Trek Guide
Kori Danda trek 2026 guide from Pokhara: a quiet 5-day Annapurna viewpoint above Sikles with Annapurna II, Lamjung Himal and Machhapuchhre views…
By Travel Himalaya Nepal · Jun 14, 2026
A rising star viewpoint trek above the Gurung village of Sikles, reaching the Kori Danda ridge at roughly 3,800m for a sweeping Annapurna panorama. Quieter than Mardi Himal or Poon Hill — you trade tourist crowds for high pastures, shepherds' huts and genuine…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
Most first-time visitors to the Annapurna region are funnelled towards Poon Hill or Mardi Himal . Both are beautiful, but both are busy. Kori Danda offers the same calibre of Himalayan view — arguably a wider, closer one of the eastern Annapurnas — from a…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
The classic version runs as a five-day loop from Pokhara, and it is comfortably paced rather than rushed. Day 1: Drive from Pokhara to Sikles (around 1,980m), roughly two to three hours on a winding mountain road, then explore the village — one of the largest…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
Kori Danda is a moderate trek. The daily distances are short, but the climb from Sikles to the ridge is sustained, and a few sections are steep through the forest. You should be comfortable walking five to six hours a day on uneven ground with some long…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
Kori Danda sits inside the Annapurna Conservation Area, so you need two permits — and, helpfully, this is not a restricted region, so there is no expensive special permit. ACAP (Annapurna Conservation Area Permit): NPR 3,000 for foreign nationals (NPR 1,000…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
The two prime windows are autumn ( October to November ) and spring ( March to April ). Autumn brings the clearest, most stable skies of the year and crisp mountain air — ideal for those sunrise panoramas. Spring trades a little of that clarity for the…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
Everything begins in Pokhara, a 25-minute flight or six- to seven-hour drive from Kathmandu. From Pokhara, a private vehicle reaches Sikles in roughly two to three hours along a scenic but rough mountain road through Madi. Because the trailhead is so close to…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
Sikles itself has comfortable village homestays and small lodges, so the first and last nights are spent in proper beds with home-cooked Gurung meals. Higher on the ridge, facilities are far more basic — simple seasonal lodges and herders' huts — and during…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
Because you climb to around 3,800m and may camp, pack for genuinely cold mornings even in the trekking seasons. Bring layered clothing, a warm down jacket, a sleeping bag rated to at least -10°C, sturdy broken-in boots, sun protection and a head torch. As…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
At about 3,800m, Kori Danda is high enough to take seriously but low enough that serious altitude sickness is uncommon on a sensibly paced itinerary. The five-day plan gives a reasonable acclimatisation profile, but you should still ascend gradually, drink…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
Kori Danda suits travellers who want big Annapurna views, real cultural immersion and solitude, without the time or budget for a long trek. Compared with Mardi Himal — the popular short ridge trek on the other side of the range — Kori is quieter, more rustic…
Travel Himalaya Nepal · News
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