How To: Independent Trekking In Nepal

The Himalayas... Big savage mountains, high altitude, yaks, and, erm, cheap tea houses where they sell apple crumble, pies, Swiss Rösti, cheese omelettes, pots of tea and a room for the night is about a quid.

Who needs a stove when you could be eating at the Paradise restaurant?

Oh, there's nothing whatsoever wrong with booking an organised trek in the UK or hiring a guide or porter once you reach Nepal. It's a low hassle alternative and means you'll be part of a ready-made group, but it will cost you more than simply setting off on your own and will limit your freedom a little.

A number of airlines fly from the UK to Kathmandu International. The cheapest option is probably Biman of Bangladesh at around £450, but Gulf Air - our choice when we went out to trek the Annapurna Circuit in November - will set you back around £520 and Quatar Airways slightly more. Good places to look are Cheapflights and Lastminute.com - don't laugh, we scored a flight on lastminute, pretty much at, well, the last minute.

The web makes finding cheap flights relatively easy, though the earlier you start looking, the better your chances of landing a good deal.

There are two main trekking seasons: post-monsoon, which means October through to December, though the later you go, the colder it will be at night and the greater the possibility of snow. The pre-monsoon season is effectively April-May building up to monsoon time in June.

The earlier season is generally reckoned to have crisper, clearer conditions, the spring one is milder, though things get hazier in May. You can trek outside these peak seasons, but they're generally reckoned to be the best options.

The beauty of independent trekking in the Annapurna or Everest areas is that you can stay in tea houses or lodges which means all you really need is clothing, a warm sleeping bag, water bottle and some form or water purification, wash kit, basic first aid kit and, erm, money.

At 5,000 metres, a warm sleeping bag is your best friend...

For actual walking, you'll be fine with the sort of clothing you'd use for autumn or spring in the UK, plus some extra insulation for the cold evenings at altitude - a down jacket is a nice thing to have along. Three-season walking boots should be fine as well as paths are generally good - we prefer straight leather uppers with no waterproof liner as it can get warm at lower altitudes. A lot of the time approach shoes are feasible, but there may be snow higher up in both areas, when boots are preferable.

At high altitudes, a warm sleeping bag is a big plus, particularly in late November/December when things can get well below zero, at, say, Gorak Shep near Everest Base Camp. You don't need a sleeping mat or a tent.

The other main concern is water. Anything you drink should be either boiled, purified, or you could buy mineral water on the trail, though the bottles are ecologically unsound and it's expensive. Most trekkers use iodine in either tablet or liquid form, though you could also bring a filter. Tea from trailside tea houses and other hot drinks should also be safe and you can buy a variety of tea from black, through milk to lemon for modest prices, those these rise the higher or further up the trail you get.

Some trekkers get carried away, but we'd suggest a basic first aid kit, as you'd use in the UK, plus the addition of a course of wide-spectrum antibiotics, plus Flagyl, the drug used to treat amoebic dysentry and giardia. Chuck in some rehydration salts as well. For peace of mind, you might also want to buy some Diamox in Nepal. It's a drug that aids acclimatisation and can help in cases of mild mountain sickness.

You should also do some digging on the web and find out which innoculations are recommended for Nepal. These change, but we'd certainly make sure you have an up to date tetanus jab, hepatitus, possibly Yellow Fever and possibly Rabies.

Read the small print very carefully to make sure you're covered for trekking at altitude. We'd suggest a specialist company like Snowcard or the BMC for peace of mind. Next, carry a credit card with a limit of at least £2500 or so. This is because rescue helicopters in Nepal need to be paid in advance and waiting for clearance from a London-based claims line can waste vital hours. It's better to be able to pay yourself then claim the money back later.

There are plenty of places in Kathmandu to buy those things you've forgotten, but you really don't need to stock up on food, you can buy it on the trail. It can all seem a bit disorientating at first, particularly when you've just got off the plane, are staggering around with sleep deprivation and wondering what on earth you're doing there, but relax, it's all very user friendly.

From Kathmandu you can go it alone, hook up with other like-minded independent trekkers - try hotel noticeboards, or internet sites - or book an organised trek locally through one of the numerous trekking agencies. Or you can go halfway and hire a guide or porter / guide in Kathmandu.

The advantage of the latter is that you put some money into the local economy, get someone to carry your bag and, hopefully, an insight into the local culture. It's quite possible to manage without though with the aid of a locally available map and a decent guidebook.

The best trekking guides we've found by a mile are those published by Trailblazer in the UK. We've now used both the Everest and Annapurna books and the route descriptions and detailed maps are superb and far better than anything else we've seen. The Lonely Planet's Trekking in Nepal is a broad overview, but less useful on the ground. All thse books are available in Kathmandu by the way.

So you have the kit, the map, the book, next step is to get to the trailhead. For either Annapurna or Everest from Jiri, you can simply get a bus to the point where the trail starts. If you're planning to trek Everest from Lukla you need to book a flight. There are plenty of agencies where you can book tickets, just go in and ask. Dead easy.

And then you start walking... The main routes are well defined and you won't be alone even if sometimes you wish that you were. Tea houses or lodges are dotted along the trail at frequent intervals and provide food, drink and accommodation at very reasonable prices.

That's no great hardship as food in trekking lodges is surprisingly good and not limited to Nepali basics like curry and rice, though Dal Bhat, the local staple curry and rice dish, is an ideal and cheap trekking food. Omelettes, potato dishes like Swiss Rösti, lots of eggs, fried rice and noodles, apple pie, momo - a sort of Tibetan filled dumpling - spring rolls, porridge, chocolate cake and even Snickers and Mars rolls are all options.

The Trailblazer guides give excellent advice on acclimatisation and we'd suggest that you do some background reading on the web before you go. It's vitally important not to try and ascend too fast - people have died by pushing it and there's really no need. Above 3000 metres you shouldn't ascend more than about 300 metres in a day. Fitness by the way doesn't improve acclimatisation.

Don't get the idea that it'll be easy - walking up the 5400-metre high Thorung La Pass will kick most people's butts on grounds of altitude alone and it's clearly better to be fit than not, but don't be put off.

The web has made it easier than ever before to gather information in advance. We're no longer dependent on the self-glamorising reports of travel writers on press trip freebies with big tour companies, instead it's easy to get firsthand advice. See the forums on sites like lonelyplanet.com.

There's a lot of concern about the Maoist insurgency in Nepal, but although we met the Maoists and made a 'voluntary contribution' of around £7.00, at no point did we feel in any danger and we did get a receipt. The Maoists have repeatedly pledged not to harm trekkers and while we'd keep an eye on the situation and look at Foreign Office travel advice, right now it doesn't seem to be a serious problem for trekkers on popular routes.

If that makes it all sounds very straightforward, then that's because by and large, independent trekking using tea houses is very simple. There isn't even a language problem and Nepali people are incredibly friendly and helpful. All we can say is book the time off, buy a flight and go. You won't regret it.