Twenty-Two Years on the Annapurna Trail: A Conversation with a Local Guide

Dawa Tamang started as a porter on the Annapurna Circuit at nineteen, carrying loads for a season before moving into guiding two years later. Twenty-two years on, he still does around fifteen treks a year, mostly Annapurna Base Camp and Poon Hill. We caught him between groups for this conversation.

How did you get into guiding in the first place?

"My older cousin was already a porter. I finished school and there wasn't much work in the village, so I went with him for a season to carry loads. I was not good at it at first - too slow, and I picked a bag that was too heavy on the first day to prove something. By day three I understood why the older porters laughed at me.

After two seasons carrying, one of the guides I worked with was sick and the company asked me to take a small group for four days because I already knew the route. That was the start. I never planned it, exactly."

What's changed most since you started?

"The teahouses, mostly. When I started, some of the lodges on the Annapurna Circuit had no attached bathroom, no solar power, sometimes no menu beyond dal bhat and maybe eggs. Now some of them have WiFi and hot showers. Good for trekkers, but I think something is a little lost too - people used to sit around the one fire in the evening and talk. Now everyone is a little bit on their phone.

Also, more trekkers now know what altitude sickness actually is before they arrive. Before, I spent a lot of time explaining it from nothing. Now people have read about it, which makes my job a little easier."

What's a moment that's stayed with you?

"There are many, but one from maybe eight years ago. I had a client, older man, maybe sixty-five, trekking to Annapurna Base Camp with his daughter. On the second-to-last day he was struggling, very slow, and I could see he was deciding whether to turn back.

I didn't tell him he could do it - I just walked next to him at his pace and didn't rush. We reached base camp about two hours later than planned. He didn't say much when we got there, just stood and looked for a long time. His daughter told me afterward it was the thing he'd wanted to do since her mother passed away. I still think about that one."

I didn't tell him he could do it - I just walked next to him at his pace and didn't rush.

What do first-time trekkers get wrong?

• Walking too fast on day one because they feel strong. The altitude doesn't care how strong you feel on day one.
• Packing too many "just in case" items and then complaining about the bag weight by day two.
• Not telling the guide about small problems early - a sore knee on day one becomes a real problem by day four if nobody mentions it.

Favorite season to guide in?

"October, without question. Clear skies almost every day, not too cold yet, and the rhododendrons are finished by then so the trail is quieter than March-April. But I tell people honestly - there is no bad season here, only different kinds of trek."