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Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips

Rajan Jung Adhikari

Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips: How to Plan for Hike and Trek in Nepal?

  • 3 years ago

Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips, Nepal Hiking and  Nepal trekking always reward you with a thrilling experience of nature, culture, and adventure all at a time. The journey takes you to wilderness far away from the crowded urban life and hectic schedule. It is an ultimate way to delve yourself into the Mother Nature and her wonderful gifts for a happy living of humankind.

While enjoying the natural resources, it is our responsibility to conserve them for our posterity. In other words, hiking or trekking is the best way to look into ourselves. While walking through the quiet trails of the countryside, you come to realize the true meaning of internal peace.

The rich biodiversity and cultural variety make your hiking or adventure trekking more of fun with . Chirping of birds, gurgling of rivulets, roaring of tigers, dances of peacocks, and mischief of monkeys, and what not? All these beauties of nature seem as if they were calling you to enjoy them!

Trips - Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips: How to Plan for Hike and Trek in Nepal?

Although considered more or less similar, there are certain differences between hiking and trekking. Hiking in Nepal is generally planned for one day to the destinations quiet close to the cities so that you can return to your accommodation sites at the end. The hiking route leads you through the dense forests inhabited by diverse flora and fauna to a hilltop or maybe a picnic spot!

Hiking most often takes you to a wonderful vantage point that rewards you splendid view. The majestic Himalayas, lush valleys, and far-stretching plains all come in front of your eyes leaving a lasting impression on you. However, hiking tour can also organized for more than a day depending upon the hiking route, the significance of the destination, and interest of yours!

Contrarily, trekking in Nepal is a multi-day trekking package that takes you to the highland away from the city and its crowd. The trail passes along the ethnic villages reflecting unique culture, tradition, and lifestyle. The trekking route often ends at base camp of a gorgeous peak. Yes, some of the sections of the trekking trails may be challenging, but the prize you find outweighs all those hardships!

Just imagine being at the Everest base camp of one of the 8000ers in the world! It transcends your spirit to a next level because you will be one of those daredevils to measure the windy trails up and down! The soaring peaks, the high altitude villages, green forests, and lush valleys all around you! Isn’t it thrilling?

Spending nights at some of the typical ethnic villages by tasting their local food served in the best hospitality is a must-have experience in a lifetime. Moreover, becoming a part of their feasts and festivals gives you another unsurpassable memory. Trekking in a different part of the world gives you an opportunity to develop your own perspective to look at the world.

As soon as you think of hiking and trekking, you ask yourself “How to plan and prepare for a hike or trek?” The core objective of this blog is to give you hiking and trekking tips so that you can choose the right trip for lifetime achievement.

Benefits of Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips 

There are many benefits of hiking and trekking in the Himalayas and a little farther from the cities. First, it gives you physical fitness that develops your stamina by keeping your physical aspects in proper conditions.

Walking along uphill and downhill trails, it helps you control heart disease, hypertension, and obesity to a large extent. Hiking and trekking contributes in burning your calories that helps your digestive system. The regular perspiration burns your fat so that your physical stamina in a perfect condition.

Besides this, hiking and trekking is an ultimate way to balance your psychological aspect. Walking through the countryside away from the honking of vehicles and CFCs of industries gives you solace. Observing the snowcapped peaks, green forests, and ethnic villages reduces your mental stress.

Close touch with the Mother Nature develops an attachment with the flora and fauna. When you realize the beauties of nature, you come to practice responsible tourism that results into sustainable tourism. As a rational being, humankind is responsible for conservation of natural resources which is the prerequisite for environmental balance.

Hiking and trekking helps you strengthen a close tie with nature and natural resources. This bond gives you psychological relief and satisfaction which are the essential parts for a happy and healthy living.

Novice Hiker/Trekker vs. Experienced Hiker/Trekker:

Hiking and trekking tips for a novice traveler and experienced one differ to some degree. If you have already made a few hikes and treks, you know the geographical variation and weather of particular regions. Likewise, you have experience of what to pack for hiking and trekking in different seasons.

An experienced hiker/trekker knows so much about what to avoid and what to embrace during hiking and trekking. For example, he/she knows about acute mountain sickness (AMS), its symptoms and preventive measures as well. When he/she is familiar with such hurdles, they can plan better for a hike or trek.

But for the novice hiker/trekker, there are several important things to know about hiking and trekking tips. Without sound knowledge of this, they cannot plan for a better hike or trek package. Obviously, if they fail to choose the right hike or trek, the money and time they invest go waste.

Actually, one plans a hike or trek believing that every penny they invest is returned in terms of rewards. They want their trip to be a lifetime achievement although some of these trips may be comparatively more adventurous. The flavor of nature and culture must guarantee that every cent they spend is worth owing.

