Mardi Himal trek is an unseen gem yet. Few trekkers make their way to the Mardi Himal Base Camp outstandingly positioned at the base of Mardi Himal and the Annapurna region´s most iconic mount Machapuchhre literally meaning “Fish tail”. The trail goes along small winding paths, through enchanted rhododendron forests until you climb out of the forest at an elevation around 3,300 meter. The landscape changes quite abruptly into a rugged high mountain landscape, with amazing views of Mardi Himal, Machapuchre, Annapurna South and Hiunchuli.
Mardi Himal trek starts at Kande after 1 hours driving from Pokhara. The trail is good, first slowly up, then a bit steeper to Australian Camp (2060m – About one hour), then after that slightly downhill to Pothana (1950m) then up again to Deurali (2100m). There is a right turn in Deurali signposted “Forest Camp” the trail is through jungle, at first up then undulating on the top of a ridge, there is a section just over half way where the trail drops steeply and then slowly gains height and then back onto the ridge and into Forest Camp (2600m). The trail is initially quite steep leaving Forest Camp but soon gets less steep as you again get up on the ridge. The trail leaves Low Camp again in the jungle, but the trees soon start to get smaller and after about one hours trekking broke out of the jungle and onto the open ridge with spectacular views of Machhapuchhre ahead and Annapurna South to my left. It is possible to continue trekking along the ridge for another 4 to 5 hours to Mardi Himal Base Camp (4500m) and return to High Camp in around 4 hours – This makes a long day but there is also a viewpoint about halfway, the imaging view can be from here. After that, we trek down to Siding via Low Camp. From Siding, we drive back to Pokhara.
Overview
Mardi Himal Trek makes you through a greenery rhododendron forest at an elevation of around 3,300m through narrow paths. The trek starts from Pokhara and ends at Pokhara 5D4N. The landscape will change into rugged high mountains as you ascend, a landscape that offers a magnificent view of Machhapuchhare Himal, which is also known as Fishtail. There are usually many trees, bamboos, and chirping plants in the forests that you must walk through. The five-day Mardi Himal trek is one of the most popular trekking trails to see the mountains naked-eyed.
A Mardi Himal trek is the best option for avoiding crowds like a Poon hill trek. This trek allows you to hike through the jungle trails, where you can see wildlife and birds, including the Himalayan Thar, long-tailed langurs (monkeys), and butterflies Danphe, Kalij, and Monal.
