UKC

Hello everyone! 
I'm looking for advice for Trekking Companies and Routes in Nepal and hoped the UKC community could help  

Me (30) and my Dad (60) are thinking of going for approx 3 week this November 2024 and doing a decent sized hike. Both of us are fit - Dad's a keen fell running, but he wouldn't want to carry a heavy rucksack for the hiking, and neither of us have been to significant altitude previously.
We've no interest in Everest basecamp, and are hoping for that sweetspot of going somewhere fantastic without it feeling too overcrowded. The Annapuran circuit gets mentioned a lot but we're very open to all suggestions.

Given the above and the fact its our first time in the country, plus wanting to support local communities etc; we're looking for recommendations of decent Companies and trekking routes - obviously there's a lot so any recommendations would be really welcome! 

N.B I'm also looking at the details like visas, phone sims, etc but if anyone has any little nuggets a advise about making the most of Nepal, or knows something I might not have thought of, it would be great to hear it! 

Many thanks for all your help!
Dan 

In reply to dmurray:

Bear in mind the Annapurna Circuit is probably busier than EBC.

Manaslu Circuit or Langtang/Gosainkunda would spring to mind. 

In reply to dmurray:

Annapurna circuit may well be busier, but because it's a circuit and people generally go anticlockwise, you don't bump into that many people going the other way and it feels quieter. I would probably recommend it for a three week trip.

Otherwise Langtang is very good, and it's also possible to extend it to hike all the way back to Kathmandu via Gosainkund which is quite pleasant and was also very quiet.

I've not been since '18 and I understand you now need to employ a guide to be able to go trekking, which is a real shame as the guides take away much of the fun of exploring and freedom to make your own choices. A lot of them are also barely qualified or experienced enough and become a liability at higher altitudes, so be sure to get proper recommendations. If there's any way to do the trek independently I would suggest you do so.

In reply to dmurray:

A great trek (which I have done) is from Jiri to Dingboche, but then turn right and walk to Chukung (towards island peak) rather than following everyone to EBC (a different valley from Dingboche)

This starts in the foothills and forests and you acclimatise and get fit as you slowly gain height walking towards Namche Bazaar (6 days walking). The scenery is gorgeous. The Chukung Valley is stunning with Ama Dablam sitting resplendent to your right and Lhotse to your left. A scramble up Chukung Ri will see you at 5,500m with the best seat in Nepal looking at Ama Dablam (Far prettier than Everest IMO)

Gokyo Lakes are amazing too and worth considering (Imagine three fingers from Dingboche - EBC is the centre path, Gokyo the left path and Chukung the right path - all dead ends which you will reverse to get out of , unless you want to climb something very large lol)

I spent 3 months trekking in Nepal (Annurpuna circuit/EBC/Gokyo Lakes) and what I have described above was the most impressive and dramatic scenery IMO. It will not provide close up views of Everest, but EBC doesn't offer that either, Gokyo Lakes does.

I found the trekking towards EBC ( from Dingboche) quite hard work under foot.

Namche Bazaar is great and I flew out of there back to Kathmandu as didn't fancy the walk back to Jiri.

Caveat - this was 1999. I doubt much has changed

In reply to Bjartur i Sumarhus:

Ha! You'd be surprised.

In reply to Bjartur i Sumarhus:

I agree with almost all of that - but an awful lot has changed, even from '14-'18 the change in busyness and development was stark. I can't imagine the change since '99! I suppose the scenery will be the same.

In reply to Mowglee:

@Mowglee and @Tom Briggs - wow, that's interesting, what would be the biggest changes I would notice? 

When I went, I went alone, no guide and just found really nice people from all over to walk/eat with at various points. 

@dmurray take a big book, don't be a weight weeny. I read Shogun on the trek I described and it was the perfect companion 

In reply to dmurray:

Agreed avoid EBC, the three passes trek would be nice though if you want a shorter itinerary. Could go slightly off season if you want it quieter 

In reply to dmurray:

I’d go with Tom and Bjartur’s suggestions above and not the Annapurna circuit. Try going in October or preferably December rather than November as there would be fewer trekkers there at that time but weather still superb (Dec and January best in my opinion). My favourite trek is Langtang/Gosainkund (easy in your timeframe esp if your whole trip is only three weeks and you need a couple of days at start and end for looking around Kathmandu).
But, for first time visitors though I’d always suggest going to the Everest region. As said, in that region you have options for side valleys and passes after Namche; Thame/Renjo or Gokyo/Cho La) if you want to challenge yourself or just keep it simpler and go on the popular route towards EBC (but that’s still a challenge, it’s never easy). Everest region is also easier for logistics and in case anyone become ill. As also said EBC itself is only worth going to if you’d like to say you’ve been there so you don’t have to go the full way on that trek but can vary it as Bjartur suggests. For me, (my opinion) to go trekking in Nepal the first time, but not get to see Namche Bazaar/Everest and the peaks and valleys around it would be strange. Avoid crowds and go in January. Few people are there that month and if you get a little snow (not always) it’s unbelievable scenery. Overall better scenery / classic mountains than you’d see on the other treks. 

i moved to Nepal last November 2022 (to climb most of the trekking peaks and a few higher) so I pass along the main trek routes regularly. 

ps Your dad won’t need to carry anything other than a day sac. Go with a guide (mandatory now) and one porter. You’ll enjoy it much more that carrying all your own gear. Choice of SIM card depends on where you go as the NTC or NCell coverage is different in different regions. Visas are on arrival and straightforward.

There are good UK companies to go with and if they offer the trek you want then I’d go with them but if you want to vary from their normal advertised trek route or want the flexibility to rest/change plans during your trek then there are good local companies to go with. 

Have a great time!

