love affair with Nepal has only just begun. As a hiker, there is no better country to meditate on the mountains and find yourself on top of the world. The biodiversity of the wilderness reflects the blending of cultures in the cities. Streets teem with sound and color and locals invite you into their lives with wide smiles.

Intro to Nepal Backpacking

Hello: Namaste

Thank you: Dhanyabhad

How are you: Tapai lay kasto cha?

Currency and exchange rate (2018): $1=100 rupees

Times to visit:

Peak trekking season is from mid-September-December - while you will have dry days and the best visibility, you will also have to pay peak tourist prices and teahouses may be full if you are competing with many guide companies
March-May is also great for trekking, as many wild flora are blossoming
Monsoon season is from late May to mid-September
Wet season is from July-September
Consider also, if you want a cultural experience out of you time here, visiting during national holidays such as Holi, Dashain and Tihar

CULTURAL NOTES:

Eat and pass food and money with your right hand only.
Fixed prices do exist but can still be haggled down.
Nepal is modest, men should wear long shirts and pants and women clothing that covers knees and shoulders. When trekking, bring a skirt and shawl with you in your pack for passing through villages. While they won't call you out for dressing immodest, you will have better cultural interactions dressing appropriately.
Don't give cash to street children. If you want to help alleviate poverty in the country, donate money or time to sustainable organizations.
For further cultural notes: https://fihp.com/nepal/cultural-tips

STAY:

Alobar1000 - THE backpacker hostel, cheap, inside Thamel, rooftop patio
Yakety Yak Hostel - expensive for a hostel but super nice amenities for a post-trip splurge

EAT:

Western Tandoori and Naan House - the best Indian food in the city, super cheap
Le Sherpa Farmers’ Market - Saturdays 8-12pm (or go for a treat yourself fancy dinner any night)
Janakpur Dahi Lassi Bhandar - hole in the wall lassi shop
Fire and Ice Pizza - good post-hike reward dinner
Pumpernickel Bakery
OR2K

TO DO:

Visit the Durbar Square
Explore Thamel and Freak Street
Visit the Garden of Dreams
Visit the Saturday La Sherpa farmers' market (bring a GPS for your taxi driver)
Witness a cremation ceremony at Pashupatinath Temple (entrance fee ~1000 rupees)
Climb up to Monkey Temple at sunset (watch out for pickpocketing monkeys)

After a week in Kathmandu and a brief farming stint in the high mountains of Gorkha, I walked through Pokhara and almost cried. I could breath again! Pokhara is located on Lake Phewa and while the views are more beautiful than the congestion of Kathmandu, life is actually cheaper. The only downside to Pokhara is that, unless you move away from the lake district, you will surrounded by other foreigners (and not the Nepali kind). Travelers frequent Pokhara for every reason: many for adventure (trekking, climbing, or paragliding) but many also as just a place to relax lakeside which, with its chilled out atmosphere and affordability, is very easy to do.

GETTING THERE:

Tourist buses leave between 7am and 8am from Kathmandu daily, at Kantipath, near Thamel. Prices range from $8 USD to $30 USD and the journey is about 9 hours. Be sure to shop around for the best price but also consider comfort as Nepali roads are anything but maintained.

STAY:

North Lakeside – The northern end of Lakeside has the best variety of budget accommodation (300-1000 rupees/night) as well as easy access to nightlife and affordable restaurants
Shiva's Lodge

EAT:

Asian Tea House
Sherpa Kitchen (try the jhol momo)
OR2K - Free movies and popcorn on Monday/Thursdays
Tara’s Vegetarian Restaurant
The Juicery - smoothie bowls, free fruit and vegetables
Little Windows - best mushroom fajitas of my life
Flying Spirit - cheap breakfast)
The Creperie
You & I Cafe

TO DO:

Use the city as the start to a trek
Walk along the lakeside path
Catch a movie and pizza at Movie Garden
Find a yoga studio
Hike / bike to the Peace Pagoda cross the lake
Eat and chill
Paraglide ($80-$250)

TREKKING:

Trekking season is between October-December (high season) and March-April (shoulder season), though hiking in late September can promise good visibility with off-season prices
Bring cash on the treks with you, there are often no ATMs while trekking and guesthouses are more expensive than city prices.
You will often have to pay for charging devices and for WiFi. It is recommended to bring a battery pack.
Budget before you go. Reference other blogs or guide agencies for what to pack. Hiking in late September was warm enough to forgo sleeping bags (all guesthouses have heavy blankets), Snickers are the best hiking snack, hiking poles are a knee-saver.
You can often negotiate with guesthouses, asking for free rooms or 100 rupiah housing in exchange for eating meals in their restaurant.
For sunrise treks, I recommend waking at 3am or 4am latest. Not only will you beat the crowds but you’ll get the best lighting for photography.
When you're high in the mountains, set an alarm for 2am, compromise the warm bed for a few minutes and witness the most beautiful star-filled sky of your life

A trek of spirituality, gratitude, and sore legs. A great "warm up trek" for larger hikes in the region. A popular modification to this hike is a 4 day Poonhill trek, where you can splendor in the Himalayas at a distance.

