Getting High...Naturally!

Amazing!

Far and away the best hike I have ever done. I cannot put into words all the beautiful things I saw so my advice is to get out here and do it yourself. Just so I leave you with no excuses if you ever want to do just one of the following, then you have officially signed yourself up for the Annapurna Circuit.

1. Get fit
2. Lose weight
   
3. ...while eating as much as you want, whenever you want
4. Experience Nepali rural life
5. Be exposed to a new culture
6. Build ripping leg muscles
7. Get high, real high. legally
8. Hike one of the worlds most beautiful National Parks
   
9. Get away from mosquitos
   
10. Accomplish something you can be proud of
11. Experience unforgettable scenery

Anyone sold yet??

Just a brief description before you get to see the Top 20.

It was the least prepared I have come for a trip, having in my pack a lot of dead weight like a tent, sleeping mat, cooking gear and oversize novels. Combined with not coming with things like good waterproof gear or a liner for my pack, a torch worth more than $2 that wont break halfway round, or even enough money to make it to the next bank. Twice I was bailed with K Rudd stimulus packages of 5000 and 2000 rupees, when I wrongly assumed there would be a bank in one town and then when I got to a town that did have an ATM and it wouldn't work! Heck, I even walked the trail in tennis shoes.

It did get intimidating at times. I remember at about Day 4 thinking, 'Man, I'm gunna still be on this track in two weeks time!'. Or being faced with 3680 steps with a pack strapped to you (I was lucky enough to be heading down them but that was bad enough)

But...

The walk takes you from 800m to over 5400m passing through rain-forest, pine-forest, jungle, snow, ice, farmland, rice fields, marijuana fields, barren hills, snow capped peaks, lakes, rivers, canyons waterfalls and villages...there is nothing that this trek didn't have. So stop sitting around and come and see for yourself!!



Now for the Top 20, which I couldn't put in any particular order because it was too hard. I also found it too hard to cull it down to twenty so there are actually 30 photos here..shhh don't tell anyone.

My two mates from New Zealand in our simple lodge


Buffalo on the trail


Anthony, a future famous writer


The view from Poon Hill


Rhododendron forest with 7th highest mountain out back


Beautiful Nepalese woman


Pine forest that looked like the Rockies


The No 1 porter carrying a whopping 65kg


A river I slid down to follow to Kagbeni


The avalanche chute I slid down to get there


Sunrise on the way to the top


Making the most of getting lost


Really making the most of it


The culprit responsible (a savage dog) next to the tent


My gear


Tilicho Lake (4912m, The worlds highest)


The view on the way up to the lake


The Landslide area you cross to get to the lake


Another amazing view on the way from the lake


Annapurna 1 (8091m)


A beautiful canyon


The stunning town of Braga


The man responsible for such a Good Friday


And views like this


And this


And meals that could rival the scenery


Sun coming up on the way to Dharapani


Rice Fields in the lowlands


People just going about their lives


The morning view from Chame

The Stats

Duration: 17 days
Showers: 2.2 (In my defence the .2 is for the two times I believed the shower was actually going to be "hot" as advertised)
Money spent: 19,000 Rupees ($285 AUD)
Stimulus Packages Obtained: 2
Distance hiked: 202km
Including side trips & getting lost: 270km
Pack Weight: 26-28kg
Highest Altitude: 5416m
Lowest Altitude: 890m
Avg Bed Time: 7:45pm
Times lost: 3* (*my 4th attempt was thwarted by a nice group of Nepali construction workers)
Most expensive water: 270NR (I thought 200 at the place I was staying was steep so I walked two and a half hours in the morning to where it would surely be cheaper...wrong)
Least expensive water: 35NR (Still more than the 15 you pay in Kathmandu, but a steal compared to 270!)
Best Meal: Veg Sizzler (300 Rupees)
Money spent on equipment: 650, one hiking pole
Most impressive porter: 65kg which is more than he weighed!
Favorite Hotel: New Yak Hotel, Braga
Highlights: The food, the scenery, the people I met, taking the Upper Pisang route, snowfall, and Ice Lake on Good Friday
Lowlights: Finding out a "hot spring" I waited around for was actually both a puddle and the community bath, hitting 'rock bottom' when I ripped my shorts coming down a rock slide and the dusty walk on the road into Jomsom

Look forward to hearing about your experience on the trail!
Love Andrew