Phewa Lake

Phewa Lake occupies a valley south of central Pokhara, its still dark water forming a natural mirror for the Annapurna range that rises directly across the water to the north. The lake is the visual anchor of the Pokhara Valley, and from the lakeside promenade the sweep of the Annapurna peaks — from theANNAPURNA I at 8,091 metres to theANNAPURNA III at 7,555 metres — is one of the most reproduced mountain views in the Himalaya, though no photograph fully captures the quality of light that moves across the water as the morning progresses from dawn gold to the flat midday white that turns the lake into a sheet of mercury.

The island temple of Tal Barahi sits in the centre of the lake, a two-tiered pagoda dedicated to the Hindu goddess Barahi, and it is the defining visual element of the lake, visible from every point along the waterfront promenade and approached by a steady stream of small wooden boats that leave from the main dock throughout the day. The temple is one of the most photographed religious sites in Nepal, and its reflection in the still morning water, with the mountains behind it, is the image that most trekkers carry away from Pokhara as their primary memory of the place.

Boating on Phewa is a quiet, deliberately slow experience: the wooden flat-bottomed boats are rowed or poled rather than motored, and crossing to the island takes twenty to thirty minutes of paddling through water that reflects the mountains in perfect detail. At dawn the lake is busiest with Nepalis who come to paddle out and watch the sunrise from the water, their boats drifting slowly in the flat calm, and the mountains gradually reveal themselves as the light shifts from pink to gold to the harsh white of full daylight.

The lakeside has developed around the backpacker and trekking economy, with restaurants andBars offering views across the water, small guest houses occupying buildings that face the lake, and a proliferation of trekking agencies and equipment shops that line the approach roads from central Pokhara. The lake itself remains largely unspoilt by this development: there is no motorboat traffic, the shoreline is still fringed with lotus flowers and papyrus reeds in the less-developed sections, and the western bank is relatively quiet. The contrast between the developed east bank and the wild west bank is one of the more interesting aspects of the lake for visitors who are willing to hire a boat and cross to the other side.

The reflection of the Annapurna massif in Phewa's still water is one of the classic mountain views of the Himalaya.

The island temple of Tal Barahi is one of the most recognisable images of Nepal.

The lake offers a peaceful counterpoint to the intensity of Kathmandu and is ideal for rest and acclimatisation at the start or end of a trek.