India

Talle Valley Trek

The Talle Valley is a beautiful mountain valley in Ziro, Arunachal Pradesh. Trekking through the Talle Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Talle Vally, the Ziro Valley, and the Pangey Valley, the trek passes the Talle River and Pangey River. The best times of the year for the trek are between February to April and October to November. The path goes through broadleaved conifer forests, rainforests and the unusual white bamboo trees. If you're lucky you may see the clouded leopard, Malayan giant Squirrel, Asian Palm Civet, Black Eagle Collared Owlet, Scarlet Minivet and Mrs Gould's Sunbird. You can also find the ancient Apatani tribe who follow an animistic religion, the Donyi-Polo, in which Donyi means the Sun and Polo the Moon. The older tribal women have nose plugs which are positioned on the sides of the nose, also ear stretcher plugs and facial tattoos.

Difficulty: Easy to moderate

Duration: 5 to 6 days

Max elevation: 2743 m

Type of Accommodation: Tent/Guest House

Snow Leopard Trek

The Snow Leopard Trek in Ladakh Kashmir has an arid landscape with no forests. You pass through the villages of Khardong, Tangyar, Diggar and Rongjuk in The Nubra Valley and Rumbak Valley and pass through the narrow gorge in the Markha Valley. Visit the 15th century Buddhist Thiksey Monastery with it's red and white buildings which is located on top of a hill. In these areas you may see the Snow Leopard, Ibex, Shapo, Marmot, Tibetan Hare, Antelope, Red Fox, Tibetan Wolf, Lynx, Pallas Cat, Argali Sheep and Himalayan Blue Sheep. For the birders there are the Snow Patridge, Snow Cock, Horned Lark, Red Billed Chuff, Golden Eagle, Lammergeier Vulture, Fire-fronted Serin Streaked Rosefinch, Tibetan Snowfinch and Chukar.

Duration: 5 to 6 days

Difficulty: moderate

Max elevation: 3956m

Type of Accommodation: Home-stay, hotel and tent

Triund Trek 

Triund is a small hill station in the Kangra district which is in the state of Himachal Pradesh. The Trek can be done all year round and is considered one of the most popular and easiest treks in the area. The trek winds 9kms up the mountain on a small rocky path which you share with locals and their herds of goats, sheep and spiti horses taking supplies up the mountain. Take a break at the Snowline Cafe for a chia and take in the stunning views of Kangra Valley, the Dhauladhar Range in Himachal Pradesh, Bhagsu village and Mcleodganj in the Dharamsala Valley. The trek passes through cedar, oak, pine, and rhododendron forest with a beautiful display of wild flowers in certain months of the year. This trek can be done in a day but you can also camp at the top which gives you time to walk up to Laka Glacier which is filled with snow & ice. It is a further 6km and the trek should take between 5 to 7 hours. To reach Lake Glacia just follow the snowline. 

Duration: 1 or 3 days

Difficulty: Moderate

Max elevation: 2874m

Type of Accommodation: Tent

Valley of Flowers

The Valley of Flowers trek is in Uttarakhand State in the Garhwal Region of Uttarakhand. The best time of year to do the Valley of Flowers Trek is in the monsoon from mid-July and mid-September as the wild flowers depend on the rains to create a magical carpet of flowers. Some of the flowers you will see on the trek are Meadow Geranium, Snake Foil, Hooked Stick Seed, Himalayan Rose, Blue Poppy, River Anemone, White Leaf Hog Foot and Dog Flower. You will also pass through the Bhojpatra Forest. These trees are also known as Himalayan Birch which have medicinal properties and are often used in Ayurvedic medicine. The trek passes the Pushpavati river, Lakshman Ganga river and the villages of Govindghat and Ghangria. The holy Hemkund Sahib lake is on route. This beautiful lake is at a height of 4572m and is sacred to Sikhs. Another great trek for nature lovers and some of the animals and birds in this area are the Black Bear, Musk Deer, Brown Bear, Bharal, Red Fox, Grey Langur, Flying Squirrel, Common Rose-finch, Himalayan Monal, Long-tailed Minivet, Gold billed Magpie, Green Pigeon and Slaty headed Parakeet, 

Elevation: 14,400 ft

Duration: 5 to 6 days

Difficulty: Moderate to easy 

Type of Accommodation: Tent

 

Nepal

Annapurna Circuit Trek

The Annapurna trek is one of the more popular treks in Nepal with some of the most amazing views of the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri ranges. The trek has a wide range of climates from sub-tropical to arctic conditions and goes through arid semi-desert areas to pine forests and ice capped mountains, crossing gorges on suspension bridges, passing waterfalls and caves. You will also pass through small traditional villages like Nagdi, Bahundanda, Dharapani, Bagarchhap, Tyanga and Manang. There are many Buddhist and Hindu Temples along the trek like the Tibetan Buddhist Monetary Braga built around the 14th century. Some of the animals and birds in this area are Himalayan Thar, Goral, Yak, Marten, Jackal, Languor Monkey, Chestnut-tailed Starling, Crested Serpent Eagle, Crimson Sunbird, Common Hill Partridge, Great Barbet, Green-tailed Sunbird, Large Hawk-Cuckoo and Steppe Eagle.

