5 Things to see in Pokhara, Nepal

Nepal is filled with stunning scenery, a rich culture and amazing history. We explored Kathmandu, Chitwan National Park and Pokara before flying to Paro, Bhutan. Pokhara is the second largest city in Nepal and is known as ‘the Jewel of the Himalayas’. People visit Pokhara to marvel at the breathtaking beauty, enjoy the clear air quality and soak in the most spectacular views of the Annapurna Range. Pokhara is also the starting point for treks into the Annapurna Himalaya and is filled with adventure seeking travelers eager to conquer the Annapurna Base Camp trek.

Pokhara is 86km from Chitwan, but due to hills and poor road conditions, our drive took 6 hours, however it was simply breathtaking. We drove winding roads around mountains with scenic views the whole way, until our driver delivered us safely to the Fishtail Lodge in Pokhara.

1. FishTail Lodge – Pokhara

The air was clean and clear, the views of snow covered mountains breathtaking, and the city was full of super cool backpackers preparing to trek the Himalayas. Fishtail Lodge is located on an island in the middle of Phewa Lake and you reach their reception by crossing the lake on a hand pulled raft. With views of the lake, forest hills, and the panorama of the Annapurna range and Mount “Machhapuchre” (Fish Tail), we immediately felt calm, relaxed and ready to explore this new city.

2. Devi Falls – Pokhara

After resting and enjoying a lovely hot shower, we headed out the next day to Devi Fall’s, a large waterfall located in the Kaski District. The water forms a 500 ft underground tunnel after reaching the bottom and is approximately 100ft below ground level. We descended into the damp, loud, tunnel… but I have to say the construction workers jackhammering at 100 ft below ground level was rather unsettling.

I’m not a fan of underground enclosed spaces, and the thought of an earthquake did cross my mind. I decided we should exit and quickly pulled the boys out. We were sweating and short of breath from the dense tunnel, and headed into town for some shopping and ice cold drinks.

3. Phewa Lake

The following day we were scheduled to explore Phewa Lake, but after breakfast Hot Hubby said, “Babe, feel my head…. do you feel a fever?” After I dryly told him that humidity was at 85% and of course we all feel hot, he tried to tell me that I have no feelings. Strike two to Delhi Belly! We ditched Hot Hubby to explore the town and left him shivering and moaning into a cold washcloth, with a large glass of water. (I’ve never claimed to be a nurse!)

Phewa Lake is a freshwater lake and is the second largest lake in Pokhara. On a clear day you can see the shimmering reflection of the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri ranges on the surface of lake. The boys and I rented boats for the day, and soaked in the fresh air and fishtail mountain range.

Thankfully, hubby had recovered from his Delhi Belly, and felt ready to head out the next morning at 4.30am to climb Sarangkot mountain to watch the sunrise.

5. Sarangkot Mountain

Sarangkot Mountain is known for breathtaking panoramic Himalayan views of sunrise over the Annapurna range and Fishtail Mountain.
We drove in darkness to the base of the mountain, to climb in the freezing cold to reach the summit and watch the sunrise. We reached the base of the mountain around 5am, and began our climb up to the village. It definitely got the heart and lungs pumping in the thin air, and even though it was early and freezing, we could tell we were in for something special. We reached the top just as the sun was starting to peek over the Annapurna range.

We sat in amazement watching the eerie mist swirl across the mountains and the sky burst into the most dramatic colors over the Himalayan peaks. We had a view of the mountains on one side, and a view of Pokhara city on the other.

As we soaked in the scenery surrounded completely by Annapurna ranges, we were mesmerized at the sheer beauty of mother nature. We all agreed the harsh 4.30am wake up call was definitely worth it.

After we basked in the beauty of our incredible views, and took lots of pictures, we carefully hiked back down to the local village.

It was pretty cold and we were all starving after our early morning adventure, so we headed back to the lodge for a fantastic breakfast. We said our final goodbye to Pokhura, and took a short flight back to Kathmandu, and then onto Paro, Bhutan.

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