Annapurna, Nepal: A Trekker's Guide

• Location
• Description
• Contents
• Introduction
• Sample Route
• Maps
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• Further Reading

November 2009

Until recently the Annapurna Circuit was one of the World’s classic treks, a three-week extravaganza of magnificent scenery and cultural diversity.  But the hill country of Nepal is sprouting roads like bindweed, and the valley of the Kali Gandakhi which drains the western side of the Annapurnas (where it cuts between Dhaulagiri and Annapurna I, it’s the deepest valley on Earth) can now be driven along from Pokhara to the pilgrim site of Muktinath.  Another road has been created from Tibet into the once-forbidden kingdom of Mustang, and it is thought that the Kali Gandakhi road north of Jomosom will eventually join it, making it possible for vehicles to journey all the way from lowland Nepal to the high plateau of Tibet – and vice versa.

Now a parallel road is being created on the eastern side of the Annapurnas, through the valley of the Marsyangdi.  By the post-monsoon season of 2009 buses could travel as far as Bhulbhule north of Besisahar, thereby reducing the start of the Annapurna Circuit by half a day.  However, this road continues much deeper into the valley and sections of it have so far almost reached Dharapani, destroying lengths of trail and many terraced fields, and forcing trekkers across man-made landslides and along temporary and in some cases unstable ‘paths’.

Many villagers are deeply unhappy about this new road, and fear its impact, for a lot of time, money and effort has been invested in creating some of Nepal’s finest lodges to accommodate the thousands of trekkers who, in the past, have flocked to the region.  If the Annapurna Circuit is to continue to attract trekkers, a new route will need to be created, which will ignore a number of lodges and villages now devalued by the road’s presence – for who would travel all the way to Nepal to walk on a dirt road?

Those of us who love Nepal and the Nepali people may question the value of such ‘progress’ and regret the degradation of a once-sacred landscape.  On a practical level, so far as trekking is concerned, the Annapurna Circuit has lost its magic.  Be warned: a number of trails described for Treks 1 & 3 in the Annapurna guide can no longer be used – please follow signs where they redirect the route, and take great care if you find yourself on a trail near road-building works, for Health & Safety considerations are virtually unknown here….  Trek safely and stay alert.

Kev Reynolds