Birding, Safari and Trekking in Nepal

ITINERARY

Day 01: Arrival Kathmandu
Arrival picks up from Kathmandu Airport and transferred to the Hotel.

Day 02: Kathmandu
A day excursion to Phulchowki, the highest peak of the Kathmandu Valley at just over 9,000 feet, here we covered the upper slopes in the morning and visited the Botanical gardens, in the afternoon, A thunderstorm in the late afternoon curtailed the birding for the day but we had seen or heard over 80 species of birds during approximately 7 hrs.

Day 03: Kathmandu
Another day excursion to Phulchowki, but this time we covered the lower slopes in the morning and afternoon. A thunderstorm in the late afternoon once again curtailed the birding for the day. A wonderful Nepalese meal at the Bhojan Griha restaurant provided by Explore was a fine way to end our visit to Kathmandu.

Day 04: Kathmandu to Chitwan
Travelled by car/bus from Kathmandu to the Chitwan National Park. On the way to Chitwan stopped many times and visited a wet land park just before Chitwan during the journey. Birded around the camp in the afternoon.

Day 05: In Chitwan
An early morning and late afternoon elephant rides intersperse by birding in the area.

Day 06: Chitwan to Pokhara
Drive from Chitwan to Pokhara,afternoon birding on the hill opposite the town.

Day 07: Pokhara to Pothana 1900m
Drive from Pokhara to Phedi (1130m) where we started the trek with a steep climb through wooded hillside and then along the level path through steep terraced fields.

Day 08: Pothana to Landruk 1565m
A day of birding in forests and terraced fields. During the night a spectacular thunder storm with a flash of lightening at least every second for over an hour.

Day 09: Landruk to Chomrong 2170m
A steep walk down to the river valley and along the river towards New Bridge. A long climb of steps in the afternoon to Chomrong; with birding in the late afternoon above the village.

Day 10: Chomrong to Dobang 2505m
A slow day walking / birding, with rain for most of the afternoon, through the oak and rhododendron forest to Doban.

Day 11: Dobang to Deurali 3700m
A slow day walking / birding again with the forest giving way to bamboo and eventually rocky hillsides. An afternoon walk north of Deurali produced few birds.

Day 12: Deurali to Annapurna Base Camp 4130m
Up through the steep sided valley above Deurali where the track has been moved to the east side of the river to avoid the avalanche area around Bagar. The valley then opens out at Machhapuchhre Base Camp with a slow long walk towards Annapurna Base Camp.

Day 13: Annapurna Base Camp to Bamboo 2425m
A fantastic views at sunrise being surrounded by the mountains in the Base Camp. After breakfast a long and very hot walk down to Bamboo.

Day 14: Bamboo to Chomrong 2175m
An hour birding before breakfast in the forest near the camp site produced some excellent birds. Then a slow days birding through the forest to Chomrong.

Day 15: Chomrong to Tadapani 2590m
Good birding in the oak and rhododendron forest along the trail.

Day 16: Tadapani to Ghorepani 2750m
A day of good birding in the oak, rhododendron and bamboo forest which may have produced more birds if we had more time.

Day 17: Ghorepani to Hille 1475m
Start to be up Poon Hill for the sunrise, with some excellent birding on the way down from the top for a late breakfast. Continued through the forest towards Ulleri where the trail opens out into terraced fields before a steep down stone staircase with over 2500 steps to the river.

Day 18: Hille to Chandrakot 1580m
Trekking to Chandrakot and birding in the vicinity of the village.

Day 19: Chandrakot to Road and on to Kathmandu
Just over an hours walk before we reached the road at Lumle and transfered to Kathmandu.

Day 20: A free day in Kathmandu for shopping and rest.

Day 21: Transfer to Airport for your departure flight.

Please write us for the costing of this birding trip.