Days 1 & 2 of the trek
Days 13 - 14ExitDays 3 - 4

Day 1 : In front of Manang Hotel in Thamel, Kathmandu with Deepak and Diana of Divine Int'l Explore & Treks Pvt Ltd). All ready to depart for Pokhara for the start of the 1st day of the trek to Birethanti. The journey by van will take us until Nayapul (New Bridge in Nepali). We'll trek from there by foot for the next 13 days.

First glimpse of the snow capped mountains of the Himalayas on the road just outside of the Kathmandu valley leading to Pokhara. The mountains in the background are not that visible in this scanned image.
Finally arrived at Nayapul after approx. 8 hrs by van from Kathmandu. This is the dropoff point and from here to Birethanti takes about 1 hr. Day 2 : Rising early the next morning at Birethanti. Even though Birethanti is quite a large village by comparison, there is no electric power, although it has a bank.
The group outside our lodge before setting off for Ulleri. My face went numb from using the water to brush our faces and teeth - it's the first time on the trip that I have felt water this cold! A short while out of Birethanti on the way to Ulleri. The terrain started out quite flat during the early stages of the trek and I was beginning to think - hey, no sweat. How little did I know!
Nepali kids selling green oranges along the way - tasted sour! Nevetheless, we bought some to keep our Vit C intake up and to quench the thirst. One the many rest stops that we will come to relish more and more as the trek went on. Time now for topping up on enery bars and drinks!
Donkeys going uptrail on the steps leading to Ulleri. It was to be one of the hardest climbs on our trek route, taking us slightly more than 3 hours. Taking a much needed rest as well as the opportunity to shoot some pictures. Our guides Subas and Tim are in the foreground.
Days 13 - 14ExitDays 3 - 4
Well laid out pots and pans at the guest house we stayed in Ulleri. Decorative utensils! There is electric power in Ulleri.