Elevation: 5416m

Duration: 16 days

Difficulty: moderate

Type of Accommodation: Tea Houses

Langtang Valley trek

The Langtang Valley Trek is one of the most beautiful valleys in the world. In Tibetan Lang means Lama and Tang means follow. The trek is situated in the protected Langtang National Park. The trek follows the Langtang river surrounded by the Langtang Himal mountain range comprising of the following peaks:- Langtang Lirung 7,234m, Langtang Ri 7,205m, Dorje Lakpa 6,966m, Loenpo Gang 6979m, Changbu 6781m, Yansa Tsenji 6690m, Kyunga Ri 6601m, Dogpache 6562m, Langshisha Ri 6427m, Gangchenpo 6387m, Morimoto 6150m, Tsogaka 5846m and Yala Peak 5520m. The trek goes through rhododendron and bamboo forests, alongside waterfalls and pasture land where you can see Yaks grazing. You will find cheese at the Yak cheese factory in Kyanjin Gompa. The small villages are occupied by the Tamang people who are the majority ethnic group in the area and the villages are full of the Tamang wood carvings. You can see traditional weaving here too. The wildlife in the area comprises of Himalayan Deer, Himalayan Black Bear, Himalayan Tahr, the elusive Red Panda, Common Leopard, Clouded Leopard, Snow Leopard, Leopard Cat, Musk Deer, Assamese Monkey, Red Wolf and Tibetan Sheep. This region is extremely rich in birdlife with over 300 species such as the Blood Pheasant, Satyr Tragopan, Himalyan Monal, Yellow-rumped Honeyguide, Slender-Billed Scimitar Babbler, Gould's Short-wing, Red-Headed Vulture and the Golden Eagle.

Elevation: 4773 m 

Duration: 7 days

Difficulty: Moderate

Type of Accommodation: Teahouses 

The Upper Manaslu trek

This trek is part of the Tibetan Plateau. Rich in cultural heritage it was a separate kingdom until the 1950's and was ruled by the Raja of Mustang from the ancient walled capital of Lo Manthang. The trek takes you through the villages of Thsele, Yara, Jomsom, Kagbeni, Gyakar, Gelling, Ghemi, and Tsarang. The tribal groups in the area consist of the Gurung, Thakkal and Bhote people. There's a mix Buddhist and Hindu religions with Buddhist being the majority. The Upper Mustang is famous for Sky caves, around 10,000 man-made caves dating back over 2000 years. Some have beautiful Buddhist paintings on the walls. The Upper Mustang has some of the oldest Gompas in Nepal, the Namgyal Gompa, Tingkhar and Ghar Gompa which dates back 1,200 years and is dedicated to Guru Rinpoche. You are surrounded by the Tjhmountain Ranges of the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri and will pass the Kali Gandaki River and the Kali Gandaki Gorge which is the deepest gorge/canyon in the world with a depth of 6,000 meters. There are around 29 mammal species and 105 bird species such as the Snow Leopard, Musk Deer, Tibetan Gazelle, Tibetan wild Ass, Himalayan Griffon, Black Kite, Golden Eagle, Grey Back Shrike, Desert Wheatear, Black Redstar, Tibetan Snowcock, Himalayan Monal and Black-Necked Crane. The trek is not as forested as other treks and has a more alpine biodiversity with over 90 plant species that are used in traditional Tibetan medicine. The best time to do the trek is from May to October as the monsoon winds are less active. Upper Mustang is one of the few treks that can be done during the monsoon. 

Elevation: 5545m 

Duration: 14 days 

Difficulty: Moderate 

Type of Accommodation: Teahouse 

Nagarkot to Dhulikhel trek

This one day trek is perfect for beginners as it is short and mainly downhill. The trek passes through forests of Rhododendron, Bamboo and Pine passing terraced farmland of rice and corn through the villages of Rabi Bhanjyang, Tusal, Kanker, Tanchok and Opi, capturing views of the valleys of Panchkhal, Kankre and Tanchok. The views are of the mountain ranges of Annapurna (8091 m), Ganesh Himal (7429 m), Langtang (7234 m), Phuribichyachu (6637 m), Gaurishanker (7134 m), Lhotse (8516 m) and on a really clear day you might get a glimpse of Everest. There are Temples to visit here such as the Chandeswhori Hindu Temple, Nala Bhagwati Hindu Temple and a Buddhist Shrine of Lokeshwor. If you're up for the 1000 steps to the Kali Temple there is a viewing tower to see the surrounding mountains. The trek is great birding with 177 species of birds like the Laughing Thrush, Serpent Eagle, Little Pied Fly Catchers, Babblers, Pheasants, Magpies, Ruby Throat Miners, Finches, Wrastlers, Baulblers, Birds Of Paradise, Wood Peckers and Lesser Himalayan Eagles.

This is a great trek for people travelling with children or who are stuck for time. I would highly recommend getting to see a sunset or Sunrise from Nagarkot as it's quite spectacular. 

Elevation: 2300m. 

Duration: 4 to 6 hours 

Difficulty: Easy

Type of Accommodation: None