Preparation for trekking Nepal
Doing a trek of any kind involves planning and preparation well before the
event in order for it to be a successful and enjoyable endeavour. There are a
quite a few things to consider for example: fitness training, medical,
logistics, route plan, insurance and equipment.
Fitness
I like to keep fit generally by cycling regularly, it keeps me sane with the demanding office bound job I have. Six months beforehand I found a friend to walk with regularly once a week, for two or so hours at night. I also walked with my daughter to school every other day in the morning and put some solid walking on the weekends.
I started with no load, working up to 25kg pack loaded with water bottles. The hours per week went from about 6 to 12 as the time got closer, along with cycling 4 to 8 hours and swimming 2 to 3 hours.
In my area there are not many hills as I live near the beach, so soft sand was
the alternative, along with some stairs - a 112 to play with at one place.
About 45 minutes away there is a place called the Dandenongs which offers a
nice playground to get some good walking over the weekend.
Medical
I find that if anything can go wrong, it will when it involves going on a long trip overseas. Nepal is not devoid of medical facilities, but the standards are not the same as we have in our country.
When I was in Peru I had an abscess on my molar, so now I get my teeth checked a month or two out. A general check up and vaccination update is another thing I do. I take a basic medical kit for stomach, headache, altitude and injury management.
Water treatment is of high importance too, I filter it and add a purifying tablet if I think it is dodgy.
Reference Sites
There is a plethora of sites available on trekking Nepal. The trick is to
filter commercial interests an attempt to get the facts about the places of
interest. I did find commercial sites interesting though as many provide
detailed itineraries which can be used to determine interest and timing, and
also expectations and gear/fitness requirements.
Examples:
Examples:
And I also spent quite a bit of time checking Lonely Planet's Thorntree forum , TripAdvisor and various blogs. It took a while to decide on which trek I wanted to do as there are so many.
I chose the Manaslu - Nar & Phu - Lake Tilicho / Annapurna trek combination because it offered me a relatively untouristed and fabulous combination of scenery over a compact period.
Guides and Porters
This is how a lot of people are gainfully employed in Nepal. It does not
cost much by Western standards to have a guide and porter. At high
altitudes, it is a major relief not to have to carry any gear and a big
factor in safety to have someone around in case altitude or other sickness
happens. The Nepalese are good people and good company and it's useful to
have some local knowledge available.
Guides and porters are readily available in Kathmandu, Namche Bazaar and Pokhara, and probably in other trekking areas. I did my research on the Lonely Planet forum Thorntree and engaged one prior to leaving.
Cost
By using local guides and porters ie. not through large company concerns I
was able to save a lot of money. I figured that the larger companies simply
do what I did anyway and contracted individuals in Kathmandu or Pokhara. The
whole trip including flights, souvenirs, paragliding worked out to be under
$3000AUD for the month I was away. This price of course can all change with
inflation, currency exchange rate and so on.
When to Go
Choose autumn or spring in your own country eg. October to mid December or
March to early May. The wet season is dangerous with landslides and
discomfort and the winter needs special gear and is not to be dealt with
lightly.
Disaster, weather and reschedule
My decision to change was fortunate: http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/mountaineering/11-Dead-or-Missing-Scores-Injured-in-Manaslu-Avalanche.html
Gear List
Here is an excerpt of my gear list. As you can see I am fastidious with
weighing all items, something that is habit over years of camping in the bush.
It is worth the effort to make a list anyway to ensure things like medication,
hygiene, adequate clothing and even photographic gear are covered.
You can buy any gear you want in Kathmandu or Pokhara, at prices below what we
pay in Australia. The gear is not of the same standard however, unless you
scrutinise the brand and know the quality expectations. ie there are many fake
brand copies.
For the purposes of trekking "tea house", which is what I did, I could have
simply purchased the gear, but as I already had it there was no need. The
porters probably thanked me for having such a light pack.