Choosing a Local Tour Operator for Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips 

For this, you must choose a local tour operator that has interesting success stories and proven testimonials. You can visit their websites and promotions in other social media which contain the reviews given by their clients.

Similarly, the registration number, official documents, and other legal documents are uploaded in their website for your perusal. You can visit the profile of the local tour operator and the portfolio of their staffs.

Just as the registration, the staffs of a local tour operator matter most because they are going to help you throughout the trip. The guides and porters must be government registered, professional, and insured above helpful and friendly behavior with their customers.

You can enjoy your hiking or trekking only when you are provided with the professional guides and porters who care for their customers at best. In case you suffer from any unwanted circumstances like AMS, your guide and porter helps you reach a safer place.

Additionally, they must be coordinating with the trekking agency in case of severe conditions. If you require an emergency evacuation or rescue services, your guide and porter must be able to contact to the respective office for correspondence.

Next thing you must care is whether or not your team leader knows about the natural and cultural landmarks of the route and region you are going to navigate. If the team leader has an experience of weather forecast, it is much better for successful trip.

If you are going for camping trekking, you have several crew members comprising a cook, team leader, and porters. When the crew members are caring and with good sense of humors, your Nepal trip becomes more interesting. You can enjoy the cultural shows they perform every other evening. Moreover, you can also become a part of such performance and share your culture  while learning theirs.

More than anything else, the local tour operator you book hiking and trekking must be caring as well. The representative must be curious to know your whereabouts and concerned with your experience during the trip. If you have any problem related to the trails and weather conditions, your tour operator can settle down any inconvenience.

What to pack for your first Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips?

“What to pack for your first hiking trip?” depends upon “How long hiking or trekking in Nepal are you planning to do?” It means if you are planning for a short hike i.e. a day-hike, you don’t need much. At the end of the day, you return to your hotel or lodge. And, literally, the lighter that bag back, the more comfortable the hiking.

Unlike this, if you plan a hiking trip for more days, you need pack some essential things in your baggage. You need to keep things from your personal stuffs to sleeping bag given you are going to spend nights in a tented camp. This section tries to give you a brief guidance about hiking gears list.

Navigation Tools

As a beginner, don’t forget to pack navigation tools for your first hiking trip. Navigation tools comprise of a big clear map of the trekking or hiking route, a compass, or Global Positioning System (GPS). These tools help you find the right trail and direction to reach your destination without any difficulty.

Enough Water

Make sure you have enough water during your first hiking trip. Although water from almost all the resources of Nepal is drinkable, it may not be compatible for your health. To avoid any confusion regarding hygiene of drinking water, use bottled or boiled water as far as possible.

Don’t forget to keep some water purifying tablets such as Aquatabs, Ef-Chlor, Chlorine dioxide, etc in your backpack. These tablets are found in the market. Be careful to keep yourself fully hydrated as you have to walk through the uphill and downhill trail. You happen to lose a great deal of perspiration. You know dehydration hinders you from completing the trip.

Enough Food

Make sure to have enough food before hiking trip and pack some high calorie food in your bag. While taking a short pause for enjoying the splendid view of the snowy peaks and lush valleys, you can enjoy dry picnic with your colleagues.

Right Clothing

While doing a hiking trip, you must wear and pack the right type of clothing that protects you from sun and rain. In other words, you must keep the clothes to support cold and hot temperature in the highland.

Next, it is not always possible to predict weather condition of the hiking or trekking region. Most often, it happens in monsoon season (June-August) in which mornings are sunny with clear skies. You never know when it rains and decreases the temperature in the mountains. Thus, you have to pack both warm and cool clothes in advance.

Safety Items

If your hiking destination is frequently visited, you don’t have to worry about getting lost. While going to and returning from the destination, you often encounter the fellow hikers and trekkers.

But, if you are hiking through an off-beat route, you may get lost or encounter with wild animals as well. As safety items in such situation, you must pack fire starter, flashlight, red cloths, and whistle. Fire starter and flashlight helps you call for help in the dark whereas whistle and red cloths helps in the daytime.

Fist Aid Kits

Even if you are hiking in a group, don’t forget to keep your personal first aid kits. Keep blister treatment, bandages, tape, etc. Prevention is better than cure after all!

Multipurpose Tool or Knife

Another hiking tool that you mustn’t forget to carry is a knife which is a multipurpose tool to help you throughout the trip. It helps you to clear up the bushes or weeds blocking the trail and cut the gauze or bandage of the right size. Also, you can use it to arrange firewood to make bonfire if necessary.

