ANNAPURNA CIRCUIT TREK WITH TILICHO LAKE AND POON HILL 20 DAYS

Upon your arrival at the Tribhuwan International Airport (TIA) in Kathmandu, you will be greeted by a representative from Amar’s Treks who will transfer you at the hotel. Depending on time of arrival, plans will be made for a briefing meeting once you have settled in. For rest of the day you can rest at the hotel or go out to the streets nearby the hotel. Overnight in Kathmandu.

Included meals: D

Today after breakfast we start a guided tour to several of the most historical and spiritual attractions in Kathmandu. Some of these landmarks are considered World Heritage Sites including the historic Durbar Square, the sacred Hindu temple of (Pashupatinath), the famous 'Monkey Temple' (Swayambhunath) and Buddhist shrine (Bouddhanath) which is one of the largest stupas in the world. At noon, there will be a pre-trip discussion where we can meet our trek leader and other team members. Overnight in Kathmandu.

We begin our long drive to Syange early in the morning. On the way, we get to enjoy the countryside of Nepal with its green hills, winding rivers, terraced farms and of course the mighty Himalayas. Overnight in Syange.

We enter Manang district after crossing a large bridge near Tal. The trail passes through barley, rice and potato fields; and the waterfalls continue to accompany us even today. We also pass through the village of Kodo before reaching Dharapani which is one of the biggest villages in the Manang valley. Overnight in Dharapani.

Today we negotiate a few steep forested ridges along with several landslides on route to Chame. We should not forget to look up though, as we will be greeted with remarkable views of Lamjung Himal, Annapurna II, and Annapurna IV (7,525m). Overnight in Chame.

We walk through a steep and narrow valley to have our first view of Paungda Danda rock face, a dramatic curved rock face rising 1500m from the river. From here, we also gain excellent views of Annapurna 2 to the south and Pisang Peak to the north east. Overnight in Pisang.

From Pisang there are two routes to Manang. We choose the one which passes through Upper Pisang via Geru as it guarantees outstanding views of Mt. Annapurna, Pisang Peak, and others. As we walk near Manang the climate becomes more cold and dry. Overnight in Manang.

In order to keep fit on the trails that follow, we keep ourselves busy today with a short hike to either Bhojo Gumba or Gangapurna Lake. If we have the energy, we can even hike to Vraga Village where we can visit the Himalayan Rescue Association which will give us some idea about Acute Mountain Sickness (AMS). Overnight in Manang.

From Manang we head out through the western gates and follow the path down to the river. We cross the river and continue walking on its southern side through coniferous forest. The uphill walk could be tiring but we will have Gungang Himal and Mt. Chulu in the backdrop to keep us company. Overnight in Siri Kharka.

While the path from Siri Kharka to Tilicho Base Camp isn’t very steep or physically strenuous, it could be exhausting as we have to walk on narrow paths in loose scree and landslide area. Our trail goes through the middle of the landslide area whereby we can see impressive rock formations along the trail. Overnight in Tilicho Base Camp.

After the initial tough, steep, switch backed ascent, our trail continues to hug the side of the mountain in a gradual to steep incline before reaching the watershed. On the other side is Tilicho Lake, a large spectacularly set lake nestled at the foot of the north face of Tilicho Peak. The lake was referred to by the leader of the French expedition team as ‘The Great Ice Lake’. We retrace our step and return to Siri Kharka. Overnight in Siri Kharka.

We leave Siri Kharka and descend towards Khangsar Village. On the way, we pass Tare Gumba, a thousand year old monastery which is very important to the local people. We follow a rock wall out of Khangsar. We walk further more until we reach a seasonal bridge in the Thorang Khola valley. After crossing the river, we ascend for a while to a plateau. Next, walk furthermore until reaching Yak Kharka. Overnight in Yak Kharka.

It is an uphill walk to Thorang Phedi. After walking for some time we cross a suspension bridge and reach Ledar village. We ascend furthermore and pass through towering cliffs before reaching Thorang Phedi, the last village before Thorong La. On this trip we are rewarded with one of the best views of Mt. Gundang, Mt. Syagang, Thorung Peak and Mt. Khatungkan. Overnight in Thorang Phedi.

Crossing Thorong La pass, one of the highest passes in the world will be our ultimate objective today. We will be crossing the pass from east to west (Manang to Muktinath) which is the easiest and safest direction. We get up around three in the morning and walk up the mountain. When we finally make it to the top, we realize that our journey was worth it. Overnight in Muktinath.

In the morning we visit the Muktinath Temple which a sacred place for both Hindus and Buddhists. In Hinduism, the temple is believed to be a sacred place called Mukti Kshetra, which literally means the "place of liberation or moksha". After a visit to the sacred place, we drive to Tatopani and spend the night.

We leave the Kali Gandaki and headed up the Ghar Khola valley. The trail leads us through a terraced farmland with mountains all around. We pass through the villages of Shikha and Chitre before reaching a beautiful rhododendron forest. Walking furthermore we reach Ghorepani, a beautiful village located at a ridge top. Overnight in Ghorepani.

To catch the sunrise over the Himalayas, we make an early morning climb along the steep trail to the viewpoint of Poon Hill (3,210m/10,529ft), the most popular trekking destination of the Annapurna region. It is also a great viewpoint to enjoy the amazing views of Mustang, Pokhara and more than 20 of the highest mountains including the close-up views of the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri ranges. After taking photographs, we return back to Gorepani. After breakfast, we head east and climb a nearby ridge. We descend through rhododendron forests, pass by spectacular waterfalls and reach Tadapani to spend the night.

The trek from Tadapani until Ghandruk will be through a thick forest of rhododendron trees. After trekking for a while, we enter the village of Ghandruk, a slope settlement with stone houses mostly inhabited by the Gurung people. From here, we enjoy the towering views of the Fishtail, Annapurna South, and Hiunchuli mountains. We trek further to Naya Pul then drive to Pokhara. Overnight in Pokhara.

After breakfast, we say goodbye to the beautiful lake city of Pokhara and drive towards Kathmandu. After reaching Kathmandu you have the rest of the day off to rest or do some souvenir shopping.

Your adventure trip in Nepal comes to an end today. Amar’s Treks representative will escort you to the airport approximately 3 hours before your scheduled flight and will assist for the check-in procedures as well.