MYAGDI: Preparations are underway to celebrate the 76th Annapurna Climbing Day next week in Narchyang, located at the foothills of Mt. Annapurna.

The day will be celebrated with various programs in Narchyang, Annapurna Rural Municipality-4 of Myagdi district, which hosts the base camp and primary trekking route to the 8,091-meter-high Mt. Annapurna that sits on the borders of Myagdi, Kaski, Manang, and Mustang districts.

Lok Bahadur Pun, the ward chair of Annapurna Rural Municipality-4, informed that preparations have been made to mark the day by organizing a Base Camp-to-Narchyang running competition, a trek along the Humkhola-Base Camp trail, and various cultural programs.

An open men’s and women’s trail race covering a 36-kilometer distance from the base camp to Narchyang has been organized, featuring a cash prize of Rs 100,000 for the winner and Rs 60,000 for the runner-up.

The team participating in the trek and race will depart from Narchyang via Humkhola towards the base camp on May 31 and return on June 3, after which the Climbing Day celebrations will conclude with a cultural program.

Mt. Annapurna is often called the “eldest mountain” because it was the first peak above 8,000 meters to feel human footsteps.

On June 3, 1950, a French team consisting of Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal successfully summiting Mt. Annapurna, which happened three years before the historic successful ascent of Mt. Everest, the world’s highest peak.

Bharat Kumar Pun, Chairman of Annapurna Rural Municipality, stated that Annapurna Climbing Day is celebrated through various programs to commemorate the dawn of mountaineering and mountain tourism in Nepal, which introduced these peaks to the world.

Chairman Pun further shared that the rural municipality has allocated a budget of Rs 1,000,000 for the current fiscal year to celebrate the occasion. He noted that while Annapurna Climbing Day was previously celebrated in Kathmandu, Pokhara, or areas falling under Kaski’s geography, they began celebrating it within its actual home geography starting last year.

Located at an altitude of 4,190 meters above sea level, the Annapurna Base Camp has recently evolved into an attractive destination for domestic tourists. Tej Gurung, an activist for the Maurice Herzog Trail, mentioned that the base camp has become a preferred choice for tourists because infrastructure developments, trekking trails, food and lodging facilities, and promotional programs have made it an easy, short-distance trek.

Currently, a 20-kilometer road has been developed from Narchyang to Humkhola, followed by a 22-kilometer basic trekking trail from Humkhola to the base camp. Lakpa Angbu Sherpa, a guide for Sherpa Alpine Trekking, described the Annapurna Base Camp as a pristine “virgin” destination for tourists that can be reached in a two-day walk.

Trekkers can reach the base camp by traveling along the banks of the Mistri Khola, which flows from the foothills of Mt. Annapurna and Mt. Nilgiri, while observing towering waterfalls, captivating mountain ranges, unique geography, hills, rare vegetation, and wildlife.

The journey allows visitors to reach the base camp in two days and return on the third day.

The fact that Mt. Annapurna and its base camp lie within the geography of Myagdi, along with the identification of this specific trekking route, was established in 2011 under the leadership of local Tej Gurung.

Annapurna Rural Municipality later mapped this route and officially named it the “Maurice Herzog Trail” in 2020.