Kakani Hike

We collect you from your hotel at about seven and are out of the valley on the Trishuli road within the hour, climbing steadily to Kakani at 2,073m - roughly ninety minutes from Thamel, traffic at Balaju permitting. The ridge here looks north across the Trishuli valley to Ganesh Himal, Langtang Lirung and Dorje Lakpa, and on a clear winter morning the range fills the whole horizon rather than sitting as a distant line. From the road we follow the ridge trail through rhododendron and pine, past terraced fields, small Tamang settlements and the memorial garden to the 1992 Thai Airways crash, walking three to four hours at whatever pace suits the group. There is no sustained climbing and no altitude to speak of, which makes this a good first day in Nepal or an easy one for a family. Lunch is at a viewpoint lodge looking out at the mountains, and we are back in Kathmandu by late afternoon.