Hard to believe the last time I wrote a travel blog was almost 4 years ago, when Jay & I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary with a big trip to Peru. So happy to finally be traveling overseas together again!

Initially, we talked about traveling to Portugal & Spain and hiking the Camino de Santiago. Ultimately, we decided to go to trekking in Nepal. Gotta do these more strenuous adventures before we get too old!

In Nepal, we’ll spend most of our time trekking the Manaslu Circuit, then connect to the Annapurna Circuit for the final week. It was surprisingly affordable to hire a private guide, so that’s what we did. We’ll get to hike at our own pace, which will be nice.

To break up the long journey to reach Nepal, we’re spending a week in Greece on the way to Nepal, and a week in Istanbul on the way back.

Our Itinerary
10/14 Depart Denver
10/15 Arrive Istanbul
10/16 to 10/22 Santorini, Greece
10/23 Flight to Kathmandu
10/24 Day in Kathmandu (my 45th Birthday!)
10/25 Drive from Kathmandu to Soti Khola
10/26 Hike: Soti Khola to Machhi Khola
10/27 Hike: Machhi Khola to Phlim
10/28 Hike: Phlim to Bephedi
10/29 Hike: Bephedi to Namrung
10/30 Hike: Namrung to Sama Gau
10/31 Explore day or Visit Pungyan Gompa
11/01 Hike: Sama to Dharmasala
11/02 Hike: Dharmasala to Bimthang via Larkya-La Pass
11/03 Hike: Bimthang to Dharapani
11/04 Hike: Dharapani to Chame
11/05 Hike: Chame to Pisang
11/06 Hike: Pisang to Manang
11/07 Explore day in Manang
11/08 Hike: Manang to Yak Kharka
11/09 Hike: Yak kharka to Throng High Camp/Phedi
11/10 Hike: High camp to Muktinath via Throng-la Pass
11/11 Hike: Muktinath to Jomsom
11/12 Jomson, flight to Pokhara
11/13 Pokhara, flight to Kathmandu
11/14 Flight to Istanbul
11/14 to 11/19 Istanbul
11/19 Flight to Denver

Packing for a trip like this can be challenging, especially when you want to travel as light as possible and don’t want to check bags. Our trekking company gave us a list of items to bring. We managed to make our stuff fit in carry-on bags, thanks to compression sacks.

Packing List

• Passport
• Credit card & debit card
• iPhone, charger, headphones
• Garmin + charger
• Earplugs + eye mask
• Sunglasses
• Black walking shoes
• Waterproof hiking shoes
• Down jacket
• Rain jacket + rain pants + waterproof socks
• Lightweight jacket
• Wool sweater
• Fleece vest
• 2 long sleeve shirts
• 4 t-shirts
• 2 tank tops
• 4 black bottoms (pants, leggings, capris, shorts)
• Swimsuit
• 2 hats
• Beanie, winter hat, ear warmer, neck warmer, gaiters, gloves
• Socks + underwear
• Toiletries + medications
• Travel towel
• Travel clothes line
• Headlamp + extra batteries
• Nalgene + water filter
• Zero degree sleeping bag

We are thankful to have a good friend staying at our house and taking care of Misha while we’re gone.

The couple weeks leading up to this trip were a bit hectic… busy wrapping up work and getting ready to be gone for 5 weeks. Feels good to finally be traveling! In the words of Willie Nelson, which have been stuck in my head today…

“On the road again
Goin’ places that I’ve never been
Seein’ things that I may never see again
And I can’t wait to get on the road again…”