In reply to Bjartur i Sumarhus:

some things I’ve noticed: 

++ Nepalese trekkers. Almost unseen until 2010. Great to see Kathmandu’s young people getting to see their own country and challenges faced by locals. I was in Langtang / Gosaikunda in March and from one day to the next daily trekkers I passed increased from 50 per day (walk in) to 250 per day (walk out) because University break started. 

++ Indian trekkers. Again rarely seen a decade ago. 

new lodges and rebuilt old lodges, esp since 2015 earthquake

much better monile cell and wifi connection 

less snow in winter versus 10 to 20 to 30 years ago (xmas/new year 2021 was a lot though) 

far more helicopters. 20 per day overhead. The rdgular heli service only started 2005? Lots of companies flying now and taking ‘tourists’ from Lukla to EBC and back in a morning. 

scenery is still amazing!!

Atmosphere in lodges not same as before. Until 2000 ? everyone would be in the dining room as one large group, Nepal guides, porters and foreign clients every evening but nowadays in many of the larger lodges foreigners are at one end and guides in a group at the other. Not quite same. 
 

 

In reply to Bjartur i Sumarhus:

Since then Nepal has had a civil war and its economy is over three times bigger. That’s quite a lot of change…

In reply to dmurray:

Dhaulagiri  circuit is the best trek I have done in Nepal, still feels quite remote, few tea houses and development.

In reply to andrewm1000:

ha, I trekked Langtang / Gossaikunda and there were 4 of us trekking in the entire region.  This was not long after 9/11 in late September 

In reply to dmurray:

Re guiding companies - lots of good ones. Personally, I've used Katmandu based itrek Nepal four times. Their Mr fixit, Shree, was unbelievable when we had two medical issues, me contracting pneumonia on the Kanchenjunga trek and my wife suffering kidney failure at Gokyo. One guide and one or two porters giving a lot of flexibility on the routes. As others have done I would highly recommend the Everest area. I've been twice, but never to EBC. I'd highly recommend the 3 cols trip. I also loved the Manaslu trek and you could add on the Annapurna circuit as the manaslu trek ends at a junction with day 2 or 3 of Annapurna. We also enjoyed the Kanchenjunga trek visiting North and South Base camps. We found Langtang/Gosaikund beautiful but very busy, definitely bottom of our list. 

In reply to dmurray:

Other good info here, but just to add... I think the Manalsu Circuit might be up your alley, looks spectacular. The Khumbu and Annapurna will def have more people and it can be a real issue on many fronts. Plus the AC is mostly road now (yes, I know there are new alternate parallel routes), but it's not the same.

Langtang is nice, but relatively short for what you seek. Dhaulagiri area is great but always the chance weather will cut off access to the high section (Hidden Valley etc), it's very exposed up there and by November there's a good chance early winter will come in and scupper things. Not a place to get stuck.

Don't worry about the trekking guide thing. In reality it will be almost meaningless - the Khumbu was ignoring it as they have their own rules, and for several of the other good big treks (Manaslu, Mustang etc) you already needed permits, an agency, etc so that basically meant guides anyway.

In reply to dmurray:

 

I did the Annapurna circuit by mountain bike in 2017 - because of the tea shops on the way, you don't need to carry much food or bedding and you can travel pretty light. One of our party actually ran it with about a 25l day sack.

Altitude can be an issue - one of our party suffered really badly with it over the Thorong La pass, but recovered quickly once heading down again. And that was with taking Diamox.

In reply to andrewm1000:

Would you consider a short (4 day?) 'trek' a waste of time?

I'm turning 60 soon and fancied visiting Nepal as part of the celebration. However what is clear is that there's no way my wife could cope with my preferred option of a 3 week trek. So rather than just not go I'm now thinking of maybe visiting India with a short visit to Nepal, which is possibly better than never going at all.

In reply to dmurray:

In answer to the OP, I did Gokyo Ri trek in 2017 over 9/10 days.....quite simply the best experience of my life. You get to see Namche, then get to avoid the crowds somewhat after that.

To the poster above, I personally wouldn't think that 4 days would be worth it. 

I'd definitely book a guide out there rather than through a UK provider.

In reply to Tom Guitarist:

Sadly that's what I suspected.....now how do I tell the wife I'm going anyway......

In reply to Graeme G: A four day trek is possible north of Pokhara and views of the Annapurna Range spectacular. That would be Ghorepani or Mardi Himal treks. Check the itineraries online. I have friends visiting in November for something along those lines. That’s four trekking days though, and not four days ‘in Nepal’ which couldn’t really be done in that timeframe. Regards

In reply to Graeme G:

A day spent almost anywhere in the Indian subcontinent is, in my opinion, never a waste of time. But remember that it’s a place which eats time and plans for breakfast, so it’s best to be unambitious in terms of what you can get done. There is plenty of great trekking in India which you can fit into a husband and wife type trip, assuming that she wants to go somewhere vaguely near the trailhead. Alternatively, once you’re there you’ve paid the big costs like flights and visas, why not just add on an extra week or two if possible? 

In reply to seankenny:

Work, sadly 😢

In reply to dmurray:

Information on the TIMS and Guide rules from the Kathmandu Post

https://kathmandupost.com/money/2023/03/31/nepal-tourism-board-has-issued-n...

According to National Geographic

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/nepal-bans-solo-trekking-...

"the new restrictions still leave hundreds of miles of lower-altitude trekking trails accessible to solo hikers, including approach routes used by early Himalayan mountaineers in the 1950s. Those who crave the freedom to trek unaccompanied can take the trails that snake through the Middle Hills around Kathmandu, Bandipur, Gorkha, Dhampus and Panchase near Pokhara. Here, you can still get a taste of the solo adventuring that existed in the days of Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay."