Annapurna Sanctuary

The Annapurna Sanctuary is a high glacial basin lying 40 km directly north of Pokhara. This oval-shaped plateau sits at an altitude of over 4000 metres,  and is surrounded by a ring of mountains, the Annapurna range, most of which are over 7000 metres. With the only entrance being a narrow valley between the peaks of Hiunchuli and Machapuchare, where run-off from glaciers drains into the Modi Khola River, the Sanctuary was not penetrated by outsiders until 1956.  Because of the high mountains on all sides, the Annapurna Sanctuary receives only seven hours of sunlight a day at the height of summer. The south-facing slopes are covered in dense tropical jungles of rhododendron and bamboo, while the north-facing slopes, in the rain shadow, have a drier colder climate similar to that of the near-by Tibetan Plateau.