Annapurna Base Camp, 4130m above sea level with mountains surrounding you 360 degrees. No words nor photos can truly justify the atmosphere and whole experience but I’ll give it a try.
I didn’t choose to climb ABC for a relaxing, easy weekend walk, I wanted a challenge and it is one challenge I’m pleased to have chosen.

We started our hike on Saturday 24th, supposedly at 8am. However, I was accompanied by two other guys and safe to say we were still doing last minute packing at 8am. We eventually left at around 9:30 and picked up a fast walking pace. We had a packed lunch on the first day so we could walk for longer and soon after had reached a peaceful village called Bamboo, our overnight stay for the night. The lodges around here are pretty basic but the choice of food is fantastic. I chose to have an omelette & chapatti for dinner, then spaghetti with tomato sauce for breakfast. Not sure why I chose that way round but it was still tasty.

Sunday morning started with a 7am breakfast and surprisingly we left on time for todays hike. Walking slow was not an ethos we followed and we were passing hikers of all ages and experience. Blasting out music along the walk we quickly got a reputation and seeing people of all nationalities smiling, singing and dancing along to our music kept everyone happy. 5 hours later we had reached Machhapuchhre Base Camp (MBC) where we stopped for lunch. I ordered a dal-bhat, a popular Nepali dish that includes rice, potatoes, vegetables and some type of sauce. The best thing about the dish is they keep refilling it for free! I decided to bankrupt the place of their rice and potatoes and by the end of the meal I was called Mr.Hungry.

Sunday afternoon, 3pm, we had reached Annapurna Base Camp. Due to the engulfing clouds the view was…non existent. That gave us time to settle into our room, change clothes and take a look around. Towards dinner time the clouds cleared and the views were breath-taking. Above me were 7000 metre peaks that were so crisp, so clear, so mesmerising. Below my feet was a U-Shape valley, carved out by the weight of a glacier that was once there. Everywhere I looked the view just got better and this was proven when the full moon shone brightly over Machhapuchhre.
I’m not one for early mornings but at 5:30am on Monday I woke up to the most beautiful sight I have ever seen. Never before have I seen so many stars sparkling, glistening over the dark mountains with the milky way stretching across the morning sky. I could even see 2 planets but unfortunately I had no clue which planets they were.

We were fortunate to have gorgeous weather towards ABC and our walk back was no different. Monday night we stayed in a village called Chomrong. We loved this place! The view from the lodge was perfect and the food was even better! Chicken burgers, sandwhiches, pizza, steak and a whole lot more. We spent the night feasting and the following morning recovering. Luckily our walk on Tuesday was relaxed and involved a pit stop at the hot springs in a village called Jhinu. We arrived at the natural hot springs and it was fairly busy, but not with people. There were about 10-15 monkeys chilling on the rocks around the hot spring and it was a fantastic experience.
The whole adventure is one I am going to remember and one I thoroughly recommend. Congratulations if you read to end of this blog and I apologise for the long read but it was difficult to know which information to leave out.
Hope all is well and happy Halloween back home.

Stay tuned,
KP