The alarm goes off at 4:15. Someone in the next room is already zipping a sleeping bag, and the plywood wall between you is thin enough that you hear every tooth of it. You pull on the fleece you slept in, find your headtorch by touch, and step out into Ghorepani air that is properly cold, the kind that makes your nose run before you reach the gate.
This is the morning most people book the Poon Hill trek for. We have sent guests up this hill for well over a decade, and we want to tell you honestly what it is like, what it is not, and how to make the loop around it worth more than one sunrise.
First, the short version
The classic loop starts near Nayapul or Birethanti, an hour or so by road from Pokhara. You climb through Tikhedhunga and Ulleri to Ghorepani (about 2,860 m), go up Poon Hill (3,210 m) before dawn, then cross the ridge east through rhododendron forest to Tadapani and come down to the Gurung village of Ghandruk. Most people do it in four or five walking days. Our Ghorepani Poon Hill trek follows this shape.
It is the most popular first trek in Nepal for good reasons. The altitude stays low enough that serious altitude sickness is rare. There are teahouses every hour or two. And the view, on a clear morning, is wide: Dhaulagiri (8,167 m) on the left, the Annapurna South and Hiunchuli wall ahead, Machhapuchhre’s split summit to the right.
Clear morning. Hold on to that phrase.
Day by day, the way your legs will remember it
The Ulleri stairs
Nobody warns first-timers enough about this. Above Tikhedhunga the trail turns into stone steps, thousands of them, laid by villagers over generations and climbing roughly 500 vertical metres to Ulleri. They are uneven. Some are knee-high. Mules use them too, so watch where you put your hands when you stop to lean.
Our advice is boring and it works: shorter steps, slower pace, stop before you are out of breath rather than after. People who race the first hour are usually the ones sitting on a wall at the halfway tea shop wondering why their calves are shaking.
These days many groups drive past Tikhedhunga on the newer road and start higher up. It saves time. It also skips some of the best village walking, so ask us which version fits your days.
Into the forest to Ghorepani
Above Ulleri the steps soften into a trail through oak and rhododendron, with moss hanging off branches and streams crossing the path. In March and April the rhododendron flowers turn whole hillsides red and pink. In October and November the forest is green and the sky is usually cleaner.
Ghorepani itself is a cluster of lodges on a saddle. The dining rooms are warm because everyone crowds around the stove, and the dal bhat refills keep coming until you put your hand flat over the plate. Rooms facing the main trail are the noisiest; the ones at the back, away from the kitchen, are where you want to be when the 4am exodus begins.
Poon Hill at dawn
The climb from Ghorepani is around 45 minutes to an hour of steady steps in the dark, with a small ticket counter on the way. You will not be alone. In peak October there can be a few hundred people on the summit, a viewing tower, a tea stall selling overpriced coffee that tastes wonderful anyway, and a lot of phones held up at once.
If the sky is clear, the light hits Dhaulagiri first, then moves along the range. Most people go quiet for a minute or two. Then the photographs start.
If it is cloudy, you will see cloud. This happens, especially in spring haze and pre-monsoon weeks, and it is the single biggest disappointment we hear about. Our guides sometimes suggest staying two nights in Ghorepani when the forecast is uncertain, giving you a second chance. Few people take that option, but those who do rarely regret it.
Ghorepani to Tadapani: the day people underrate
After breakfast you climb to the Deurali ridge, then walk a long stretch of forest along and down the ridge to Ban Thanti and Tadapani. It is quieter than the Ulleri side, with stream crossings, some slippery descents, and views opening up toward Machhapuchhre. Honestly, many of our guides prefer this day to the summit morning. It feels like walking in the mountains rather than visiting a viewpoint.
Down to Ghandruk
Ghandruk is a large Gurung village of slate roofs and stone lanes, sitting on a slope that faces Annapurna South and Machhapuchhre directly. There is a small Gurung museum, terraced fields, and evening light that makes the whole village glow. If you have an extra day, spend it here. Our Ghandruk village trek is built around exactly that, a shorter walk for people who want the village and the views without the 4am alarm.
Mistakes we see every season
- Cotton everything. You sweat on the stairs, then sit still in a cold dining room. Bring a quick-drying base layer and change when you arrive.
- New boots. The descent to Ghandruk will find every blister you did not prepare for.
- Too little cash. There are no reliable ATMs on the trail. Hot showers, charging and Wi-Fi often cost extra at the lodges.
- Skipping the knees. Trekking poles help most on the way down, not the way up.
- Planning a flight the day after. Roads around Pokhara can be slow after rain. Leave a buffer.
When to go, and when not to
October to November gives the clearest skies and the biggest crowds. March to April brings the rhododendrons and more haze. December and January are cold at Ghorepani, sometimes with snow on the steps, but quiet and often very clear. June to September is monsoon: leeches in the forest, cloud most mornings, slippery stone. We would only send someone then who knows what they are getting.
Permits and the practical bits
You need an Annapurna Conservation Area permit. In 2026 Nepali citizens pay NPR 100 and foreign nationals NPR 3,000. Rules on guides for foreign trekkers have tightened in recent years, so check the current position with us before you plan to walk alone. Nepali travellers can of course walk independently, though plenty still take a guide for the stories and the lodge bookings in busy weeks.
Most people tie the trek into a few days in Pokhara on either side. Our Pokhara tour covers the lakeside, Sarangkot and the caves, and it is a gentle way to rest your legs afterwards.
Is it worth it?
Yes, with honest expectations. Poon Hill is not a remote wilderness trek and it will not feel like one in October. But the stairs, the forest, the cold dawn and the Gurung villages add up to a real taste of walking in the hills, and for most first-time trekkers that is exactly the right size.
If you want to talk through dates, how many days you really need, or whether your knees are ready for Ulleri, write to us at peacejourneytravel@gmail.com or message us on WhatsApp at +977 9851141663. We are in Thamel and happy to answer questions, even the small ones.
