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Trek Gandaki Province — Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

Annapurna Base Camp — the Sanctuary Trek

Seven days from terraced Gurung villages up a hidden gorge into the Annapurna Sanctuary, an amphitheatre of 7,000-metre peaks closing a full circle around base camp at 4,130 m.

Annapurna Base Camp — the Sanctuary Trek
Photo: Nancy Collins · CC BY-SA 3.0
Duration
7 days
Distance
90 km
Ascent
5000 m
Difficulty
Hard
Best season
October–November and March–April (avoid the June–September monsoon and deep winter snow above Deurali)

The Annapurna Sanctuary is a high oval basin about 40 km north of Pokhara, ringed almost completely by the peaks of the Annapurna range. There is only one way in: a narrow gorge between Hiunchuli and the sacred fishtail summit of Machapuchare, carved by the Modi Khola. You walk up that gorge for days, hemmed in by walls, and then the valley simply opens — and you are standing inside a ring of mountains with base camp at 4,130 m at its centre.

Unlike a pass trek, the Sanctuary is a dead end, and that is the point. You go in, you sleep inside the ring, and you come back out the same way.

Getting there. Fly or drive to Pokhara, then take a jeep to the roadhead at Nayapul or Siwai. Most trekkers return by jeep from Jhinu Danda or Siwai to Pokhara on the last day.

Permits. You need an ACAP (Annapurna Conservation Area Permit) and a TIMS card, both issued in Pokhara or Kathmandu before you start. Carry passport photos. Teahouses run the whole way, so no tent or stove is needed.

Good to know:

Day 1

Nayapul to Ghandruk

Nayapul (1,070 m) → Ghandruk (about 1,940 m) 10 km ↑ 900 m
Navigate this day

Leave the roadhead and climb steadily beside the Modi Khola through rice terraces and villages to Ghandruk, one of the biggest Gurung settlements in the region.

Segments

  1. Up the Modi Khola
    Up the Modi Khola 6 km ↑ 400 m 📍 Map

    Nayapul roadhead → Kimche

    River trail and jeep track

    Follow the milky Modi Khola upstream on an easy grade through Birethanti, past subtropical terraces and suspension bridges. Hot and low — this is the last of the easy walking.

    About this place

    Nayapul is a neighbourhood of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It gets its name from the bridge that was built during the time of the Nizams called as Nayapul because there was already another bridge called Puaranapul.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: William Henry Jackson · Public domain

  2. Stone stairs to Ghandruk
    Stone stairs to Ghandruk 4 km ↑ 500 m 📍 Map

    Kimche → Ghandruk

    Stone staircase

    A long flight of stone steps climbs to Ghandruk, a slate-roofed Gurung village stacked on the hillside. On a clear evening Annapurna South and Machapuchare stand directly above the rooftops.

    About this place

    Ghandruk is a picturesque traditional village nestled in the Annapurna Rural Municipality, Kaski District of the Gandaki Province of Nepal. Situated 32 km north-west to Pokhara, this traditional Gurung settlement sits at an elevation of 2,012 meters (6,601 ft) and serves as a key stop on several iconic trekking routes, including the Annapurna Base Camp and Annapurna Circuit treks.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Bijaya2043 · CC BY-SA 3.0

Day 2

Ghandruk to Chhomrong

Ghandruk (about 1,940 m) → Chhomrong (about 2,170 m) 10 km ↑ 900 m
Navigate this day

A day of losing height to gain it back, ending at Chhomrong — the last real village and the checkpoint at the mouth of the Sanctuary trail.

Segments

  1. Drop to the Kimrong Khola
    Drop to the Kimrong Khola 4 km ↑ 50 m 📍 Map

    Ghandruk → Kimrong Khola bridge

    Steep forest descent

    A steep, knee-testing descent through rhododendron forest to a bridge over the Kimrong Khola. Everything you lose here you climb straight back.

