Mardi Himal Trek, 6 Days

We leave Pokhara by private jeep around 08:00 for the drive to the Kande trailhead at 1,770 metres. From there the trail climbs through stone steps and rhododendron forest, with the first wide views of Annapurna South and Hiunchuli opening up as you gain height. Because the 6-day keeps a gentler pace than the 4 and 5-day versions, we stop for a proper lunch on the trail rather than pushing straight through to Forest Camp.

The afternoon climb is shorter than on the compressed itineraries, ending at Pitam Deurali (2,100 m), the junction where the Mardi Himal trail branches off the busier Annapurna Base Camp route and turns onto its own quiet ridge. This is one of the differences that makes the 6-day easier on the body: the first day's climb is split in two instead of pushed all the way to Forest Camp in one go.

Overnight at a teahouse in Pitam Deurali. The extra day built into this itinerary starts paying off immediately: you arrive with energy in reserve rather than fatigue banked for tomorrow.

A steady climb through oak, maple, and rhododendron forest to Forest Camp (2,550 m), the stretch locals call Kokar and one of the more reliable places on the route to spot langur troops moving through the canopy. On the 4 and 5-day itineraries this is where the first day usually ends after a much longer push; here it is a relaxed half-day.

From Forest Camp the trail continues gently upward to Rest Camp at roughly 2,700 metres, a small cluster of teahouses that faster itineraries walk straight through without stopping. Splitting the climb this way keeps each day's net altitude gain modest, which is the entire design logic behind the 6-day.

Overnight at Rest Camp. Two easy days in, you are already higher than the first night on the 5-day plan, but with far less fatigue to show for it.

The trail climbs through the last of the upper forest to Low Camp (2,985 m), where the trees thin out and the full Annapurna massif comes into view for the first time. We stop here for lunch and, if needed, a pulse-oximetry check before the final push of the day.

Above Low Camp the route breaks onto the open ridge, crosses Badal Danda (Cloud Ridge, 3,210 m), and climbs to High Camp at 3,580 metres. That is roughly 880 metres of net gain since the morning, spread across a full trekking day rather than crammed into the middle of a longer one, which keeps the pace sustainable even for trekkers with no prior altitude experience.

Arrive High Camp in the afternoon with time to rest before dinner. Machhapuchhre fills the view directly across the valley, and the sunset from the dining hall is the moment most trekkers on this route remember.

The summit morning. We leave High Camp around 04:30 with headtorches for the climb to the Mardi Himal Upper Viewpoint at 4,200 metres, the highest point of the trek. On a clear morning the sun lifts over the eastern peaks while Dhaulagiri sits far to the west and the full Annapurna wall fills the sky ahead.

Return to High Camp for a proper breakfast, then descend back through Badal Danda to Low Camp (2,985 m) for the night. This is a deliberate difference from the 4 and 5-day itineraries, which keep descending much further on the same day. Sleeping at Low Camp again keeps the day's net descent to about 1,215 metres instead of over two thousand, which is easier on the knees and leaves energy for the days still ahead rather than starting them depleted.

Overnight at Low Camp. The hard climbing is now behind you, and the rest of the trek is a gradual, scenic walk down.

A full day of descent through rhododendron and oak forest, dropping steadily toward the terraced farmland above the Mardi Khola valley. The trail is gentler underfoot than the ridge above, and there is time to actually look around rather than watch your footing on loose scree.

We reach Sidhing (1,860 m) in the afternoon, a working Gurung village with homestay-style teahouses and a slower rhythm than the high camps. It is also the point where the 6-day begins to diverge from the 4 and 5-day routes: instead of driving out from here the next morning, we walk one more day into a valley those shorter itineraries never see.

Overnight at a Sidhing homestay. After four days above 2,500 metres, a low-altitude night in a village with proper beds and home-cooked food is a welcome change of pace.

The final trekking day: a gentle descent through terraced fields and mixed farmland to Lumre at roughly 1,400 metres. Unlike the 4 and 5-day itineraries, which drive out from Sidhing itself, the 6-day continues on foot into this lower valley, so the last day is a genuinely different walk rather than a retrace of ground already covered.

A local jeep meets us at the Lumre road head for the drive back to Pokhara at 820 metres, passing farming villages and tea gardens on the way down. We reach the lakeside by mid to late afternoon.

Hot shower, a real bed, and a farewell celebration dinner by Phewa Lake to close out six unhurried days on the Mardi ridge.