Nepal Spring 2017

No everyone is aware of potential problems of meeting your trekking staff at trailheads – Especially if you are considering hiring one direct and not through an agent

Photo of my own trekking staff at Lobuje

These pitfalls include
1) Problems getting the correct TIMS Card – These can only be issued through TAAN Registered agents and now include a certain amount of trekking staff insurance (Good agents top this up) –The only TIMS Cards that are available at the Park Gates are the Green (FIT) TIMS cards and these are only for trekkers trekking without trekking staff.
2) The likelihood of any trekking staff waiting at trailheads to have insurance is at best debatable and if they don’t have any, it is your responsibility should they either fall ill or have an accident
3) Supply and demand – In busy times there aren’t always trekking staff available for hire at trailheads and even when there are just a few, the prices can be more than you would pay going through a Kathmandu based agent
Not everyone is aware of the above, so forearmed is forewarned
Good Luck and Happy Safe Travels
Rob

1) Arrive Kathmandu and transfer to your hotel – Depending on what time your flight arrives, maybe some local sightseeing around Kathmandu Durbar Square then and sunset at Swayambhunath - Overnight in Kathmandu Hotel
2) Breakfast, then Transport from your hotel to airport and morning flight to Pokhara – Afternoon sightseeing- Overnight in Pokhara Hotel

3) Early morning rise, boat over lake and trek to World Peace Pagoda, then walk to Tibetan Refugee Camp and then see Devi Falls before returning to hotel, freshen up, lunch and the afternoon Paragliding or Micro-Light flight - Overnight in Pokhara Hotel

4) Picked up by private car from your hotel by private car, sunrise in Sarangkot, then transported to Bandipur and overnight there Overnight in Bandipur Hotel / Home-Stay
5) Picked up by private car from your hotel by private car and transported to Manakamana Cable Car Station – Ride up, see the temple and then return to car for onward transportation to Bhaktapur – Afternoon / Evening sightseeing - Overnight in Bhaktapur Hotel
6) Morning sightseeing and transported to Boudnath, sightseeing there then lunch overlooking the stupa then either car or walk to Pashupatinath, sightseeing and return to Kathmandu Hotel

7) Spare day for sightseeing / shopping – Perhaps a morning Mountain Flight - Overnight in Kathmandu Hotel
8) Transport to Airport for international flight

For a hotel in Kathmandu, The Kathmandu Embassy Hotel comes highly recommended and has the advantage of offering a free airport pick-up included in their already very reasonable room rate, this will certainly make life easier for you when you arrive in Nepal
Good Luck and Happy Safe Travels

Rob

As an refugee from VT, this is my first entry on TP, so I haven’t quite got used to the editing system over here ;-) – Never-the Less, I hope you enjoy this little blog of a trip way off the beaten path in the Wild West of Nepal :-)

This is my 11th trip to Nepal (I am writing this from my favourite hotel in Kathmandu and as usual this is a dual mission of a holiday as well as having some stock made for my little Nepal venture, Pro-Tector So, after some time in Kathmandu, I headed off on a little adventure to see Rara Lake with my Nepali friend of 23 years.

Even though the report in the “Himalayan Times” was that the weather was bad

We decided to stick toi our plan, so Nirmal (My Good Nepali friend of more than 23 years) and I took an afternoon flight from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj in the Terai and stayed there overnight in a simple hotel

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We organised a jeep to take us the 350km from there to Jumla, well when we set off, that’s where we thought we were heading for ;-)

After leaving the main H1 Terai Highway we turned right and headed for the hills, first on H12, then onto H13 “The Karnali Highway”


We took some advice en-route and after about 10 hours in the jeep on some “Difficult” roads.

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It was Holi and there were some very colourful people playing in the village’s en-route

Then we said goodbye to the jeep at the small roadside town of Nagama where the road either turns right to Jumla of continues to the north
After a night here in a very simple lodge,
the next morning we took the local bus heading north on the F154, sitting in the small cramped cabin in the front of the bus with about 10 other Nepali’s and the driver

This is where we now disappear from Google Maps ;-) The “Road” was appalling, just a dirt track clinging to the side of the mountain and we slipped and slid around often getting g stuck in deep mud caused my recently melted snow and having to dig ourselves out – We arrived at a small town mid afternoon and the bus wasn’t going any further so we got out

Here we negotiated a price to continue on what one could only very loosely describe as a road and I was very happy now to be in a Toyota Landcruiser and not the bus :-)

I have Never been on a road anything like this as we went higher and higher on a narrow crumbling ledge Up and Up



Until we ran into snow and could go no further. It was now dark so we found a Very simple lodge at a hamlet called Bhulbhule and stayed overnight.

Up at 6 the next morning and now on foot continued Up through the snow, we left the road and turned left at an army camp at around 3200m on a “Shortcut” over a mountain pass in deep snow, again Up and Up to the summit at around 3500m

and then a Long way down, again through deep snow and on a very slippery path

We eventually made the dirt road in the other side of the mountain and continued to walk on that until we came to a small village and stopped for a bite to eat

We were now in sightof the high ridge which was the location of Talcha Airstrip – However, I had now been walking for more than 10 hours and I was starting to struggle but because of the snow, there were no vehicles on the road even though we were now below the snowline so I had to keep walking. After another hour or so a local came the other way on a horse


so Nirmal flagged him down and I rode the last 1 ½ hours up to Talcha, Nirmal had a cup of tea then kept walking, the horse and local returned to pick him up and an hour later we were safely tucked up in a slightly better lodge than the previous 2 nights at Talcha.

We had a flight booked for the next morning back to Nepalgunj, so although we hadn’t reached our original goal of Rara Lake, I was tired and ready to be back in civilisation and Nirmal had already been out of Kathmandu for over 4 days and had to be back too. so rather than try to change the flight ticket we headed back to Kathmandu via Nepalgunj the next day

Everyone was very happy to see the 10am flight arrive, even though it was nearly 4 hours late – Well 10am and 13.45 are almost the same time in Nepal ;-)



But had a bonus and flew over Rara Lake so got to see it in the end – All be it from the air ;-)


So - As the saying goes – “Things have a habit of working out in Nepal, but often, not as you expected then to” -)

Thanks for taking the time to read this, my fist entry on TP :-)
Best Regards Rob