Nepal · Completed chapter
Mardi Himal
Annapurna foothills to 4,500m
This is the story of the road — not the packing list. Kathmandu nights, lakeside Pokhara, rhododendron forest, ridge camps, and sunrise at Base Camp facing Machhapuchhre.
Scroll — places, meals, and frames
01 · Thamel
Kathmandu
Landing soft into the valley
We came in through Tribhuvan with the usual Thamel taxi shuffle and dropped into narrow streets that never quite sleep. The first evening was light food and water — nothing heroic — just letting the city settle around us before the trail asked for anything.
Cuisine
- Dal bhat at the guesthouse
- Momos, eaten slowly
- Sweet milk tea from a side stall
Photo slot · Kathmandu — upload from Admin when frames are ready
02 · Before the bus
Thamel
Paper, poles, and NPR notes
A morning of TIMS stamps, money changers, and rental counters — sleeping bags and poles bargained into bags. It felt administrative until it didn’t: the moment the trail became real was when the gear left the shop and joined our packs.
Cuisine
- Carb-heavy thali the night before the bus
Photo slot · Thamel — upload from Admin when frames are ready
03 · Lakeside
Pokhara
Last restaurant light
The tourist bus spilled us into lakeside air — Phewa’s haze, boats, and one last night of proper tables. ACAP in hand, offline maps checked, we ate like people who knew teahouse menus were coming.
Cuisine
- Lakeside dinner — Boomerang / Moondance energy
- OR2K for a quieter plate
Photo slot · Pokhara — upload from Admin when frames are ready
04 · Via Kande · Pothana
Forest Camp
Into the rhododendrons
A jeep to Kande, then the trail took over. Australian Camp gave the first wide view; Pothana gave lunch steam; Forest Camp gave the first night where altitude starts talking in quiet ways. We walked up a little after check-in — just enough to sleep better.
Cuisine
- Noodle soup at Pothana
- Dal bhat at Forest Camp — unlimited, gratefully
05 · Ridge approaching
Low Camp
Trees thin, sky widens
The forest opened. Machhapuchhre began to show between ridges. Low Camp felt like the first real high-country pause — tea, cold air, and the sense that tomorrow climbs into thinner light.
Cuisine
- Teahouse dal bhat
- Ginger lemon tea after the climb
Photo slot · Low Camp — upload from Admin when frames are ready
06 · Before the summit push
High Camp
Sleep early, wake for stars
High Camp is mostly waiting done well — short walks, early dinner, early dark. The cold is honest. You feel the Base Camp morning before it arrives.
Cuisine
- Simple dinner, eaten warm and fast
- Thermos tea for the night
07 · 4,500m
Mardi Base Camp
Sunrise on the wall
We left in the dark and arrived where the Annapurna massif and Machhapuchhre fill the whole sky. An hour at the top is enough — photos, quiet, careful breathing — then the long walk back down through the same ridges with new eyes.
Cuisine
- Packed snacks on the ridge
- Hot tea waiting lower down
08 · Back toward Pokhara
Descent · villages
Legs tired, stories warmer
The way down is its own chapter — Gurung villages, denser air, and the strange softness of flat ground again. Pokhara felt loud and kind. The trek lived in our legs for days.
Cuisine
- Celebration meal lakeside
- Whatever tasted like not being at altitude
Photo slot · Descent · villages — upload from Admin when frames are ready
End of chapter
Mardi Himal
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