Annapurna region map: the Circuit, Base Camp, Poon Hill and Mardi Himal treks on one map

This Annapurna region map puts four treks side by side: the Annapurna Circuit, Annapurna Base Camp, Ghorepani Poon Hill and Mardi Himal. We drew it from the stops and altitudes on our four Annapurna trek map prints. In short, the Circuit runs from Besisahar (760 m) up through Manang and over Thorong La (5,416 m) to Jomsom. The other three start in the south within 6 km of each other, and two of them, Base Camp and Poon Hill, share two villages.

What does the Annapurna region map show?

It shows every stop on our four Annapurna prints, placed by its real coordinates, with straight lines between the stops. It is a sketch of how the routes sit next to each other, and the lines do not follow the paths you walk.

The stop positions come from OpenStreetMap, as on the prints, and the altitudes are the ones printed on each map. (Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors.)

Does the Annapurna Circuit go to Annapurna Base Camp?

Not on our maps. The two prints share no stop. Our Annapurna Circuit print runs from Besisahar through Chame, Pisang and Manang, over Thorong La and down through Muktinath to Jomsom. Annapurna Base Camp is on its own route, from Nayapul up to 4,130 m.

The Circuit stop closest to Base Camp is Manang, 3,540 m, which is 20.7 km from Base Camp in a straight line. Annapurna I, 8,091 m, stands 9.2 km from Base Camp. The Annapurna Circuit map guide and the Annapurna Base Camp map guide each list every stop in order.

Is Poon Hill part of the Annapurna Circuit?

Not on our prints. Our Circuit map ends at Jomsom, 2,720 m. Poon Hill, 3,210 m, is 42.8 km south of Jomsom in a straight line, on a separate horseshoe route that starts at Nayapul. If your own walk joined the two, the stretch between Jomsom and Ghorepani is on neither print.

So someone who walked the Circuit and then went up to Poon Hill would need two maps to see the whole trip: the Circuit and Ghorepani Poon Hill.

Where do Annapurna Base Camp and Poon Hill meet?

At Nayapul (1,070 m), where both start, and at Ghandruk (1,940 m), which both pass.

From Ghandruk the Base Camp route goes north through Chhomrong (2,170 m) to Machhapuchhre Base Camp (3,700 m) and Annapurna Base Camp (4,130 m). The Poon Hill route turns west instead: up through Tikhedhunga and Ulleri to Ghorepani (2,870 m) and Poon Hill (3,210 m), then back east through Tadapani to Ghandruk.

Mardi Himal starts at Kande (1,770 m), 5.6 km from Nayapul in a straight line, and climbs a ridge of its own to the east. On our maps it shares no stop with the other two.

Is Mardi Himal the same as Machhapuchhre?

No. On our Mardi Himal map, the highest stop is Mardi Himal Base Camp at 4,500 m. Machhapuchhre, 6,993 m, is a separate summit. It is drawn on the same map at its real position, 6.5 km from Mardi Himal Base Camp in a straight line.

The names also get mixed up because MBC on the Annapurna Base Camp route stands for Machhapuchhre Base Camp, 3,700 m. That stop is on a different trek, 7.5 km from Mardi Himal Base Camp in a straight line.

Which Annapurna trek is shortest, and which goes highest?

By the figures printed on our maps, Mardi Himal is the shortest and the Annapurna Circuit goes highest.

• Mardi Himal: about 43 km in 5 days, from Kande (1,770 m) to Mardi Himal Base Camp (4,500 m).
• Ghorepani Poon Hill: about 45 km in 5 days, from Nayapul (1,070 m) to Poon Hill (3,210 m) and back down to Ghandruk.
• Annapurna Base Camp: about 110 km in 10 days, from Nayapul (1,070 m) to Annapurna Base Camp (4,130 m).
• Annapurna Circuit: about 160 km in 15 days, from Besisahar (760 m) over Thorong La (5,416 m) to Jomsom (2,720 m).

Poon Hill has the lowest high point of the four, at 3,210 m. Mardi Himal is about the same length, but its high point is 1,290 m higher. Treat all of these as the outline on a wall map, not as an itinerary.

Which print shows which trek?

Each of the four treks has its own print, in a light and a dark version, and each is drawn differently.

• Annapurna Circuit: a rectangular map of real terrain with the route through the middle, in light and dark.
• Annapurna Base Camp: a round map of the Sanctuary, with Annapurna I, Annapurna South, Hiunchuli and Machhapuchhre placed around it on their real compass bearings from Base Camp, in light and dark.
• Ghorepani Poon Hill: a full map of real terrain, with a sun mark at the Poon Hill viewpoint and Dhaulagiri shown off the edge on its bearing, in light and dark.
• Mardi Himal: a full map of real terrain with Machhapuchhre drawn on the map itself, in light and dark.

All four cost the same. An unframed print is €29.95 at 30 x 40 cm, €36.95 at 50 x 70 cm and €49.95 at 70 x 100 cm. Wood framed starts at €71.95, and acrylic glass at €95.95. The other routes are in the Trek Route Maps collection, and the Poon Hill and Mardi Himal guides go through those two routes stop by stop.