Outdoor activities
Mountain biking
Nepal is a great country to go biking, and personally I went around KTM valley for 3 days.
General remarks
-
In KTM, there are basically 4 companies which all have an office in
Thamel, not more then 100 meters from each other around the KTM
Guesthouse, so it’s easy to go shopping. I think 3 of them are good,
the 4th one is less.
- Always test the bike before booking a trip.
Especially for taller people like me, choice is not always sufficient.
Always require a helmet and tools to repair a broken tire.
- Try not to pay everything up front.
Himalayan mountain bike
-
These are the pioneers of mountain biking in Nepal, and they have an
office both in Pokhara and KTM in the so-called "Asia adventure center"
together with Ultimate descents rafting Nepal.
- Their bikes are
in excellent condition. They told me they change them every year, for
the moment they have Fuji bikes. The only problem is that their bikes
are somewhere in a depot, so you cannot try them before booking a trip.
-
They charge around 25$ for a 1 day trip, and 40 $ for a trip including
food and lodging. They also rent their bikes at 600 Rp per day. These
prices are based on 1 single biker, and they can go down of you have
group. They have a website at www.bikingnepal.com
Dawn till Dusk
- They were second after HMB. You’ll find them in the courtyard of the KTM guesthouse.
-
They have 2 kinds of bikes: the cheaper ones without front suspension,
and the better Trek bikes with suspension and in good condition.
-
They charge around 50 $ per day for multiple day trips. They also rent
their bikes: 300 Rp per day for the cheaper, 10 $ per day for the Trek
bikes. Their website is www.nepalbiking.com.
Massif bikes
-
They are situated in a small alley close to KTM guesthouse, so you
might miss them. I didn’t work with them, but I met an American working
in Nepal who went biking with them during weekends and he said they
were excellent with good guides and bikes (Giant bikes).
- They are a bit cheaper than their competitors. Their website is at www.massifmountainbike.com
Bikenepal
- This company definitely comes in a lower category then the 3 others. You’ll find them in a small alley, so easy to miss.
-
In fact, they just have some bikes, most of them in a bad condition, a
few of them still reasonable. So if you book here, always test the bike
on beforehand, and tell them what you want to have changed (my front
tire was without profile, the rest of the bike was reasonable, but
while biking the gears were not always responding well enough). They
don’t have their own guides, so they just hire freelancers if you need
a guide.
- On the other hand, they are the cheapest. A trip on the
scar road including vehicle bringing us to the top costed here 37,5 $
while Massif asked 55 $. Their site is www.bikenepal.com
Trips on offer
KTM – Nagarkot
- This is a very popular trip, and
all companies will propose this when you ask for a short trip. Usually
they go from KTM to Bakhtapur via Thimi. They visit Bakhtapur, and then
they go for the climb to Nagarkot. This is a very stiff climb, which
will take several hours as you go from 1100 m to 1900 m. This road is a
tarmac road, but there’s not too much traffic.
- Then you spend the night in Nagarkot and get up early to see sunrise. The views are spectacular if there are no clouds.
-
Next day you bike down again via Sanku. This is rough jeep track with
almost no traffic. Apparently there are also single track
possibilities, ask your guide if you want this.
- For a detailed
description of this route, see the "Kathmandu valley page". It is easy
to do this trip without the guide as it is impossible to get lost on
the jeep track to Sangku.
- There are variations on this trip. You
could go via Changu Narayan, you can come back through a Southern road
instead of via Sangku, you can take a minibus for the climb up to
Narangkot etc…
Scar road
- This trip is described in the LP, and all companies know of it, but some are a bit reluctant and prefer the Nagarkot trip.
-
This trip first gives you a stiff climb up to Kakane (2100 m high).
Most companies offer to spend the night there, but I did this part in a
minibus and arrived at 10 am. I also met an English guy who did this
climb in just 3 hours!! Once you get out of the bus, the trip is truly
marvelous. The first hour you do a fantastic single track all the way
down, then there’s a stiff climb up again for an hour, but from there
on it’s flat or down, all the way off road till KTM. Fantastic trip!!
