It is considered by popular vote as the most beautiful trekking in the world, but it is also one of the most legendary in Nepal and in the world. It is the Annapurna Circuit, a circular route of more than 250 kilometers with spectacular views of the great Annapurna and Dhaulagiri massifs, dotted with the typical small towns that support the Himalayas.
This trekking, which goes up to Thorong La Pass, a pass between valleys at 5,416 meters high, will not be able to be done without a guide starting tomorrow, April 1, when the ban on solo trekking comes into force throughout the country. After a year of deliberations not without controversy, the Nepali government has decided to adopt this measure for security reasons. Mountaineers, who have their own regulatory framework, are exempt.
The well-being of hikers and travelers in the remote regions of Nepal, specifically in the Himalayas, is the main argument put forward by the Nepali government to justify its decision, although it is true that the measure will also entail the creation of more jobs work, as indicated in a statement by the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB).
Until now, all a tourist needed to undertake the trek on their own was a trekking permit and a Trekker Information Management System (TIMS) card. Now, due to security concerns, TIMS cards will no longer be issued to hikers who are not accompanied by a local guide, and those who plan to hike individually with a guide (rather than joining a larger group) will have to pay the double.
Mireia and Jose, a couple of Catalan hikers who are barely over thirty, were taken down by the measure coming down from Everest base camp. Hence, they decided to wrap the blanket over their heads and start walking again, when they had barely recovered from their first encounter with altitude sickness. “We couldn't miss out on this opportunity to go it alone”, comments this couple, well aware of the damage that posture tourism is doing to the mountains. And what it will do.
“There aren't many people, we are constantly alone except for a specific moment when other mountaineers come across us. And those who do usually go with a guide and porters, who carry everything. Doing this trekking costs about 700 euros per person. And despite the fact that we are in discount time to enjoy being able to trek in this country without a guide, there are those who still prefer to go with all the possible comforts”, they explain with considerable disappointment after having seen porters carry even hair dryers. hand.
This couple from Baix Penedès, promoters of the Creatividad Viajera digital content company, will be part of the contingent of lone wolves who have dared to climb these mountains with no help other than their legs and mental strength. A select group of hikers that last year reached the figure of 19,425 people, but that in 2019, the last pre-pandemic year, was 46,142 people. "Every year there are between 40 and 50 cases of disappearance of visitors and the authorities have serious problems rescuing and locating them," argued a few days ago the head of the country's tourism office, Mani Raj Lamichhane. “This measure will help us ensure a safe experience and allow us to keep track of hikers, while providing timely rescue services in case of emergency situations,” he detailed.
The high season of excursions and hiking is about to begin. Jose and Mireia are now preparing to climb to the southern base camp of Annapurna 1, at 4,100 meters. Sucked, especially after crossing at four in the morning Torolong La Pass, the highest mountain pass in the world. It is one of the few places where loners come together to walk it together and lend a hand in the face of the many adversities that can arise: extreme cold, possible landslides and lack of oxygen. This with the permission of the weather and the feared altitude sickness, which according to the experience of these two young people, hits you no matter what.
Once the highest point is reached, and after barely celebrating it, the descent begins. In this other part of the circuit, tourism has wreaked more havoc and the refuges have become hotels, with few amenities, but hotels nonetheless.
Despite everything, this couple remains with what they experienced from Upper Pissang to Muktinath. Some 80 kilometers that stand out above those 250 kilometers that make up the Circular Circuit, from which many hikers skip the initial stages and climb them in jeeps. “Everything else, despite being beautiful, has lost its magic. We have the feeling that some of these villages that we have seen and spent the night in, in a few years will be like a small Andorra”.
