mtcodex

The holiday is done, the Annapurna Circuit complete. I’m busy organising myself with regards to work and processing the photos I took. Over the next couple of weeks I will be updating this site with excerpts from my journal and photos.

I had a great time, Nepal is a fantastic place, somewhat under developed but with largely content people. It’s a shame so many of the good people that are able to are leaving because of the ongoing Maoist situation. For those that are thinking of doing the Annapurna Circuit trip at this time of year (early spring season) I just wanted to share some tips on what to take. If I went again I would definitely pack a little more differently so here are my observations.

Foot Care: Naturally you need good boots and socks, I recommend leather plus Gore-tex considering the amount of mud and snow experienced. However, one super essential thing that I suspect many people don’t include is foot powder. I liberally applied Scholl athletes foot powder every day and only got one small blister during the entire trip. Also bring nail clippers and keep your toe nails trimmed. I found moleskin very helpful for applying to areas that felt sore before any blisters occurred.

Outerware: I did pack with layers in mind but my waterproof coat was far too heavy and warm. Rather than a heavy jacket I recommend a good quality light weight water proof along with an extra fleece or down jacket. The reason being is that for many days the weather will likely be fine or too warm for it, and if you’re not wearing it then it’s better to have a light weight water proof that a heavier jacket to carry.

Sleeping Bag: If you don’t have one, buy a down sleeping bag with at least 600 fill. The coldest places provide blankets but I personally never needed one with an entry level 4 season sleeping bag (North Face Blue Kazoo)

Sun Screen: Don’t mess around, get a good high factor sun screen and apply liberally. I got caught out one day because I was fully covered but the back of my left hand was burnt.

Energy and Supplements: Take along glucose tablets such as Lucozade or Dextrose but stock up on chocolate bars lower down while the prices are cheaper and eat these if you feel them necessary. The reason for this is that if you get any kind of illness (out of a group of 12 everyone was ill at least once) then it’s better just take the pure sugar than anything containing dairy. You can also take these plus water for an energy boost instead of coke or sprite when you get higher and the prices rise.

I also recommend taking a few sachets of oral re-hydration salts that you can stomach, blackcurrant flavour worked for me. These take up little weight and handy for taking after unexpected diarrhea or sickness. (You may be starting to guess how some of my trip went by now.)

Torch: Head torches seemed to work well. I took a small high powered LED torch (Inova X5). This was especially good for the couple of times we started in the dark but I would have preferred a head torch for the toilet. The key here is to choose something that will accept lithium batteries. You can get most standard size batteries such as AA in lithium. These cost two to three times more than regular batteries but last longer (so you can take less) and hold their charge better in cold conditions.

Drugs: Take the basics such as aspirin and pain killers but buy the rest in Nepal. Diamox for example is about Rs 10 (approximately 7 pence) per tablet. Two drugs I would recommend are:
Diamox (Acetazolamide). At altitude there is less oxygen in the air so you breathe faster than normal in order to provide your body with the oxygen it requires. This hyperventilation increases the amount of bicarbonate in your body. This results in the symptoms of Acute Mountain Sickness. Diamox makes your kidneys process it faster, speeding up the acclimatization process. (This is why it’s essential to drink so much water too.)
Ciprofloxacin. This is a general antibiotic for getting rid of diarrhea – induced by funny food and if untreated water your body isn’t used to.

General Advice: Enjoy yourself, stop and admire the view, take a photo. As our leader Lalit liked to say “Stop and play with the nature”. Sometimes it is hard going but your experience and memories should be that of the landscape and people, not of the hard slogging.