Australian Camp Hike with Sarangkot Sunrise

Australian Camp is a ridge at 2,500 m on the northwest side of Pokhara, reached on an easy two-day hike that also takes in sunrise from Sarangkot. It is the shortest walk we run that still puts the Annapurna range directly in front of you.

Why is it called Australian Camp?

The real name of the place is Thulo Kharka, meaning big field. It was a seasonal grazing ground for herders from Dhampus and the villages below, and walkers rarely came here until the early 90s, by which time the Annapurna Sanctuary trail through Phedi, Dhampus, Pothana, Deurali, Landruk and Chhomrong was already well known. The story goes that visitors from Austria found the spot so quiet in the late 1980s that they camped here for days at a time. People began calling it the Austrian camp, the name was hard to pronounce locally, and it drifted into Australian Camp.

What is the walk like?

The walk starts at Kande, about an hour from Pokhara. The trail climbs a stone staircase for 1.5 to 2 hours, and the whole walk up takes 2 to 3 hours at an easy pace. It is a steady climb rather than a hard one, and the path is good the whole way. You come out on the ridge with the valley behind you and the mountains in front.

Which mountains can you see?

From the ridge you look straight at Annapurna South (7,219 m), Hiunchuli (6,440 m) and Machhapuchhre (6,993 m), with Lamjung Himal further east and the green hills of the middle country falling away below. On a clear morning the whole wall of the range is visible at once, which is unusual for somewhere this easy to reach.

How does the Sarangkot sunrise fit in?

You drive up to Sarangkot from Pokhara early, a trip of about 25 minutes, and watch the sun come up over the range before the day warms and the haze builds. From there you carry on to Kande and start walking, so the sunrise and the hike are the same morning.

How hard is it?

This is graded 1, the easiest trek we run. There is no snow, no altitude to speak of at 2,500 m, and no need to walk fast. It is a stroll through village country, past farmland and forest, with mountain views for most of it. No experience is needed and no special gear beyond comfortable shoes.

When should you go?

The hike runs in any season. Skies are clearest outside the monsoon months, when cloud can sit on the range for days, but the ridge is worth the walk whenever you are in Pokhara. Mornings are reliably clearer than afternoons at any time of year, so it is worth being on the ridge or at Sarangkot early rather than late. If you already have a few days in Pokhara, this is the one walk that fits without rearranging the rest of your trip, and you are back in the city by the middle of the second day.