When we decided we wanted to go to Nepal, its was at the forefront of our mind that we wanted to go on a trek. However, I did a bit of research (a very little bit, as usual) to try to find out if both myself and my wife would be able to manage it. I was concerned, as I was well aware that the Nepalese treks that walk into the mountains, not just the foothills, pretty much leave the road on day 1, and continue to walk away from the ability to give up as you progress! Meaning that if you walk for 3 days and then don’t want to do it anymore, you still would have to walk 3 days back!

So I researched to try to get an idea of how hard it would be. Couldn’t really get a definite fix on the difficulty, although searching on the net produced lots of great images, that only made me want to commit to a trek! But really no information on the physical difficulty of the Nepalese treks, or the type of preparation and exercise one should engage in to be on the front foot. Never mind anything that was age relevant.

A Little Bit Up

So we engaged on what we thought would be appropriate. We walked for 2-3 hours, 2-3 time a week, for about 3 months before we took off on out trip. In addition, we didn’t intend to be in Nepal until about 6 weeks into our trip, and travelling though Thailand for a month or more first, would most likely produce plenty more exercise opportunities, such as swimming, some hiking, and general walking. When we left for Thailand, we were in the best shape we would have been for at least 10 years, and confident we could walk an entire day with minimal trouble.

Speaking to others once in Thailand, we started to anticipate we may have not done the right prep, so we started to do some more hill work. Unfortunately, the draining humidity of Central Thailand made this very taxing and we didn’t do nearly as much as we had wanted to.

So we get to Nepal, explore Kathmandu, and organise ourselves a a guide and porter to take us on the Annapurna Sanctuary trek. A 8-10 day trek, from Pokhara to Annapurna Base Camp, starting at an altitude of 1400m above sea level, and peaking at 4100m above sea level. It was time to see if we had prepared right!

Simple Answer – NO

So, for others (particularly our 40+ target group), I have a simple guide to give you an idea on what the trek is like, and what to do to prepare.

The trek  really has 3 components

1. Up  – this is essentially stair climbing. It varies in steepness and consistency, but it is step after step, up to 3000 on the toughest sections. That’s not 3000 in a day, that is 3000 in a row!
2. Down – opposite to above. As the trek is return, for every up, you are going to do the same amount of down stairs by the time you are finished. On the accent to the Annapurna Base camp, you still go down steps for considerable lengths of time.
3. Flat – Flat is not really flat, but is just the part of the trek where the upward and downward slopes are less steep, and thus the path doesn’t need stone steps, just an upward or downward incline.

Another corner, another Mountain

So, for preparation – consider doing the following

• walking – for general fitness, need to be able to walk for 6-7 hours per day
• stair climbing – need to build the quad muscles, and calf muscles,
• stair descending – Knees and ankles need to be able to handle downward pressure.

I think there is no reason adventurers in their 40s, 50s and 60s cannot do the Annapurna treks, in-fact, you are missing out on a magnificent part of the world that will never see roads. And it wont get any easier as you get older.

Do it, but get fit first!