Toronto writer and world adventurer Vawn Himmelsbach poses for a photo a few kilometres from Everest Base Camp.

For many people, trekking in Nepal — and perhaps catching a glimpse of Mount Everest — is something they hope to do once in a lifetime, because it's something they expect will cost an exorbitant amount.

The view from Nagarjun Hill above the village of Dingboche, one of the stops on the Everest Base Camp trek. (Vawn Himmelsbach)

But Nepal isn't so out of reach for those on a budget — and for me, it's a once-every-few-years experience, since travelling in the Himalayas, in many cases, is cheaper than my daily living expenses in Toronto.

It's a land of extremes, from the highest mountains in the world to jungles with Bengal tigers and rhinos and wild elephants. It's a poor country, Nepal but boasts some of the planet's greatest natural attractions and you'll encounter interesting people who are willing to risk their lives to see them.

What draws me to the Himalayas is not the fact these are the highest mountains in the world, though they are impressive.

Even at high altitudes, people live in these mountains, without cars or electricity or any of the conveniences of modern-day life. These people, and their villages, are as resilient as the mountains around them.

The appeal for visitors is palpable. On the Annapurna Circuit, you'll pass through tiny Tibetan villages in a barren, windswept landscape where even trees don't grow. If you're trekking to Everest Base Camp or the Gokyo Lakes, you'll pass through sherpa villages, spending your nights in tea houses, reading or playing cards by the yak-dung fire.

And if you venture out for a walk around town at night, you can only find your way with a flashlight, but you'll see more stars in the sky than you thought possible.

The options available

Whether it's Everest Base Camp or the Annapurna Circuit, you have three basic options for trekking in the Himalayas.

A view of the Thorung La high pass, part of the Annapurna Circuit trek. (Vawn Himmelsbach)

The first, and most expensive, is to book an organized trek with an adventure travel company. But don't assume the most expensive company is necessarily the best.

A friend paid close to $4,000 for his two-week trek to Everest Base Camp, but I forked out $950 for the same trek with a different company. The difference? Well, he got a fancy backpack and I got a T-shirt, but that's about it. It's not like there's a Hilton hotel in the Himalayas, so everyone stays in the same teahouses run by local Sherpas, eats the same food and drinks the same beer.

There are reputable adventure travel companies that work with the locals in Nepal and offer trek packages in the $1,000 range for either an Everest Base Camp or Annapurna Circuit trek. You still have to pay for your flight (that’s the budget-sucker, at around $1,800) and your food (about $20 a day).

A second option is to go to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, and book a trek directly with a Nepalese trekking company — thereby cutting out the middleman and saving a significant amount of money. I did an eight-day guided trek through the Gorka region of Nepal for around $200 — mind you, the conditions were pretty basic and sometimes the accommodations included sleeping in a barn with water buffalos.

Even better than the savings, though, is the fact that through a local operator you can custom design your own trek and venture into territory not always visited, where foreign travel companies don't operate.

This requires a bit more planning, but it's not as intimidating as it sounds. There are plenty of Nepalese trekking companies based in the Thamel backpacking hub of Kathmandu, or in Pokhara (the base for Annapurna treks). Two that I've personally used and would recommend are Himalayan Encounters and Beyond The Limits, with both featuring guides that can provide interesting commentary.

The cheapest option is to go solo, without a guide or porters. During my last visit to Nepal, the government was trying to prevent foreigners from trekking alone — at least to Everest Base Camp — so it's getting more difficult to do this nowadays on some of the more popular treks. I did eight days of the Annapurna Circuit (the entire trek takes about 21 days) with two Canadian girls I met in Kathmandu. We had no guide or porters, and we spent at most $20 a day on food and lodging.

The village of Kagbeni on the Annapurna Circuit. (Vawn Himmelsbach)

Obviously, going solo is riskier than trekking with an organized group, and it's not for everyone, but it's a pretty powerful experience to be alone in the Himalayas. At least until you hook up with other backpackers in the next picturesque Tibetan or Nepalese village for a chicken burger and yet another variation on apple pie (you will eat a lot of apple pie, guaranteed).

There isn't a lot of variety in the food you eat while trekking (since sherpas basically have to haul it up the mountains on their backs), but they do grow apples there, so the locals make good use of them and have about 50 different versions of apple pie and apple pancakes.