    About this place

    Annapurna Conservation Area is Nepal's largest protected area covering 7,629 km2 (2,946 sq mi) in the Annapurna range of the Himalayas. It ranges in elevation from 790 m (2,590 ft) to the peak of Annapurna I at 8,091 m (26,545 ft). The conservation area stretches across Manang, Mustang, Kaski, Myagdi, and Lamjung Districts. Annapurna Conservation Area encompasses Annapurna Sanctuary and is known for several trekking routes including the Annapurna Circuit.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Jean-Marie Hullot · CC BY-SA 3.0

  2. Climb to Chhomrong
    Climb to Chhomrong 6 km ↑ 850 m 📍 Map

    Kimrong Khola → Chhomrong

    Long climb, then a traverse

    Climb hard over the Kimrong Danda and traverse to Chhomrong, a village of stepped stone terraces facing the Sanctuary entrance. This is where the fishtail of Machapuchare first fills the skyline.

    About this place

    Machapuchare, Machhapuchchhre or Machhapuchhre, is a mountain situated in the Annapurna massif of Gandaki Province, north-central Nepal. Its highest peak has never been officially climbed due to the impossibility of gaining a permit from the government of Nepal.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Carsten.nebel · CC BY-SA 4.0

Day 3

Chhomrong to Bamboo

Chhomrong (about 2,170 m) → Bamboo (about 2,310 m) 11 km ↑ 700 m
Navigate this day

Down some 2,500 stone steps to the Chhomrong Khola, up the other side to Sinuwa, then into the deep forest of the gorge itself.

Segments

  1. The Chhomrong staircase 5 km ↑ 500 m 📍 Map

    Chhomrong → Sinuwa (about 2,360 m)

    Endless stone steps, down then up

    Descend a famously long stone staircase to the river at about 1,900 m, cross the suspension bridge, and grind straight back up to Sinuwa. Trekkers talk about these steps for years afterwards — and you get them again on the way home.

  2. Into the bamboo forest
    Into the bamboo forest 6 km ↑ 200 m 📍 Map

    Sinuwa → Bamboo

    Damp forest trail

    Contour and drop through dense bamboo and rhododendron to the cluster of lodges called Bamboo, wedged in the bottom of the gorge. Damp, green and closed-in — the walls are rising on both sides now.

    About this place

    Annapurna Conservation Area is Nepal's largest protected area covering 7,629 km2 (2,946 sq mi) in the Annapurna range of the Himalayas. It ranges in elevation from 790 m (2,590 ft) to the peak of Annapurna I at 8,091 m (26,545 ft). The conservation area stretches across Manang, Mustang, Kaski, Myagdi, and Lamjung Districts. Annapurna Conservation Area encompasses Annapurna Sanctuary and is known for several trekking routes including the Annapurna Circuit.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Jean-Marie Hullot · CC BY-SA 3.0

Day 4

Bamboo to Deurali

Bamboo (about 2,310 m) → Deurali (about 3,200 m) 10 km ↑ 900 m
Navigate this day

The gorge narrows and steepens. Waterfalls come off both walls, the forest thins, and by Deurali you are above the treeline in cold, thin air.

Segments

  1. Dovan and Himalaya 6 km ↑ 600 m 📍 Map

    Bamboo → Himalaya (about 2,920 m)

    Forest trail beside the river

    Climb through Dovan (about 2,600 m) and on to the lodges at Himalaya, with the Modi Khola roaring below and waterfalls dropping from the cliffs above.

  2. Above the treeline
    Above the treeline 4 km ↑ 300 m 📍 Map

    Himalaya → Deurali

    Rocky trail, avalanche slopes

    Pass the Hinku Cave and climb out of the last trees into open rock and scrub at Deurali. This is where altitude starts to be felt and where the avalanche-prone section ahead begins — check conditions at the lodge.

    About this place

    Hiunchuli is a peak situated in the Annapurna massif of the Gandaki Province in north-central Nepal. The mountain is an extension of the Annapurna South. Between this peak and the Machapuchare is a narrow section of the Modi Khola valley that constitutes the sole access to the Annapurna Sanctuary.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Saroj Pandey · CC BY-SA 3.0

Day 5

Deurali to Annapurna Base Camp

Deurali (about 3,200 m) → Annapurna Base Camp (4,130 m) 9 km ↑ 950 m
Navigate this day

A short but high day. The walls pull back, the valley flattens into moraine, and you walk into a complete ring of 7,000-metre peaks.

