October 9: Tourists stranded along the Annapurna Circuit have started returning to Lamjung. The tourists could not continue to their journey due to inclement weather and started returning to Lamjung from Wednesday.

Tourist assistant at Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP)’s Tourist Check Point Dharapani, Kshetra Bahadur Gurung informed that more than 80 tourists used to travel through this foot trail through Manang district every day before the rainfall.

“However, due to continuous rainfall, the foot trail deteriorated and snowfall started in the upper parts of Manang. So, the tourists have started returning to Besisahar in Lamjung, the entrance of the Annapurna Circuit,” Gurung told the state-owned RSS.

He informed that 85 stranded tourists returned to Chame Rural Municipality on Saturday morning, 150 on Thursday and 40 on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the tourists who arrived in Lamjung to go around the circuit are also staying at Besishahr. According to tourism entrepreneurs, bad weather has started taking toll on their business even during the tourist season itself. Tourism activities along the Annapurna circuit was previously affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and cold weather.

Pancha Bahadur Gurung, a tourism entrepreneur said, “Around this time of the year, we never had a single moment to spare in the past because we had to attend to the guests. But the rainfall caused problem in the arrival of tourists and the business slowed down.”

This is the time when the fields and meadows of Manang turn vivid green. Also, the sight of blooming buckwheat and barley attracts tourists. Most of the tourists go to Thorang-La Pass, Larke Pass and Kala Pass, while some tourists visit the Tilicho Lake which is situated at the highest altitude in the world. The entrance of the Annapurna Circuit is located in Besisahar, the district headquarters of Lamjung. The mesmerizing foot trail then connects to four other districts en route to Kaski via Manang, Mustang, and Myagdi.