Adventure Nepal

After breakfast you begin a day’s sightseeing in Kathmandu. Exploring the old city, you’ll wander through narrow streets and alleyways, discovering hidden temples and meeting the friendly locals. Exotic produce and a bewildering mix of people are everywhere - you're likely to see Ghurkhas from the area east of Pokhara, Tibetan women in their striped aprons, traders from India, and sadhus - Hindu holy men - perhaps on pilgrimage to one of the many temples and shrines of the valley. You make your way to Swayumbhunath, a famous Buddhist pilgrimage site for stunning views across the Valley.

After time to visit the atmospheric Pashupatinath Temple, the site of open-air cremations, you’ll drive to Bhaktapur - a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one time Valley capital. Still a functioning town, Bhaktapur is a superb place to spend the night; a city of potters and pagodas, this is the East as people imagine it! Guesthouse - 1 night (B)

From Bandipur, you drive west along the winding highway that links Kathmandu with Pokhara. Located by the side of lovely Phewa Lake, you should arrive with time to stroll down to the water’s edge to perhaps enjoy a cool lassi (yoghurt drink) or take a boat trip. This evening you will have a full briefing to prepare you for the trek. Hotel - 1 night (B)

Fortified with your first on-trek breakfast (food on trek is a highlight!) you leave camp and trek north-west with the snow-capped peaks to your right. The day starts on a trail going up through the bushes and traversing quite a few streams (numbers of which can increase in the monsoon and post- monsoon periods) for about 1.5 hr. The trail gets even steeper as it enters a dense forest. Lunch break is taken in another 1.5 hr.  Soon after lunch we make the steep climb up to our night’s perch, a grassy wooded knoll known as Tara Top (Starlight Top) at 3050m.
This is the vantage-point for spectacular 360-degree views that include most of the Annapurna massif - not to mention half of central Nepal including the Himalayan foothills dropping away towards the Ganges and the Indian plains. Clear skies at dusk and dawn will leave indelible impressions of sunset and sunrise on photographs and memory alike. Total trekking time approx 4hrs. Camping – 1 night (BLD)

From Ghalegon, you’ll head in a north-westerly direction, steeply dropping down the steps to Sardi Khola (1hr approx). Across the wooden bridge, the route leads through the village of Naparang, looking down onto Sardi Khola Valley, and to a broad pasture ascending through the forest (2hrs approx), where we break for lunch. The walk resumes through the forest inclining gradually all the time pulling brakes at Cormshing hill (2hrs approx). Great angular view of Fishtail, Annapurna III and Mardi Himal from the campsite. Total trekking time: approx. 5hrs. The following day, you’ll take a whole day hike through high pastures and shady forest to Tau Chow Hill (4,010m) for some awesome views of the magical Himalaya.  Camping – 2 nights (Bx2,Lx2,Dx2)

Follow the course of Seti River, across and through settlements and farmlands to reach  Kharpani. Depending on the seasonal moods of the river, you can find small hot spring pools at the banks where we stop for our last trek meal. (Total trekking time: approx 2.5hrs). You reach the road-head where your transport awaits to take you back to your base in Pokhara (1 hr drive). Tonight you celebrate in style – an end of trek party to bring you together with the trek staff one last time. (915m / 4 hours) Hotel – 1 night (BLD)

The rafting trip concludes with a 2-3 hours session down to the take-out at Gaighat. You bid adieu to your rafting crew and embark on a short bus journey, which brings you into the low lying Terai region, characterized by a dramatic change in landscape as the road heads to the warmer climes and to the periphery of the world-famous Chitwan National Park, spread over 932 square kilometres of floodplain. The park is home to varied wildlife and birdlife, including the famed symbol of Chitwan, the one-horned rhino. An experienced jungle guide will accompany you on your excursions, perhaps the most exciting of which is your safari on elephant-back, penetrating deep into the jungle. Rhino, bison, wild boar, monkeys, and a wide array of birds (over 400 species on record) are a common sight.

Another highlight of the trip is the canoe ride on Rapti River, which drapes the national park, the banks of which are home to sun-bathing 'mugger' crocodiles and the unique long-nosed 'gharial' crocodiles. Afterwards you walk to the Elephant Breeding Centre. Elephants at the breeding centre are well attended to and are taken out by their mahouts (elephant drivers, whose commands they’re used to and follow) on a daily basis between the hours of 10:30am and 3pm, where they go into jungle for collecting fodder, safaris and bathing. However, please remember that elephants are naturally wild animals and their behaviour can at times be erratic and highly unpredictable, especially in the absence of their trainer and controller. Therefore in the interests of visitor safety, please be advised that elephants are chained during the centre’s opening hours. Please also keep your distance from elephants while embarking and disembarking on safari.

Keeping you engrossed and buoyed over the span of your stay will be a ride on an age-old mode of transportation (an ox cart to a ‘Tharu’ village), bird-watching walk on the periphery of the national park, dancing to the tunes and moves of the ‘Tharu’ artistes and an informative slide show on the rich flora and fauna of the jungles of Chitwan.  Jungle lodge- 2 nights (Bx2, Lx2, Dx2)