I actually hate trekking, but now I’m in a country real trekkers would be envious of … Nepal. Well, I’m here now and it would be rude not to take a closer gander at the monstrous Himalayas towering above. I was delighted to meet a Dutch girl who exuded the same if not more negativity as me for tramping up mountains so we decided to pool our enthusiasm and walk around the Annapurna region together.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy. Baby trek. These were the helpful words of advice from tour guides in Pokhara (the chilled out city we started from) as we embarked upon a 5 day trek up to 3200m at the start of winter. Really, it’s no wonder so many people died trekking here a few weeks previous.

Apparently you can’t go wrong on the circular trek – everyone said that. Those smart asses who employed guides and porters and whatever else, who told us that, might want to note that there actually is one point you can go wrong on a circular trek – at the point where you enter the circuit. And guess what?

Our anti-clockwise direction may have made the going a little tougher but it didn’t alter the handsome Nepali villages, impressive plunging valleys or breathtaking Himalayan panoramas. The number of steps too remained the same but we plodded far more up than down and I renamed the trek The Poon Hill Stairclimb – I felt a little mis-sold (which is saying something as I didn’t really pay anything to do this).

The trek despite it’s jaw dropping scenery left me feeling a little unfulfilled – I felt cheated out of the Himalayas! I love trekking! I want to delve deeper into the mountains! They are now so close! (Actually they’re still a 5 day walk away but it’s all relative). I remind myself that in real life (when not surrounded by 180 degree Himalayan panoramas) I dislike trekking, and retreat back down the stairs.

I have to say after three weeks in Nepal I left feeling as if I missed something. The scenery was stunning, the running fabulous and the views were out of this world (well not really, it’s definitely in this world which is what makes it so amazing) but I struggled to get beyond the money oriented businessmen, the grumpy attitude of more than just a couple of guesthouse owners and the difficulty of meeting any Nepalis not changed (for the worse) by the tourist business. Is it me? Did they sense the bogus trekker in their midst? After all every traveller I had met before had said the people in Nepal are so nice! Nepalis are so lovely! (Maybe though, on reflection, they were the same people who said you can’t go wrong on a circular trek). Or was it the lingering regret of not getting INTO the mountains that left me just a little bit disappointed.

And so after three weeks I left vowing to return and give Nepal a second chance. I’ve uncovered a well hidden love of trekking. I should probably return one day.