My wife Kyla and I have just got back from a fantastic 4 day trek from Birethanti to Poon Hill and back again. Our guide was Shiva. He was a wonderful guide and we had fun from start to finish. On the first day, we trekked from Birethandi to Ulleri. This took approximately five hours and was tough in parts but enjoyable. The first nights lodgings were simple but very authentic with fantastic views of the mountains. On the second day, we trekked from Ulleri to Ghorepani. This was another five hours. Another beautiful day trekking through some amazing villages with friendly people. The guesthouse in Ghorepani was very plush for the mountains with hot showers and friendly staff. On the third day, we trekked up to Poon Hill. Unfortunately, the weather was not on our side so we were not to see the much anticipated views from the peak. I think this was poor timing on our part as we still had the tail end of the monsoon. Still, we continued our trek to Gandruk through the forest, seeing monkeys, birds and many local friendly people. The lodgings on the third night were simple again but with fantastic views and good food. I woke up with a badly twisted knee and Shiva, the guide, fashioned a walking stick and wrapped my knee up with a bandage. This enabled me to complete the trek with my wife.

In summary, enough can’t be said about our excellent trek. Our guide Shiva was perfect from start to finish and we had many a good laugh and happy times. The trek provided a good insight into Nepali life and the day to day existence of the locals. I would not hesitate in recommending Guru and Jomsom Treks and Expedition Ltd to organise and assist you in the planning and execution of any treks in Nepal that you may be thinking of in the future.

Good luck and happy travels.

Peter Townsend
Birmingham
England

N.B. Please feel free to e-mail me with any queries

I would avoid alcohol as this will be even more potent at altitude and make sure you drink lots of water. I walked alone in the hills around Serangkot and cycled around the lake and did not have any trouble at all but I would recommend trying to find a walking companion if you can and always make sure you tell someone where you are going and what time you are expected back. I did not see any evidence of trouble around Pokhara with Maoists but the Lonely Planet does warn about not walking to the Pagoda alone from Pokhara due to some muggings. Nepal is on the whole a very safe country as long as you seek local advice and much safer than many western cities at night. You will find that October is a very popular time for trekking so there should be plenty of people around to go walking with and you will meet lots of people on the trek. Hope that helps and have a wonderful time.

Kathryn

Thanks for all your lovely comments. I was particularly wowed by Andi’s amazing photos of Brazil and the Amazon. I recommend you have a look if you get a chance.

Where to next?
I hear that Machu Picchu will also be open again on April 1 after all the landslides which damaged
the railway and that the full rail service will be restored by Summer 2010 – date to be confirmed – so maybe that will be my next trip but I’m sure I’ll want to walk there if I can!

Best Wishes

Kathryn

Well done on this solo adventure. You have put our trip to Egypt totally in the shade

PS You’ve made me desperate to travel to Nepal now. I’m off to India in 2 weeks and I wish I had the time to fly over to its neighboring country…