HARDTAILS IN THE HIMALAYAS

I can clearly remember as a kid during maths class being deeply captivated by the cycling magazines hidden inside my text book.

The fabulous pictures of pro riders climbing the snow-covered mountain peaks of Switzerland had captured my imagination from a very young age.

I had something akin to ‘adventure DNA’ and plenty of it!

Being caged inside a building wasn’t going to be my life, 10-year old me thought.

I take it you, dear reader, have some ‘adventure DNA’ as well, else you would have grabbed the gardening magazine next to this one.

Welcome to the club.

My most recent adventure has taken me to the Himalayas in Nepal where I will swap my trusty road bike for a MTB as I set off with a group of mates.

We will embark on a 16-day mountain bike adventure, starting in Kathmandu and finishing just outside Pokhara, otherwise known as the gateway to the Annapurna circuit.

We leave Kathmandu early on Sunday morning. The traffic is light and although the smog that typifies Kathmandu is bearable we