Sun Protection

The sunrays in the morning time are warming but in the daytime, they may cause the skin sunburn. You should try to cover the distance by following the shaded trails as far as possible. However, we strongly suggest you to apply sunscreen before you start the hiking and reapply it as per the necessity. Don’t wear brim hat and sunglasses for extra sun protection.

Backpack

Backpack is a must-have hiking gear so that you can keep your personal stuffs safe and in proper condition. However, while choosing a backpack, remember to have one that is the most comfortable. The ones having shoulder straps, thick pads, and hip belts are the most suitable to carry during hiking or trekking.

Trash Bag

Hiking or trekking is basically for experiencing the natural and cultural wonders of the mountain or urban regions. Besides this, conservation of nature by keeping the trails and trekking regions clean and free of garbage comes to be your duty. To keep the waste materials such as tin can, plastics, scraps, etc., you had better carry a zippered plastic bag. The collected waste materials can be dumped in the safe sites away from the water resources when the bag is full.

Bug Spray

Hiking or trekking in the mountain through the woodlands is always coming into contact with various insects or pests. The trails passing through the thick forests contain bees, wasps, mosquitoes, and many others, which can cause a great deal of trouble. In the damp jungles, leeches are most common parasites that attack you without your knowledge.

To keep these innocent creatures away and make your hiking or trekking risk free, don’t forget to carry bug spray. Every day, apply the spray before beginning your journey and reapply in the regular intervals. The bug spray brands are Coleman SkinSmart DEET-Free Repellent Spray, Cutter Backwoods Insect Repellent, etc.  are available in the market.

Toiletries

It is not sure that all hiking trails you are following have public toilets or inns having restrooms. Therefore, you must always keep toiletries such as toilet papers, hand sanitizer, waste bags, and other necessary items in your backpack. These stuffs make your hiking or trekking free from any obstacle related to excretions.

What to wear in Hiking or Trekking in Nepal?

Before you plan a trip, you must know “What to wear in Hiking or Trekking?” If you fail to choose right hiking clothes and boots, you may not enjoy the trip as expected. Hiking or trekking is obviously quite different from travelling by bus, plane, hot air balloon, paraglide, cable car, or zip flyer. You need to walk for about 4-5 hours through a windy trail that goes past the mild to mountainous terrain. Your hiking or trekking turns to be very tough in case you miss out the comfortable hiking wears.

Hiking Clothes

While choosing hiking clothes, you must know the season, weather, and type of trails you are going to traverse. The longer you walk, the more heat you feel! For example, your favorite pairs of jeans and jackets are for city tours and short walk. But traversing in the country trails, they are not comfortable.

The hiking clothes for the spring and summer seasons must be cool that releases the heat of your body. Light weight pants, full sleeve jumper or T-Shirt, nylon socks, longer inner wears, etc. are the best outfits in these seasons. The hiking clothes in this time must be sunrays reflecting so that your body feels cooler.

To hike or trek in the autumn and winter seasons, you have to wear layers of clothes. Before you begin and after you finish hiking or trekking, you feel cold due to cold temperature. However, after warm up, you need to put off the thick clothes and keep in the backpack.

We recommend you to wear the full sleeves and trousers or pants for hiking or trekking in all times of the year. They protect your skin from irritation and from insects in the wilderness.

Hiking Boots or Shoes

You must remember to choose right type of hiking boots or shoes to make your trip more comfortable. If you fail to do so, you might feel sore feet in the middle and end of the trip. While choosing the pair of shoes, you must know the terrain type you are going to traverse through.

In the mild-terrain, you can simply use light hiking shoes for your comfort. But, if you are hiking in the mountainous and snowy train, you need rugged mountaineering boots. In other types of terrain, boots with solid sole are more suitable.

Your hiking boots or shoes must be durable just as comfortable. For novice hikers/trekkers, light weight and breathable boots are useful. Split-grain boots are made of half leather and half synthetic materials. They are both light weight and breathable, so appropriate for the beginners.

Full-grain boots are heavier and less breathable but durable. Thus, they are suitable for the experienced hikers/trekkers who traverse to rugged mountainous trails.

Cut of hiking boots also play vital role in making your trip more comfortable. Low-cut boots are suitable for beginners who travel around the mild trails. Medium-cut boots support your ankles and protect from weeds and insects during the trip. For the ones planning for off-beat hiking or trekking, high-cut boots are the best option.

For the best pair of hiking boots, know your trails and what type of hiker/trekker you are! We recommend you to carry the laced boots that supports your feet and avoid blisters.

