BAD NEWS. As of April 1, 2023 the Nepal government required that major treks can no longer be done independently. Hiring a guide is mandatory. The obvious alternative for independent hikers is the Indian Himalaya.
UPDATE April 2024. The Everest region refused to enforce mandatory guides. Hikers are doing Base Camp independently.
Every hiker dreams of trekking in the footsteps of Hillary and Norgay. Climbing to Mt. Everest Base Camp Qomolangma (Tibetan), Sagarmāthā (Nepali) should be on your bucket list.
Here is the finest alpine scenery in the world, we reckon.
Namche Bazaar … at 3,440 metres (11,286 ft) … is the main trading center for the Khumbu region with many Nepalese officials, a police check post and a bank. …
Namche has a permanent population of around 800.
Almost everyone trekking in the Khumbu region will visit Namche Bazaar, as it is the gateway to the high Himalaya.
Patagonia is massive and bleak. Yet we love the Patagonian Andes, 2000km (1243mi) in length, but averaging less than 100km (62mi) in width. You could take years exploring just the eastward (drier) side of the mountains.
Towering granite peaks, untouched lakes, massive glaciers, huge volcano trekking peaks. This land is phenomenal.
Mirador del Pliegue Tumbado, Fitz Roy, Argentina
Trekkers target five areas:
The Araucania
Lakes District
Central Patagonia
Southern Patagonia
Tierra del Fuego
Start in Mendoza, Argentina and visit the highest mountain outside Asia, Aconcagua. Next bus to the Switzerland of South America (Lake District). Some of the highest volcanoes of the world are here. Finally, work your way south by air and ferry to the granite spires at the south tip of the continent.
Trekking season here is Nov-Apr. (Feb-Mar often the best weather) That said, the wind and weather in Patagonia is notorious. Independent hikers need be prepared for anything and everything.
Conversational Spanish highly recommended for those travelling independently.
Huaraz is a trekkers’ paradise. On one side of the valley you have the White Mountains (Cordillera Blanca). On the other side, the Black Mountains (Cordillera Negra). We hike the White Mountains, mountain bike the Black Mountains.
And only a short distance away is the remote, high Cordillera Huayhuash, ideal for hard core trekkers.
Huaraz is located in the central-northern part of the country at an altitude of 3052 m (10,013 feet), some 420 km north of Lima. Huaraz sits in the agriculturally important Callejón de Huaylas valley, at the foot of the Cordillera Blanca mountain range, which includes Huascarán, the highest mountain in Peru at 6768 m (22,204 feet). …
On May 31, 1970 the Ancash earthquake destroyed much of Huaraz, killing 10,000 people. Almost nothing was left of the old city with its narrow streets and big adobe casonas roofed with tiles. The main square was the only major structure that survived the earthquake so the city was rebuilt around it. …
Huaraz is connected to the rest of the country through the Panamerican Highway (187 km north of Lima) and can be reached from Lima … in seven hours. …
Huascarán National Park is a popular destination for tourism and trekking. Huaraz is a frequent base for expeditions to the Cordillera Blanca and Huayhuash. …
The population of the greater area is over 100,000 though you’d never guess it was that big. Huarez retains the feeling of a remote mountain town.
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