Annapurna Circuit Trek
Annapurna Circuit Trek is known as classicial trek in Nepal. Annapurna region is world popular route as the ‘world’s greatest trek’ with fine reason – a title it’s earned and retained over all these years since the route first opened in 1977. From the highest mountains to the deepest gorges, the longest suspension bridges swaying to the overzealous winds to crossing the most scenic settlements in high mountains with deep valleys, the greenest lands thick with forests to regions as dry as dust and bone – this trek is 155 kms of sheer awe.
Starting from the capital city of Nepal, Kathmandu, you are in the middle of giants on touchdown into the country. Following the drama of the Marsyangdi River as it unhesitatingly cuts its way through the Himalayas, the trail takes you through two separate river valleys crossing over from one to the other through the highest point of the trek, Thorang La Pass – which lies at the edge of the Tibetan Plateau at an elevation of 5,416M.
In addition to the photogenic corridors, the mountains you witness on the Annapurna Circuit Trek are so high, it is quite a task to distinguish between snow-clad peaks and the milk-white clouds – the peaks in the region truly reach for the stars and make it there! To add to the constant company of the mighty Annapurna massif and other 8000ers towering in your vicinity all along its route, glacial lakes are another addition to the trail’s very rich assortment of features. From Ice Lake (4,620M) half a day’s hike away from the beautiful village of Manang to Tilicho Lake at 4,919M bang in the middle of the Annapurna range of Himalayas, the trail for Annapurna Circuit Trek will have you swooning for its unimaginable beauty, and the surprises in terrain through and through. Along with the most diverse trekking landscapes of any trek in Nepal, the trek also offers distinct religious and cultural settlements high up in these folds of the Himalayas. From the lush, green Hindu villages at the foothills of these regions to the arid Buddhist lands with the colourful prayer flags sputtering to the high winds on the trail’s higher reaches, it’s as much of a cultural indulgence as it is a rendezvous with the illustriousness of Nepal Himalayas.
The trek is known more for its diverse terrain than its difficulty. Which is to say that Annapurna Circuit Trek is not overly demanding aside from a few days which run long and a few slopes that climb steep including the altitude the trek takes you to? Given these, it helps to have a certain level of fitness and some kind of experience in the Himalayas for two reasons. One, so that you are able to adapt to the thinning air better and two, so you are better able to read the signs from your body for if you are experiencing difficulties in the terrain.
Annapurna Circuit Trek is accessible all year round except monsoons during which excessive rain and snowfall make parts of the trail difficult to cross. Spring and autumn are usually the best seasons to come here. Stay on this page for more information on Annapurna Circuit Trek.