-
For a detailed description of this route, see the "Kathmandu valley
page". I was going to write not to attempt this trip without a guide,
but this English guy did it just with the short description of the LP.
Still, he admitted that he thought he was almost lost on the
single track, but he saw our trails and thus knew he was still OK. Also
the guide will guide you on an off road track all the way till KTM
through villages, while the LP description will put you on tarmac for
the last 10 km.
Daman
Daman is a place South
of KTM known for its fantastic views over the Himalayan range
(providing views are clear). The classic trip is all the way up by bike
from a certain point, spend the night and then come back either towards
India, either towards KTM. I had read in the new edition of the Rough
Guide about a new single-track road via a lake etc… Dawn till Dusk and
Massif knew about this trip, but they said there had been a landslide
and it was no longer possible to do it.
Rafting
Which companies?
Again, there are different companies, some of them are good, others a bit less.
Ultimate descents International
This
is a Kiwi based company. They don’t have an office in Thamel, but they
work together with "Ultimate Rivers". This is a good reliable company,
and they have a resort along the Bhote Kosi called "the last resort"
where they also have the highest Bungee jump on earth (160 m). Their
site is at www.ultimatedescents.com. Their Nepalese partner is www.greenhilltours.com.
Ultimate Descents Nepal
This
company was raised by someone who left UD International. They have
their office at the Asia adventure center and they are also reliable.
Their site is at www.udnepal.com. They also have an office in Pokhara.
Drift Nepal
This company works together with Massif Bikes. I have the impression they are reliable, and their site is at www.driftnepal.com. They also have an office in Pokhara.
Equator Expeditions
They
look a bit less professional and are a bit cheaper. However, I spoke to
a Belgian guy who said they were OK. Their site is at www.equatornepal.com. They also have an office in Pokhara.
Raft Nepal
I have no info on this company. Their site is at www.raftnepal.com.
Which trips?
Bhote Kosi
If
you have a limited time, this is certainly the trip to go for. It’s a
challenging river with class V rapids. Trips depart early from KTM. The
different companies do different things here. All of them will do just
a part of the river the first day. Some take the wilder upper river,
others the lower. They all camp, facilities may differ, some have a
real resort, others just camp in tents along the river. Second day
differs again: some raft the whole river, other only the part they
didn’t do the first day, so shop around. Prices go from 40 to 90 $ for
the 2 days.
Marshangdi
This is also a challenging river, though a little bit less then Bhote Kosi. It also takes 3 to 4 days.
Karnali
This
river must be really great. However, there are some problems with it.
First of all it’s a trip of at least 10 days from KTM of which 7 on the
water of which 3 on real white water. Secondly, these trips stop
running when there’s too much Maoist activity as this is considered
Maoist area. Thirdly, this is a pretty rough trip with very basic
accommodation in tents, no toilet etc… Price is around 400 $.
How to book a trip?
All
companies have so-called "fixed departures" These are only fixed when
they have enough people to go with them. The minimum they require is
usually 6. For smaller trips like Bhote Kosi, this is usually feasible
in high season, but for Karnali this remains to be seen.
I would
advise to wait till the day before departure to book, certainly for the
shorter trips like Bhote Kosi. The reason is that once they know their
trip is going, 1 person more or less won’t cost them much more, and
they will give you a better deal. Maybe you are that 6th person they
need to fill their boat, and then you can really get a good deal.
More info
There is 1 excellent non-commercial site on rafting in Nepal, which is completely dedicated to this subject. It's called White water Nepal, have a look at it.
Paragliding
It is now possible to go Paragliding in Pokhara.
They leave from Sarangkot.
They have different trips available:
1) A normal 15 minute trip down to Pokhara for 55 4
2) A longer trip around the valley for 110 $
3) Apparently it is even possible to do a 2 hours trip to view Annapurna.They have a website at www.nepal-paragliding.com.
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