|
on World Tourism Day SAMIKSHA KOIRALA
KATHMANDU, Sept 25: Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN) in association with Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) will launch four new trekking trails to mark the 32nd World Tourism Day.
The four trails which will be unveiled on September 27 includes Nagi-Narchyang trail from Myagdi to Parbat district, Dhorpatan trail in Myagdi to Baglung district, Panchpokhari trail in Sindhupalchowk district and Lower Solu trail.
General Secretary of TAAN Mohan Lamsal said TAAN along with Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has redesigned the routes to focus community-based tourism. He said these trails will be of one week to maximum of three weeks.
“We have redesigned these routes in such a way that people willing to take a short visit can also trek in these trails,” he said adding that there are only a few popular trails in the country and they are basically in in the Annapurna, Everest and Langtang regions. Launching of new trails will provide trekkers opportunities to discover new destinations.
Although Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve is already a popular destination, TAAN is redesigning the route with a view to opening new routes from Dhorpatan to Dhaulagiri Base Camp, Rukum and Rolpa to promote community based tourism.
The reconnaissance team which comprised of TAAN officials and local organizations took five days to complete the trail which started from Beni on the first day to Darbhang, Takum, Mareni reaching Dhorpatan on the fifth day. Dhorpatan is the only place in the country where license hunting is allowed.
Lamsal said that route map and information details of these destinations were not available but after the launch of the new trails, trekkers will have proper route maps and desired information.
The Nagi-Narchyang trail begins from Galeshwar of Parbat and passes through Nagi, Narchyang and Tatopani before ending at Beni of Myagdi. According to TAAN officials, it is also a community-based trekking route developed as eco-friendly trail.
The major attraction of this trek is community-run home-stay and lodges. There is a community lodge in Nagi while home-stay facilities have been arranged in Baskharka, Dandakateri, Tikot and Khiwang among other villages.
The lower Solu trail offers exciting mountain views along with other natural attractions including bio-diversity. These areas lie in the Everest region segment of the Great Himalayan Trail.
Similarly, the other trail Panchpokhari of Sindhupalchowk district is the one of the important wetland sites in the world. It comprises of five sacred lakes - Surya Kunda, Bhairav Kunda, Ganesh Kunda, Nag Kunda and Saraswati Kunda - situated in Dorjee Lhakpa and Jugal Himal.
TAAN officials are hopeful that the new trails will help increase the number of tourists. According to Tourism Ministry statistics, more than 12 percent tourists visited the country for the sole purpose of trekking and mountaineering in 2010. |