Segments

  1. The gorge gate to MBC
    The gorge gate to MBC 4 km ↑ 500 m 📍 Map

    Deurali → Machhapuchhre Base Camp (about 3,700 m)

    Moraine and avalanche paths

    Cross the slide paths early in the day and climb through the narrow gate between Hiunchuli and Machapuchare to Machhapuchhre Base Camp. The sacred fishtail summit above you has never been climbed — it is closed by law.

    About this place

    Machapuchare, Machhapuchchhre or Machhapuchhre, is a mountain situated in the Annapurna massif of Gandaki Province, north-central Nepal. Its highest peak has never been officially climbed due to the impossibility of gaining a permit from the government of Nepal.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Carsten.nebel · CC BY-SA 4.0

  2. Into the Sanctuary
    Into the Sanctuary 5 km ↑ 450 m 📍 Map

    Machhapuchhre Base Camp → Annapurna Base Camp

    Open moraine, often snow

    A slow, breathless walk up open moraine as the amphitheatre closes around you. Base camp sits at 4,130 m under the vast south face of Annapurna I, with the ring of peaks turning gold at sunset and pink again at dawn.

    About this place

    Annapurna is a mountain situated in the Annapurna mountain range of Gandaki Province, north-central Nepal. It is the 10th highest mountain in the world at 8,091 metres (26,545 ft) above sea level and is well known for the difficulty and danger involved in its ascent.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: PrajwalMohan · CC BY-SA 4.0

Day 6

Sunrise at base camp, then down to Bamboo

Annapurna Base Camp (4,130 m) → Bamboo (about 2,310 m) 20 km ↑ 150 m
Navigate this day

Up in the cold for sunrise on Annapurna I, then a long descent back out through the gorge to the forest.

Segments

  1. First light on Annapurna 5 km ↑ 0 m 📍 Map

    Annapurna Base Camp → Machhapuchhre Base Camp

    Moraine

    Stand out in the freezing dark until the sun catches the south face of Annapurna I and works its way down the ring, then walk back down the moraine as the Sanctuary warms up.

  2. Back down the gorge
    Back down the gorge 15 km ↑ 150 m 📍 Map

    Machhapuchhre Base Camp → Bamboo

    Rock, then forest trail

    Retrace the route through Deurali, Himalaya and Dovan. Descending is fast but hard on the knees — poles earn their keep here.

    About this place

    Annapurna Conservation Area is Nepal's largest protected area covering 7,629 km2 (2,946 sq mi) in the Annapurna range of the Himalayas. It ranges in elevation from 790 m (2,590 ft) to the peak of Annapurna I at 8,091 m (26,545 ft). The conservation area stretches across Manang, Mustang, Kaski, Myagdi, and Lamjung Districts. Annapurna Conservation Area encompasses Annapurna Sanctuary and is known for several trekking routes including the Annapurna Circuit.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Jean-Marie Hullot · CC BY-SA 3.0

Day 7

Bamboo to Jhinu Danda and out

Bamboo (about 2,310 m) → Jhinu Danda (about 1,780 m) / Siwai roadhead 20 km ↑ 500 m
Navigate this day

A final morning of stone steps, a soak in riverside hot springs, and the road home.

Segments

  1. The staircase, in reverse 11 km ↑ 500 m 📍 Map

    Bamboo → Chhomrong

    Down to the river, up the steps

    Climb back to Sinuwa, drop to the Chhomrong Khola and haul up the long staircase into Chhomrong for the last time. Order the cinnamon roll — you have earned it.

  2. Hot springs and the road
    Hot springs and the road 9 km ↑ 0 m 📍 Map

    Chhomrong → Jhinu Danda / Siwai

    Descending village trail

    Descend to Jhinu Danda and walk twenty minutes down to the natural hot springs on the bank of the Modi Khola. From Jhinu or the roadhead at Siwai, a jeep takes you back to Pokhara.

    About this place

    Pokhara is a metropolitan city located in central Nepal, which serves as the capital of Gandaki Province. Named the country's "capital of tourism" it is the second largest city after Kathmandu, with 600,051 inhabitants living in 120,594 households as of 2021 census.

    Read more on Wikipedia ↗

    Photo: Utsab Raj Giri · CC BY-SA 4.0

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