PERMITS:

The trek requires an entry permit from the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (2260 / $23) as well as a TIMS card (2000 NPR / $20) to trek in the Annapurna region. Both can be acquired in Pokhara before leaving. You will need to provide four passport photos which they take and print for you at the Pokhara center free of charge.

Unguided Annapurna Base Camp Itinerary (costs ~$200):

Day 1: From Pokhara take a taxi to Nayapul, hike to Tikhedunga
Day 2: Hike to Ghorepani
Day 3: wake up and hike to the summit of Poonhill for sunrise views of the Himalayas, hike to Tadapani
Day 4: Tadapani to Sinuwa
Day 5: Sinuwa to Machhapuchre Base Camp (alternatively, stop in Deurali for the night)
Day 6: wake up around 3am to look at the stars, start hiking around 5:20am to Annapurna Base Camp
Day 7: spend the day at ABC
Day 8: wake up early for the stars and for sunrise at ABC, hike to Chomrong
Day 9: Chomrong to Siwai, rent a jeep or take the bus back to Pokhara

Hard, long, and the best trek of your life. Will make you happy to be alive and among the splendor and scale of the resting giants they call the Himalayas.

PERMITS:

Permits and TIMS cards can be purchased in the Nepal Tourism Board Office on Pradarshani Marg in Kathmandu

Sagarmatha National Park entry permit fee for foreigners (3,390 NPR / $34).
Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Rural Municipality of Solukhumbu entrance fee (2,000 NPR / $20)
TIMS permit (2,000 NPR / $20)

TIPS:

I recommend flying into Lukla from Kathmandu. While the plane costs ~$180 both ways, you save a 13 hour jeep ride and strenuous 3 day hike to get to Lukla otherwise.
If trekking later in the season, crampons will be required for Cho La Pass.
Bring some ramen or snacks to supplement or replace meals for when you near Everest and food prices become ridiculous
Bring medicine for sore limbs and to relieve altitude sickness. If you start experiencing symptoms altitude sickness, compromise your schedule and take a rest day (better to be a day late than pay for a helicopter rescue).
Bring things to do (cards, journal, books, etc.), you will have lots of downtime
Necessary things to pack include: warm weather clothes (thermal layers, hats, gloves), rain gear, battery pack, cash, camera, extra socks

Unguided Gokyo Lakes and Everest Base Camp Itinerary (costs ~$300 on the trail, total costs with flights ~$650):

Day 1: From Kathmandu take a taxi to Lukla airport, fly into Lukla and hike to Phakding (4 hour hike - 8,713 feet)
Day 2: Trek to Namche Bazaar (4.5-6 hour hike - 11,318 feet) - last ATM on the trek, Himalaya Java offers free charging of devices and free WiFi. Ice Bar offers free movies related to Everest every night.
Day 3: Acclimatization day in Namche Bazaar
Day 4: Trek to Dole (13,398 feet)
Day 5: Trek to Machermo (14,468 feet)
- Optional: Second acclimatization day. If you are feeling the altitude (headaches, nausea) stop here.
Day 6: Trek to Gokyo (15,583 feet)
Day 7: Acclimatization day in Gokyo
Day 8: Ascent of Gokyo Ri at sunrise (**my favorite part of the hike, 17,988 feet), trek to Tragnag (15,389 feet)
Day 9: Trek to Dzongla via Cho La Pass (15,846 feet) - this day is hard, with false summits and endless rock scrambles, but the glacier is super cool and feelings of gratitude and accomplishment are abundant
Day 10: Trek to Gorak Shep
- If exhausted, you can also stop in Lobuche
Day 11: Sunrise trek of Kala Pattar (18,221 feet) then Everest Base Camp (17,575 feet)
Day 12: Trek to Namche Bazaar - another hard, never ending day...use the bakeries and promise of WiFi in Namche as motivation
Day 13: Trek to Lukla
Day 14: Flight back to Kathmandu

Nepal Destination Guides

KATHMANDU

ANNAPURNA BASE CAMP TREK

POKHARA

As the only city in the country with an international airport, odds are your Nepal journey starts here. And what better introduction into Nepal. As in the majority of Asian cities, Kathmandu represents the highest extreme of organized chaos, emphasis on the chaos. The sky obscured with telephone wire, cars weaving through narrow street, rickshaw drivers yelling over one another, hole in the wall shops offering promise of sale and salvation...the fast pace and congestion of this city is not for everyone. But despite all the noise and pollution (you'll get to experience Kathmandu cough firsthand), the city offers a very unique perspective on the country. Nepal's development is the slowest I have yet to witness. And though there are new trekking shops in the tourist district of Thamel, you feel as though nothing has really changed in the last 30 years. Because of this, there is a certain charm in the pace of life, in exploring the UNESCO sites, and inhaling the humid air touched with incense.