Short Annapurna Circuit Trek

On the first day of the Annapurna Circuit Trek, you will arrive in Kathmandu and be taken to your hotel pickup from Glory Adventure. Your flight to Nepal will be one to remember as it is scenic with a plethora of peaks seen up north. The Tribhuvan International Airport is where you have to work out your tourist visa to Nepal, without this you will not be able to journey with us.

To successfully obtain your tourist visa to Nepal, you will have to submit a couple of documents. These mandatory papers include a valid passport, proof of accommodation, bank receipt of visa fees, and 2 passport-sized photos (recently taken). If you are traveling to Nepal during the peak travel season of Spring and Autumn, we recommend you fill out an online tourist visa application form.

During peak season the airport can get a little crowded, especially the immigration booth section, forcing you to stand in a long line for visa application forms. If you fill out a digital form, you will be given a confirmation slip which you have to print out and submit at the airport. You can skip the line with this approach.

On second of the Annapurna Circuit Trek is your first day of traveling to the Annapurna region. We are in for a long drive, approximately 10 hours if the traffic conditions are good on the highway. Thus, we will begin our road trip early in the morning.

The road we will be taking goes up to Manang but to give our bodies a better chance of acclimatization, it is recommended to start the trek from Chame. But first, we will have to get to Besisahar, change into a local jeep, and continue the ride.

Crossing bridges, passing beautiful waterfalls, hills, and Annapurna region villages, we will reach Chame and spend a cozy night there.

Today’s trek from Chame to Pisang is about 15 km long and takes about 5 hours in total, including breaks. We will set off after breakfast around 8 in the morning. The Himalayan scene we see from our accommodation in Chame will motivate us to start the trek. In about 1.5 hours, we will reach our first stop, Bhratang, covering 7 kilometers from Chame. This village, situated at an altitude of 2850 meters, houses an apple farm and a cafe.

You can try their famous fresh apple juice and coffee lovers will breathe a sigh of relief getting to taste their fix in such a remote village. After a short refreshing break, we will get back on track and reach Dhukur Pokhari. This part will require another 1.5 hours of hiking, covering a distance of 4.5 km.

To get to Dhukur Pokhari, we will hike a cliffside trail with the Marsyandi River flowing down on the other side (left-hand side). We will also pass a waterfall on the way, these waterfalls are one of the main sources of water for the rivers and the locals. Ultimately, we will reach a bridge after which comes a Pine forest that leads to Dhukur Pokhari.

This village is a great place to rest and explore, we can have an early lunch here if you feel like it. Or we can hold it till we get to Pisang, which is about 3.5 km away. The trail from Dhukur Pokhari to Pisang is almost all downhill.

Following the Marsyangdi River, we will go down the descending trail for about an hour till we reach Pisang. Situated at an altitude of 3300 meters, you can restack your depleting supplies here, or you can wait till we get to Manang where the stores are more all-encompassing.

We will arrive at Pisang around 1 PM in the afternoon which leaves us with plenty of time to explore the village or go on an acclimatization hike.

From Pisang, you can have the option to choose the trekking trail, which is a 6-hour hike through the rugged trail, or the road track, which is plain and simple and takes about 3 hours. The trekking trail is undoubtedly the difficult one but it is also the more scenic trail. We recommend you take the trekking trail as you can walk on the roads of the city you live in. It’s not every day you get to walk along the Annapurna forests.

Taking the trekking trail, we will first get to Ghyaru, a remote village at 3730 meters of altitude. From Pisang, we will have to walk about 2 hours, covering 5 km to get there. We will also cross a river in the process.

Continuing the trek, we will now get on the trail to Ngawal. The trail leads us to a pass but the steepness of the track is not alarming. Enjoying the scene of Annapurna II and the pristine forest, we will get to Ngawal after hiking 5 km. This section of the trek takes 1.5 hours taking us to an altitude of 3560 meters. This village is a popular lunch spot but it might be a bit early for lunch; we can hold it till we get to Braga.

Our next leg of the trek takes us to Braga. This village is 8km away from Ngawal and takes about 1.5 hours to reach. The trail slightly declines and drops into the valley, passing a quarry and taking us through a forest. We will likely stop at Braga for lunch.

Manang to Braga is the last portion of the trek and it’s an easy one; only takes 30 minutes and 2 km of hiking. The trail itself is plain, with no ups and downs.

This day of the Annapurna Circuit Trek is often just labeled as “acclimatization day” rather than “hike to Chongkor Viewpoint” that is because this is an acclimatization hike rather than a scenic destination (which it is). This acclimatization hike is 16 km long (back and forth) taking us to a maximum altitude of 4600 meters.

The hike begins from Manang, sitting at an altitude of 3750 meters, this viewpoint is the one and only in the region and also near our accommodation. Zig-zagging through the slope, we will continue hiking up, taking in the views of the peaks and the valley below. We will start the day with breakfast at around 8 in the morning, crossing the Marsyangdi River, we will get to the foothill of the viewpoint.

As we cross the river, the Gangapurna Lake comes into view. It takes around 30 minutes to reach that point. From there, the trail gets steep as we have to climb to 3750 m of altitude. From the top of the viewpoint, scenes of the glacier, Ganagapurna Lake, Mt. Gangapruna, Mt. Pisang, Mt. Tilicho, and more is prominent. All in all, this acclimatization hike requires around 3 hours of hike (back and forth).