|
Class
|
Sub Class
|
Product
|
Item
|
Mass
|
Qty
|
Total
9588
|
|
clothes
|
foot
|
socks
|
macpac wool hiking socks
|
87
|
2
|
174
|
|
clothes
|
foot
|
gaiters
|
gaiters blue sea to summit polyester
|
287
|
1
|
287
|
|
clothes
|
hand
|
gloves
|
kathmandu gloves blue windstopper
|
85
|
1
|
85
|
|
clothes
|
hand
|
over mitts
|
goretex mitts
|
143
|
1
|
143
|
|
clothes
|
head
|
balaclava
|
balaclava windstopper
|
79
|
1
|
79
|
|
clothes
|
head
|
hat
|
Radicool cap with neck cover
|
64
|
1
|
64
|
|
clothes
|
legs
|
cycling knicks
|
skins bib and brace knicks
|
214
|
1
|
214
|
|
clothes
|
legs
|
leggings
|
mountain hardware gore windstopper trousers
|
343
|
1
|
343
|
|
clothes
|
legs
|
over trousers
|
Tyvek legs
|
74
|
1
|
74
|
|
clothes
|
legs
|
underwear
|
merino long johns 150
|
131
|
1
|
131
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
jacket
|
montbell ultra light down jacket
|
173
|
1
|
173
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
jacket
|
montbell down jacket bag cover
|
7
|
1
|
7
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
jacket
|
mountain designs goretex proshell
|
580
|
1
|
580
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
shirt
|
mountain hardwear gore windstopper
|
316
|
1
|
316
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
underwear
|
icebreaker vest merino (200)
|
298
|
1
|
298
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
underwear
|
merino mountain designs vest (150)
|
166
|
1
|
166
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
underwear
|
merino boxer shorts
|
61
|
1
|
61
|
|
clothes
|
torso
|
underwear
|
Rio brief
|
41
|
1
|
41
|
|
kitchen
|
crockery
|
funnel
|
plastic funnel
|
20
|
1
|
20
|
|
kitchen
|
crockery
|
plastic cup
|
yellow plastic cup
|
36
|
1
|
36
|
|
kitchen
|
crockery
|
utensil
|
plastic knife fork
|
28
|
1
|
28
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
battery
|
Olympus Tough camera battery
|
21
|
3
|
63
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
battery
|
a3 battery
|
11
|
8
|
88
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
battery
|
a4 battery
|
28
|
6
|
168
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
camera
|
SD card + case
|
6
|
3
|
18
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
camera
|
Olympus Tough camera
|
246
|
1
|
246
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
camera
|
polariser lens
|
15
|
1
|
15
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
camera
|
charger and converter
|
129
|
1
|
129
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
string
|
Polyethylene 2 strand orange x 2200
|
9
|
1
|
9
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
tape
|
gaffer tape
|
50
|
1
|
50
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
torch
|
petzel head torch
|
77
|
1
|
77
|
|
misc
|
accessory
|
trekking pole
|
Gossamer trekking pole
|
124
|
2
|
248
|
|
misc
|
document
|
passport
|
Australian passport
|
40
|
1
|
40
|
|
misc
|
emergency
|
epirb
|
ACR epirb
|
161
|
1
|
161
|
|
misc
|
emergency
|
whistle
|
whistle
|
8
|
1
|
8
|
|
misc
|
glasses
|
reading glasses
|
reading glasses with cover
|
17
|
1
|
17
|
|
misc
|
glasses
|
sunglasses
|
polarising glasses, all blue/white frame
|
27
|
1
|
27
|
|
misc
|
hygiene
|
soap
|
Natural earth bar of soap
|
21
|
1
|
21
|
|
misc
|
hygiene
|
sponge
|
sponge
|
13
|
1
|
13
|
|
misc
|
hygiene
|
toothpaste
|
sensodyne toothpaste
|
30
|
1
|
30
|
|
misc
|
hygiene
|
toothbrush
|
Toothbrush – cut Oral B
|
8
|
1
|
8
|
|
misc
|
hygiene
|
comb
|
comb
|
6
|
1
|
6
|
|
misc
|
hygiene
|
toilet paper
|
toilet roll
|
77
|
2
|
154
|
|
misc
|
hygiene
|
soap
|
Pur sanitiser
|
24
|
1
|
24
|
|
misc
|
medical
|
ear plugs
|
ear plugs
|
2
|
1
|
2
|
|
misc
|
medical
|
gastro
|
gastrolyte
|
41
|
1
|
41
|
|
misc
|
medical
|
gastro
|
lomotil, noroxin, ibprofen, travelan kit
|
96
|
1
|
96
|
|
misc
|
medical
|
insect repellent
|
Vamoose repellent
|
3
|
7
|
21
|
|
misc
|
medical
|
sun lotion
|
Nuetrogena moisturiser
|
7
|
1
|
7
|
|
misc
|
medical
|
sun lotion
|
20 ml cancer council 30+ lotion
|
24
|
1
|
24
|
|
misc
|
medical
|
sun lotion
|
santos lip salve
|
9
|
1
|
9
|
|
misc
|
navigation
|
gps
|
Oregon GPS
|
152
|
1
|
152
|
|
pack
|
bag
|
|
Golite Odyssey back pack
|
1651
|
1
|
1651
|
|
pack
|
bag
|
|
protector pack bag cover
|
358
|
1
|
358
|
|
sleep
|
pad
|
|
Exped patch kit
|
11
|
1
|
11
|
|
sleep
|
pad
|
|
Exped downmat UL
|
565
|
1
|
565
|
|
sleep
|
pad
|
|
Exped downmat UL pump sack
|
63
|
1
|
63
|
|
sleep
|
quilt
|
|
Enlightened cuben quilt
|
499
|
1
|
499 |
|
tent
|
groundsheet
|
|
tyvec groundsheet - contrail
|
142
|
1
|
142
|
|
tent
|
tent shell
|
summer tent
|
Bearpaw Cuben inner
|
328
|
1
|
328
|
|
tent
|
tent shell
|
summer tent
|
Bearpaw Cuben outer
|
441
|
1
|
441
|
|
water
|
purification
|
filter
|
Sawyer water filtration system
|
104
|
1
|
104
|
|
water
|
storage
|
bottle
|
soda bottle litre
|
48
|
2
|
96
|
|
water
|
storage
|
bucket
|
silnylon bucket
|
38
|
1
|
38
|
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