Introduction

Having just completed the Annapurna Circuit this year between 28th February and 16th March 2011 with Ric, a friend from Australia, and now back in London with some time on my hands I thought I’d write a few lines (or, as it turns out, more than a few) as to what we found had changed from the books. I’ll also mention some things that, if I’d known beforehand, would have saved me buying some kit I didn’t use and conversely taking along some items I forgot about.

I will clarify now; I don’t get free stuff for recommending items or kit. I’m not getting paid for writing this either.  I’m not saying my knowledge is complete or even still accurate or was even ever accurate. I’m not a doctor and know little or nothing about medication. It’s all my opinion based on the facts as I found them.  If stuff gets recommended by me on this site then it’s because I liked it, if you have found otherwise then sorry but I’m going to write it anyway. If you don’t like what I say, I won’t take it personally and please feel free to ignore the bits you disagree with.

For some sound basic knowledge you can’t beat the Lonely Planet books but sometimes they can’t keep as up to date as we would like them.


   Tip It’s a lot more expensive than the books say. Budget more rupees per day.


Why did I do it and why the Annapurna Circuit?

Back in 1993, the heady days of my youth, I was sat in the Rose & Thistle pub in Frimley Green, Surrey and was invited by Ric to join him and a friend to travel around Nepal and India for a few months. Having nothing but time on my hands I accepted. We started in Nepal and decided to try the Annapurna circuit. We seriously considered the Everest base camp trek but opted for the Annapurna circuit, as it didn’t involve retracing our route to get back and offered a different walk every day. That time we didn’t make it through the summit pass Thorong La through a combination of time, visas and weather. We ran out of the first, didn’t have enough left on the second and were unlucky with the third. C’est la vie. However the failure has bugged me ever since. I don’t like to fail at anything, even if it was out of my hands. It always felt like unfinished business.

Having tipped over the seemingly ancient age of 40 at the end of 2009 (you don’t feel old it’s just that everyone else looks a lot younger) and purchased the obligatory sports car to go with that, in order for me to complete my midlife crisis I decided to have another go at the Annapurna circuit. It would be a struggle, as I’m now, shall we say, not as slim as I was at 23 and somewhat less fit. In fact, to say the previous sentence is an understatement is, in itself, another understatement but take heart. If I can go from what I was to completing this trek, carrying my own kit then, unless you are a chain-smoking lump of lard, you can too. It takes more than a little effort but it’s worth it for the sense of achievement.

The Annapurna Circuit is currently a 15-19 day walk. It’s harder on the first half than the second. The highest and hardest part, and the ultimate aim of the Annapurna circuit, is getting over Thorong La pass (5416m or 17769ft). It’s about a 10+hr day of hard, hard graft. The previous days are really just getting you into shape for the crossing of the pass. The ‘down’ is also just as hard as the ‘up’. I’ll explain more about that statement later when I cover the trek itself. As to how high you’re going – to put it in some perspective, Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in Europe at 4810m; you’re going 600m higher than that, possibly carrying your own rucksack if you’re doing what we did. It’s high. You can easily suffer from altitude sickness and the lack of oxygen makes it a real effort. The Thorong La pass can be blocked by snow and impassable at any time of the year but generally it’s clear and safest from March-April and also September-November. People have died trying to go over it. Not actually that many given how many thousands do it every year but it’s not without an element of danger. Mostly it’s altitude sickness that’s your biggest risk but the odd avalanche doesn’t help. Ignore those headaches and reap the consequences. However, the scariest part of the trek for me this year wasn’t the pass, it was the day before. One part of that walk, crossing a frozen waterfall with no decent foot placements, with a near vertical drop down 30m, scared the living sh*t out of me. I made it over alive, so it can’t be that bad. Later that day they made another route round it but that was after we’d done the lunatic crossing. If you are unlucky enough to get a fresh snowfall on the pass when you’re there, it will open up in a day or two once the yaks have forged a path for us trekkers to follow. If it does get blocked for a day or two it can’t be helped but it can be planned for. It cost Ric & I our failure in 1993. We had no plan or days spare then in order to wait around. This time we made allowances for all eventualities. We didn’t need them but we had them just the same.