The way down to Manang is way easier than the climb and should take half the time of the ascent. Although this day is called a “rest” day there is actually more ascent than the previous trekking days.

Note: Acclimatization refers to adapting to the extreme highland environment by following preventive measures of altitude sickness. This includes keeping your body well-hydrated, climbing to a high location but sleeping at a lower altitude, and more. Acclimatization techniques keep you from suffering from altitude sickness which is a major condition that can even make you give up the trek.

Day 6 of the Annapurna Circuit Trek starts at an altitude of 3540 meters in Manang and ends at 4100 meters at Yak Kharka. Any kind of vehicles are prohibited from entering from this point on so you will not see any asphalt roads moving on which is great for the highland nature.

Starting the trek to Yak Kharka, we will first pass a river over a bridge, followed by a lake which takes us out of Manang. The trail then leads us to the grazing field of local Yaks and ultimately to Gunsang, our first stop of the day. Reaching Gunsang is definitely challenging as the trail is steep, gaining us an altitude of 400 meters. Once we arrive at the village, we will have our lunch and there is a cafe as well which is yet another victory for coffee lovers.

After our short break, we will continue on the journey to Yak Kharka. This section of the trek is relatively easy with some ups and downs but nothing crazy. We will cross a couple of hanging bridges and hike some narrow paths which are sometimes overcrowded by the local cattle transporting goods to the nearby villages. The views on the way today will be very pristine as there are no roads or vehicles and the snow-covered peaks stand tall up north.

Today’s trek will last approximately 4 hours, with 11 km of distance to be covered. Since we will reach Yak Kharka in the afternoon, we can explore the village till the evening or go on a short acclimatization hike to Ledar which takes about an hour back and forth.

Day 7 of the Annapurna Circuit Trek is an easy trekking day as we have to cover only 6.5 km which can be done in under 3 hours. The first portion of the trek starts with a slightly inclined path up to Ledar, our water break spot, and continues to a bridge followed by a descent to another hanging bridge.

From there, the trail takes a sharp incline form with a 50-meter landslide-prone area. This area requires one person to be on the lookout for falling rocks while the others pass the section turn-wise. Our guide will be the one to look out for you guys. Following this section, we will get to Thorong Phedi.

At the village, you can get baked goods; getting even the common foods is hard enough in this region as it is not as accessible as other villages with roads. As we will have plenty of time on our hands, we will set off for a short acclimatization hike after leaving our bags at the accommodation.

After we are done with the short hike, we recommend you get plenty of rest as tomorrow is a difficult day, the day of climbing Thorong La Pass.

Today is the ultimate day of the Annapurna Circuit Trek; we will finally reach Muktinath after crossing the Thorong La Pass. We have a 9-hour day trek today which calls for an early start, preferably 6 AM in the morning as you do not want to experience the cold afternoon breeze up in Thorong La Pass.

First off, we will get to high camp which should take about an hour at max, given there are no unforeseen hindrances. This portion is just 1 km of a relatively simple steep climb. After a quick break, we will resume the climb and start the final portion of the trek to the pass. The trail might be covered in snow which makes it slippery, so the use of microspikes is highly recommended.

From high camp, we will reach the top of Thorong La Pass in about 2 hours. You will find a small tea house at the summit that primarily sells hot tea and instant coffee with some local snacks. We will stay there for a short time, appreciating the view, and acknowledging our effort.

From the pass, 5416 m, we will begin our descent down to Muktinath, 3670 m. This descent might sound easy but it really pressures your knees as the trail gets slippery at times. We will have to travel through mud, loose pebbles, and snow to get to Muktinath. From snow-covered hills and peaks, the scene changes to green hills and vibrant villages as we lose altitude rapidly.

Getting to Jomson from Muktinath is a relatively easy hike but we will have to cover almost 20.5 km which can be tiring. Avoiding the vehicle road, we will take the trekking trail that goes through multiple settlements of the valley. Today, the environment completely changes and offers you basically a highland desert experience with dust blowing all over and a swift afternoon breeze.

Our first destination is Kagbeni, which is at an altitude of 3670 meters. We will stop there for lunch and also visit one or two of the local monasteries. This village is one of the prettiest in the valley with traditional stone houses paired with modern outlets (cafes, bakeries, etc.).

After an energizing lunch, we will continue the trek and cross a river followed by hiking duty trails. We will reach Jomson from Muktinath in about 8 hours including all breaks.

Note: We understand that some people might want to avoid the last part of the trek especially if there is a lot of dusty involved. That is why we offer rides from Muktinath to Jomson as well. This is an extra service, exclusive of the Annapurna Circuit trek cost.

Day 10 of the Annapurna Circuit Trek is the end of your adventure in the highlands of Nepal. We will take an early morning flight out to Pokhara, yet another amazing destination to explore. If you are up for it, we can arrange a sightseeing tour for you, taking you to a bunch of beautiful destinations within the city.

Driving back to Kathmandu on a tourist bus, you will definitely recall all the fun memories and the tiring climbs of the Annapurna Circuit Trek. We truly hope that your trek has been a huge success and that it has turned out to be a memory of a lifetime.

Day 12 is officially your last day of the Annapurna Circuit Trek. After we sort out the final procedures, we will transport you to the international airport for your next destination.