Travel planning tips

Whatever type of trek, make sure you have some flexibility in your schedule. I'm not one for planning a trip down to the minute, but this is one country where it's impossible to stick to any kind of agenda, so there's no point trying.

The trek to Everest Base Camp starts high up in the mountains, for example, and your flight could be delayed out of Kathmandu due to bad weather. (Ditto for the return flight back to Kathmandu). One of my flights — to Jomsom in the Annapurnas — was pushed back four days because of the weather. As well, you could get stuck for a day or two in a teahouse for any number of reasons: a storm, altitude sickness or a bad case of traveller's diarrhea.

I'm a strong advocate of packing as little as possible, especially when you have to carry it on your back, up mountains — and the highest mountains in the world, no less. Even if you plan to hire porters to carry your gear, consider that someone else is going to have to lug that 500-page hardcover novel or a five-kilogram makeup bag up to Everest Base Camp (probably while wearing flip-flops), so if you don't really need it, don't bring it.

But don't cheap out on gear. Bring broken-in hiking boots, a down-filled jacket and one of those heavy-duty sleeping bags rated for -20 C. Spend money on high-tech hiking socks (and silk liner socks to wear underneath) — your feet will thank you later.

If you don't want to buy, gear is available in Kathmandu or Pokhara, although quality is often a crapshoot. I rented a sleeping bag for one trek (and used my own liner), but found that although it was rated as a -20 C bag I was still cold at night.

You'll find North Face jackets for sale everywhere, but it's hard to tell if they're real or not. However, on one trek a few years ago I picked up a rain poncho (with an extra-long back to cover my backpack) for about $7, compared to about $40 here, and I'm still using it today. You can also pick up yak-wool toques, mitts, scarves, socks and blankets.

The shops in Kathmandu are well equipped to cater to trekkers from around the world, so you'll find a good selection of all sorts of snacks, from trail mix to power bars to powdered sports drinks. It's always advisable, however, to bring your own first aid kit, which should include electrolytes to avoid dehydration.

When (and when not) to go

The best time of year for trekking in the region, and the busiest, is the fall (October and November), when the skies are clear and the countryside is lush after the monsoon rains. The second best time is spring (February to April) — it's warm and the flowers are blooming, but it can be dusty, reducing visibility.

December and January can be bitterly cold, and the summer monsoon months can turn the trails to mud.

A Nepali chorten with the "all-seeing" eyes of Buddha, seen on the Mount Everest Base Camp trek. (Vawn Himmelsbach)

Then there are the Maoists to consider. In 1996 the Maoists declared a "people's war" against the Nepalese government, and since then it's estimated that 10,000 lives have been lost. The political situation has improved somewhat since a "peace deal" was brokered in 2006 between the government and Maoist rebels — and tourists have once again returned to Nepal.

But a long history of violence means the current political situation is fragile (bomb blasts rocked Kathmandu back in September), so it's always wise to monitor the situation and avoid areas of increased Maoist activity.

You can check government embassy warnings — in Canada, the government website is www.voyage.gc.ca/dest/ctry/reportpage-en.asp, though I like to check other governments as well. The Kathmandu Post online offers all the latest news (www.kathmandupost.com). A company called ASI Group has a daily "hot spots" listing that covers a lot of international situations that don't make the mainstream news in the West — everything from riots to airport delays, and the reports also sum up all government embassy warnings from around the world (www.asigroup.com/HOTSPOTS.asp).

Generally, however, the Maoists leave foreigners alone, and you probably won't run into any unless you go off the beaten path (though they now operate a government "checkpoint" along the trek to Everest Base Camp). I once encountered a group of Maoist rebels carrying guns along a dirt road in the Gorka region, but while I gaped at them, they completely ignored me. I could have danced a jig in front of them and they likely wouldn't have paid me any attention.

The natural beauty of Nepal is enough of a reason to visit, but everything else you encounter along the way is what will draw you back.

The first time I went to Nepal, the customs officer asked me how many times I'd been there before. This question surprised me at the time, but it doesn't anymore. It turns out many foreigners return to Nepal again and again — because once in a lifetime really isn't enough.

The author is a Toronto-based freelance writer who has spent time living and working in Asia.

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