07:00 start and I asked Sudarshan about the feasibility of going to Marpha and then trekking back from there to Jomsom to replace the Kagbeni to Jomsom leg. He said that was possible but in his opinion the track for both options was all on the road and very dusty and he suggested we go back to Jomsom on the jeep and he could take us on a better trail off the dusty roads in Jomsom. I put the proposal to the youngsters but Mitch and Nick still seemed pretty keen on completing the scheduled trek but in the end after discussing it with Krissy they decided to join Vicki and I in going all the way to Marpha. We set off at 08:00 with Vicki and I sharing the middle seat with Ganesh and Suman, ... read more

Today was the penultimate challenge day, reaching the highest point of our trek, Thorung La Pass (5,416m). We woke at 02:45 and the original plan was not have breakfast but Sudarshan was having porridge so we all decided to do the same thing. This meant we didn’t start our hike to High Camp until 03:45. We all had headlamps and you could see a trail of lights going up the trail. None of us had a good nights sleep as it is more difficult in high altitude, but somehow, we all managed to wake up enough to take the first steps upwards. The weather was literally freezing and un-seasonal snow covered the whole trail. This was not what we expected in April and although pretty, it made the hike even more challenging, particularly going downhill in ... read more

Breakfast today was 07:30 but I couldn’t find my sunglasses and Krissy reminded me that I may have taken them off when trying on a polo shirt at the medical lecture yesterday. Sudarshan arranged for Ganesh to go over and check for me. I had already gone over but it wasn’t open and no-one was around. I think Ganesh rang them and luckily he was able to retrieve my sunglasses. We set off around 08:30 but had to wait a few minutes at the AC Checkpoint. At each stop Sudarshan has to register our arrival and departure. This is how they keep track of people hiking the Annapurna Circuit. If someone doesn’t turn up when they are suppose to turn up, there is a search operation put in place. Just last month a guide and his ... read more

This morning we woke to glorious blue skies and amazing views of Annapurna 2 and the Annapurna range. The original plan which was also on our itinerary had us taking the lower road to our next stop, Manang, but I had read that the upper road offers much nicer views of the mountains. As the weather last night was so bad we had agreed to take the easier low road, but with the weather so clear now we all agreed to take the longer, higher and more scenic route. We also decided that we would do that and not do the Ice Lake trek tomorrow which would be another long 8 hour return hike. This would increase our hiking time from 6 to 9 hours plus in meant ascending to 3,800m before descending to Manang at ... read more

This morning we had breakfast at 07:00 and this enabled us to leave earlier than previous days, at 08:00. Besides Sudarshan, our guide, we have three porters, Ganesh, Sujan and Suman. As soon as you leave Besisahar the road condition is considerably worse and very bumpy but still follows the Marsyangdi River . However the scenery just continued getting better and better as we drove further into the mountains gradually getting to higher altitudes. The first stop of the day was at a checkpoint for the Annapurna Conservation Area. Here we also saw a group of British cyclists who are cycling the Annapurna Circuit. As we drove up the first big unsealed road I couldn’t help but remember my own cycling trip in Yunnan under similar conditions. I was more than happy this time to be ... read more