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Trek · Kaski · 2024

Khumai Danda and Korchon

3 days from Kathmandu to Khumai Danda (3,245 m) and Pokhara, with sunrise on Korchon (3,682 m): our day-by-day itinerary, plus tips on packing and the cold.

Published

3
days
≈ 24 km
on foot
3,682 m
highest point, Korchon
When
November 2024
With
Four of us
Stay
Hotels on top of Khumai Danda, all warm and welcoming
Getting there
Night bus from Kathmandu to Pokhara, then a shared jeep to Saripakha
Getting back
The same way down to Saripakha, the same jeep to Pokhara, then a night bus to Kathmandu
Khumai Danda and Korchon route mapFrom Pokhara to Korchon via Hemja, Saripakha, Hile Kharka, Chichimle, Khumai Danda. Highest point: Korchon, 3,682 m.PokharaHemjaSaripakhaHile KharkaChichimleKhumai DandaKorchon 3,682 m
Route © OpenStreetMap contributors

Day by day

  1. Day 1Khumai Danda3,245 m

    Jeep to Saripakha; second breakfast at Hile Kharka, lunch at Chichimle

  2. Day 2Pokhara822 m · ↓ 2,423 m

    Up at 4 AM for sunrise on Korchon, then down the same way; lunch at Hile Kharka

  3. Day 3Pokhara822 m

    Croissants and lattes, a boat on Phewa Lake, Thakali lunch, then kayaking

The four of us took a night bus from Kathmandu to Pokhara. After breakfast we squeezed into a jeep, shared with another group of four, up through Hemja to Saripakha, where the road ends and the walking starts.

Oshan in a blue jacket and cap, looking up from a misty forest trail with sunlight through the trees.
The forest on the way up from Saripakha.

We stopped for a light second breakfast at Hile Kharka, ate lunch at Chichimle, and reached the top of Khumai Danda at about 4 PM. There are lots of hotels up there, and they are all warm and welcoming.

When we arrived it was very cloudy, and we could barely see anything. We took our rooms and settled down by the fireplace with some ginger tea. Then, as the sun set, all the clouds vanished. The sky turned clear as crystal, and all the peaks revealed themselves, draped in red and yellow. Soon after, the moon came up.

A row of rocky peaks glowing deep red and orange at sunset, under a clear sky.Snow peaks lit gold by the setting sun, rising above a layer of cloud.
The clouds cleared at sunset.

The night was the best part: a moonlit view of the mountains, and the stars so clearly visible. It was wonderful. At dinner, the hotel owner dai served us a delicious non-veg khana set. Deep into the night, the cold started to get into our bones too. I’m glad the tea was unlimited, and it was so good. Only a few spots on the hill get network reception, so we stayed indoors around the space heater.

Sunrise from Korchon

We woke up at 4 AM and started the hike up to Korchon. It took us about an hour and a half, and we reached the top just as the sun was about to rise. The view was surreal: 360 degrees of snow-capped peaks catching the first light. We spent about 40 minutes up there, then walked back to Khumai Danda, where a warm breakfast and hot ginger tea were waiting for us. Photo sessions followed.

The pointed summit of Machhapuchhre beyond a grassy ridge with a lone tree, under a deep blue sky.Oshan in a black down jacket with a trekking pole, standing above a sea of white cloud.Oshan in a black down jacket on a slope of golden grass, with forested ridges and snow peaks behind.
Khumai Danda, the morning after.

We took our leave with bottles and thermoses full of warm water. The descent was one of the best walks I have done: you could almost see beyond the horizon, and every point and every turn on the trail brought back the climb of the day before. We ate lunch at Hile Kharka, then went on down to Saripakha on weak knees. The same jeep that had dropped us there the day before came to pick us up.

That night we explored Pokhara and treated ourselves to street food and the view from Lakeside.

A slow day in Pokhara

A flaky croissant on a plate beside a cup of coffee at Belle Lyipa.

The next morning we rushed to Belle Lyipa for fresh croissants and lattes. We spent more time wandering around Lakeside, took a boat out on Phewa Lake, ate lunch at a Thakali place, and checked out of the hotel. Then we went back to the lake once more, this time to go kayaking, before the night bus back to Kathmandu.

A weathered wooden sign reading "ताल पारी" (across the lake), with a painted boat, set in a stone wall.The sun setting over a dark hill above Phewa Lake, with boats moored on the water.Oshan in a cap, sunglasses and a life jacket, smiling back over a shoulder from a yellow boat on Phewa Lake.
Phewa Lake.

Good to know

  • The trek isn’t demanding, so pack light: it makes the way down much easier.
  • Do pack a down jacket, warm trousers and socks: the cold gets you at night.
  • Call the hotels on Khumai Danda before you go, to check they have rooms.
  • The route is easy to follow, and there were plenty of other trekkers on it, from Nepal and from abroad.
  • Network reception is patchy: only a few spots on the hill get a signal.
  • Fill your bottles and a thermos with warm water before you head down.
  • Take the descent slowly. Rushing downhill is very hard on the hips and knees.

Don’t litter the trail; carry your rubbish back down. Be civil to the people who live and work up there, and help keep this short trek as good as it is.

Planning this trip, or have a question about it? Write to hello@shresthaoshan.com.