This very special School Expedition is a combination of one of the best viewpoint treks in all Nepal, and an unforgettable wildlife experience, with elephant-back safari.
Firstly, you will have the chance of trekking in the Himalayan Annapurna area, setting off from relaxing Pokhara, popular town aside the picturesque and placid Lake Phewa. Pokhara,
in the shadow of the spectacularly beautiful Machapuchhre (Fishtail) Mountain, is itself only 29km from the high Himalaya.
In this centre-west region of Nepal you will meet people of several ethnicities, primarily those famously recruited into the British Gurkha army regiments, Gurung and Magar, but also Brahmins, Chhetris and many more. The trekking trail itself begins in their low altitude, rice/wheat growing area, and gradually moves up through primaeval forests festooned with flowering orchids and bearded with lichens. As you pass through the many villages along the way, you may have the chance to visit some of the primary and secondary schools in the area.
Before dawn on one of your trekking days, you will climb up to the famed Pun Hill, from where there are magnificent, 360 degree, panoramic views of snow-covered peaks from Dhaulagari I-V, to Annapurna South, and many more. This mountain trek is a paradise for birds, of which there are many species, from the tiniest Warbler to one of the largest birds of prey, the Himalayan Griffon. Mammals to be seen may include Pikas, Pine Martens, and both Langur and Rhesus Macaque monkeys.
Following your trek, another exciting activity awaits - white water rafting. After the adrenalin rush of shooting rapids, you may look forward to floating on your inflatable rafts through deep gorges towards the flat, Gangetic plain of southern Nepal, and to enjoying a tented overnight on a silver-bleached, sandy river bank, with a camp fire and tasty barbecue dinner, in the glimmering light of candle lamps and moonbeams.
When you leave the rafts, you will travel on by road to Chitwan National Park, an important reserve which protects Nepal’s endangered tigers and rhinos. Here is a very important elephant breeding centre, which you may visit via a river crossing in dugout canoes, while looking for crocodiles sunning themselves on the sandy riverbanks. A safari into the jungle will give you a chance to spot some of those endangered animals, as well as more common species like monkeys, and afterwards you may enjoy washing and scrubbing Elephants during their daily river ablutions. This flat Terai region is totally in contrast to the altitude of your trek, as is the climate, and you may look forward to a ride in bullock carts to the local villages, with fireflies dancing in the velvet night sky. All this is to be enjoyed before returning to frenetic Kathmandu.
While in Nepal’s unforgettable capital, you will be taken to see some of the unique World Heritage sites. A special visit is planned to Swayambunath, a particularly interesting and colourful site where Hindu temples and Buddhist stupas, exist side by side, in harmony, reflecting Nepal’s tolerant attitude to different religions.
By way of contrast to sightseeing, you will be invited to visit some centres for disadvantaged Nepalese – a school for over 100 2-7 year old children, where they receive free informal schooling, and a womens’ handicraft centre where traditional craft skills are being recaptured. In both places you will be received as guests, but you will surely leave as friends!
Finally there will be time to ‘shop until you drop’ for souvenirs and gifts, and to reflect on just how many things you have done and seen, and how some of your ideas may have changed, during your time in this unique, Himalayan land of Nepal.