Hiking Food

Hiking requires more physical stamina. To keep your physical condition proper, you need to eat energetic food and drink enough water. Your energy level and hydration level help you complete the hiking or trekking successfully. In the course of walking uphill and downhill, your body excretes a good amount of water via perspiration. Physical exercise demands burning fuel, so, you need to replenish it to make your journey more comfortable.

You need to be careful in hiking food before and after completing the trip. Your hiking food must contain healthy carbs which are easy to digest. Prior to hiking, you’d better have:

  • Whole-wheat toast,
  • Low-fat or fatless yogurt,
  • Whole grain pasta,
  • Whole grain cereals,
  • Fruits and vegetables, and
  • Brown rice.

During the trip, you need to keep your body hydrated and energetic as well. For this, you need to bring packed snacks and bottled water in your backpack. We recommend you to pack

  • Trail mix,
  • Dried fruit,
  • Granola bars or granola,
  • Bananas,
  • Nut butter, nuts or seeds,
  • Dried vegetables,
  • Whole grain tortillas,
  • Dried beans, and
  • Cereals

You have to consume these foods with enough water while taking a short pause in your hiking or trekking.

How to Plan First Hiking Trip?

For an experienced hiker/trekker, planning a hike or trek is not a big issue because they can do it by approaching their previous tour operators. Moreover, if the hiking or trekking region is for free individual trekkers (FIT), they can do on their own. Even more, the experienced trekkers or hikers can plan for an organized trekking or hiking as well.

For a beginner trekker/hiker, it is necessary to know “How to Plan First Hiking Trip?” After all, hiking/trekking is the best way to explore cultural wonders while delving into wilderness. It is not always easy to plan first hiking trip because there are several things to consider for this. Let’s take a quick look into the factors that help you plan your trip.

Locating the Trail

First thing to know before you plan for first hiking trip is the location of the trail. It means where you are hiking, how the trail is, and important natural and cultural landscapes you are going through. Make enough research about locating the trail. For this, you can use the Internet or consult with the experienced hikers/trekkers in your acquaintance or contact a local tour operator.  If you gather all the information about the location of the trail you are going to hiking or trekking, your trip will ultimately successful.

Your Vacation/Time

Next, you need to be sure how long you are going to spend in hiking or trekking. If you have long vacation, longer route is fine and if you want to have short trip, choose accordingly. You know, to hike through a steep trail takes longer time than following a downhill trail or well-defined trail.

Your Fitness Level

To plan first hiking trip, you must know your fitness level. The condition of your physical fitness level determines how long and how hard or soft trail you can cover. Along with your fitness level, you must always walk comfortably to avoid exhaustion and enjoy the nature around you. Walking in a relaxed way is an ultimate trick to keep your stamina in a proper condition.

Distance

Know the distance you are going to cover before planning first hiking/trekking trip. On average, you had better choose to cover 4-5 kilometer-long trail every hour to preserve your physical stamina. But the distance to cover depends upon the steepness or gentleness of the trail you are traversing. While climbing uphill, it takes longer time to cover a specified distance than climbing downhill.

Season and Weather

Above all, you need to know season and weather of the hiking/trekking region to plan first hiking trip. Before you begin your journey, check the weather forecast that helps you take the necessary precaution. For example, in rainy season, rainfalls, flood, landslides, thunderstorms, and lightning might make your hiking trip more challenging. Likewise, while walking through the dense forests, don’t walk alone but always in your group. Sometimes, you might encounter with the wild animals.

Additional Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips

For the experienced hiker or trekker, planning a hiking or trekking trip may not be much difficult. But as a beginner, you need to have comfortable hiking clothes, shoes, enough food, water, and fellow hikers/trekkers. Besides this, here are some additional hiking or trekking tips:

  • Share your hiking plans with your nearest and dearest ones.
  • Keep only the mandatory stuffs to avoid heavy backpack.
  • Carry enough clean and drinkable water.
  • Choose the trail that you can traverse.
  • Hike in a group or a companion.
  • Keep your mobile phone with power bank or extra battery to contact your people frequently.
  • Always follow the specified trails.
  • Always do warm up exercise before starting hiking or trekking.

Conclusion: Nepal Hiking and Trekking Tips

Hiking or trekking is always fun but it also contains adventure and challenges. Together with enjoying the natural and cultural wonders, you must be aware of various aspects associated with the trip. If you are an experienced hiker or trekker, you might find various options to plan and make your trip more fun and successful. But for a novice hiker or trekker, there are some important things to know before hiking/trekking.

We recommend you to collect enough information to plan your trip. You can do researches by using the Internet or consult with the experienced ones, or the local tour operators. In a foreign land, it is the best idea to book a hiking trip or trekking trip with a tour operator.

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