Nagarkot to Changunarayan Hike or the Changunarayan to Nagarkot Hike is a day hike that can be done from both sides. It will take an hour’s drive from Kathmandu to Changunarayan or Nagarkot. This time we hiked down from Nagarkot. When we woke up, we enjoyed the amazing Mountain View with the sunrise. That panoramic view of the snowy mountain peaks and the beautiful landscapes still echoes in my mind. Because this is one of the unforgettable journeys.
We still enjoy the Mountain View with a heavy breakfast. After breakfast, we checked out of the hotel and hiked up to the viewpoint just above the hotel. From there, witness the Annapurna range, Langtang range, Manaslu range, Dorjelakpa, Ganesh Himal, Mahalangur range (Including Everest range), and Sisa Pangma range. All those mountains are smiling and showing their passion to humans. Because human beings are always in a hurry and looking for shortcuts in their life.
Hike through the beautiful villages, where people are spending their daily lives. Drying millet, corn, chilli, and paddy (rice), and even making local wine called Rakshi. The way to walk down is most of the time on the road because now the beautiful walking trails have vanished. Still nice to walk down to look at the amazing Dorje Lakpa and other mountain peaks on the right side. This hiking trail is getting popular among young people, but due to the road, it’s not that much nicer.
Along the way, there are beautiful Buddhist stupas and an attractive Buddha statue on the left side. Continue down just above the Telkot; there is a beautiful Japladevi Temple. This is a very important site for Hindu followers. Every day, early in the morning pilgrimage go there to worship for a better life. We also enjoyed the Temple’s atmosphere because there were many other Nepali people enjoying being there.
We walked down to Telkot and drank coffee and cold drinks before climbing up to the hill and down to Chanjunaryan. Climbing up into the pine forest is a very nice and clean feeling because there is fresh and nice air. After some time, we reached the top and then walked on the flat road to reach a small village. From there, we went down to Changu Village.
Chanjunaraya Temple is located on top of the hill and surrounded by the Chapak trees. This temple is one of the oldest temples in Nepal. Historically and culturally, this is one of the most important sites of Nepal, which is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We spent some quality time there to see the beautiful temple area and the village.
From Chanju, we took a bus to Bhaktapur, and we needed to wait for an hour to leave from there. The bus was full of people, and on the bus, most of the people wore masks, but some stupid people didn’t wear masks. So we gave them masks and told them to need to wear masks. Meanwhile, when we were on the bus, I thought local buses were the COVID bombs.
Changunarayan to Bhaktapur by bus took around an hour, and we took a cab to Kathmandu. Overall, we had a beautiful day to do the Nagarkot to Changunarayan hike. Hiked throughout the villages, farmland, temple, stupas, jungle, and at the end took a local bus ride to have the local experience.
