The main Pokhara to Kathmandu highway has little to recommend it. A busy, dirty, noisy road, that’s dangerous to cycle – we didn’t want to go anywhere near it on bikes. We did, however, need to get our wheels between the two cities and were fortunate enough to meet Sonam at Dawn till Dusk in Kathmandu, who suggested a more northerly route away from the traffic. This we followed on quiet roads, with views of the Annapurna, Manaslu and Ganesh Himals, that were fantastic for biking. Only the last hour from the rim of the Kathmandu Valley into the city were busy, but we cycled this on a Saturday when day trippers made the traffic heavier than usual.
View Himalaya 2012-13 – Actual Route in a larger map
The 289km route took us 5 days, during which time we climbed 6,800m. There were guesthouses each day, so we travelled light, with no camping or cooking gear. Here is a map (blue line) and a list of towns on the route:
View Himalaya 2012-13 – Actual Route in a larger map
| KM | Town |
|---|---|
| 0 | Lakeside, Pokhara |
| 21 | Bazaar near Begnas Tal |
| 30 | Talbeshi |
| 45 | Boletar |
| 69 | Sundar Bazaar |
| 87 | Thandi Pokhari |
| 120 | Gorkha |
| 136 | Jhingote |
| 161 | Arughat |
| 175 | Khahare |
| 190 | Katunje |
| 207 | Samari Bhanjyang |
| 221 | Trishuli |
| 264 | Rani Pauwa |
| 266 | Kakani junction |
| 289 | Thamel, Kathmandu |
Nice one! Heard and dreamt about that route a couple of years back. Great info, thanks!
but honestly, I feel a little bit jealous 😉
Cheers – it’s a nice route with very little traffic. Every time we caught a bus on the main road from KTM-Pokhara we saw cycle tourists on it and wondered why on earth they didn’t go the quiet way!
Awesome route, thanks for featuring it on your site. I’m planning to visit India and Nepal in 2015, again, and will remember this one when I am ready to make my way from Pokhara to Kathmandu;)
Thanks for the route idea, I’ve just completed it Kathmandu – Pokhara, no high snow capped Himalayan views due to haze but an awesome introduction to rural Nepal for me. Mid March so much drier, hotter, dustier and browner than I expected. I traveled on a brand new £200 MTB the “highways” were much rougher than I expected but great fun, I’m amazed the buses cope. I used hotels along the way and took 6 days to make the journey. Cheers, Martin. IG: cyclesofmartin