10 Amazing Facts - Nepal
1 ) Eight of the ten tallest mountains in the world are in Nepal
The bulk of the Great Himalayan Range fits along the northern border of Nepal like a craggy spine. Along that ridge sit eight of the tallest peaks in the world: Mount Everest, Kangchenjunga, Lhotse, Makalu, Cho Oyu, Dhaulagiri, Manaslu, and Annapurna I. The shortest of those eight is a staggering 26,565 feet tall. Everest grew last year to 29,032 feet, almost four feet higher than the previous measurement.
Lhotse, Nuptse, and Everest (just over the ridge in the middle) as photographed by Christophe Noel in 2015 aboard a high-altitude helicopter flight.
2) Nepal has always been an independent country/kingdom
Even as the Chinese overtook Tibet, and the British gained control of India, the people of Nepal have always maintained their independence. They have done so by defending their homeland for centuries with basic weapons and fierce defiance. Nepal only assumed their democratic government in 2008 by ending a 240 year old monarchy, one of the longest running in the world.
3) Nepal has one of the most diverse animal populations in South Asia
Nepal’s national parks and open wildlands are home to one of the healthiest populations of Bengal tigers in the world. The tiny country reported 350 tigers in 2022. There are also rhinos, elephants, and more than 900 species of birds. The Himalayas are habitat for Red panda and the secretive Snow leopard while the lowland rivers near India hide the exceptionally rare Gharial crocodile, now counted in the dozens. On a trip to Nepal you will definitely see Langur and Rhesus monkeys as well as Barking deer, wild boars, and other animals.
4) The land of exotic cultures
It’s a mind-blowing statistic, but the tiny country the size of Arkansas or all of England, is home to more than 100 unique tribes, castes, ethnicities, and religious groups. In the lowlands and foothills, Hinduism is the dominant religion while the highest Himalayas have been the seat of Buddhist culture for centuries. What is more astounding is that there are more than 110 unique languages spoken in Nepal. Not dialects — unique languages.
Christophe Noel snapped this image in 2019 of a Raute nomad, the daughter of the tribal chief. The Raute are a mysterious tribe that once counted in the thousands and some believe their culture dates to the 13th century. Extremely elusive and weary of outsiders, at the time this image was captured their population had dwindled to just 65 people. They are now believed to be an extinct culture.
5) Lord Buddha was born in Nepal
Born unto a royal family in 623 BC, Siddhartha Gautama was a prince long before he found enlightenment. His birthplace in Lumbini, Nepal is one of many sacred places along his life journey and still a popular pilgrimage destination now.
Nepal remains one of the most sacred places for Buddhist culture with some of the most well preserved and ancient monasteries in the world. The Buddhist Stupa in Kathmandu, Boudhinath, dates to the 5th century AD.
6) The time & date are unique in Nepal
Since 75% of Nepal is Hindu, they use the Bikram Sambat calendar which is 57 years ahead of Western calendars. This year is 2080, or will be on the new year which is in April. What is more interesting is the time zone. Rather than advance the time in one hour increments of GMT like virtually every nation, Nepal bases their clock on the position of Mount Everest within their time zone. As such Nepali time is GMT plus 5:45 minutes.
7) Nepal’s unique flag
The Nepali flag is the only non-rectangular or square flag in the world. The two stacked triangles are representations of the Himalayas. The two main components denote the unity between Hindu and Buddhist people. The overall shape and geometry of the dimensions are officially expressed in a complex mathematical formula for consistency.
8) Britain’s most exclusive army division is - Nepali
The British Royal Gurkhas have been a steadfast part of the British Army since 1815. Regarded as the most fierce and disciplined military force in the world, enemy combatants have been known to surrender the minute they heard Gurkhas were on the battlefield. Today young boys begin training at the age of 12 in hopes of acceptance into the Royal Gurkhas. Their stories of heroism are the stuff of legend.
Each year 20-25,000 young Nepali men apply to be accepted into the Gurkha program. Only 300 are accepted.
9) Nepal has the world’s deepest gorge and (one of) the world’s highest lakes
Tilicho Lake sits at 17,000 feet above sea level making it one of the highest lakes in the world. On many of our Far Xplorer trips we venture into the Mustang Valley by way of the Aandha Galch gorge. At more than 18,000 feet deep, it sits right between Dhaulagiri, the 7th tallest peak in the world, and Annapurna I, the tenth tallest. The scale of Nepal is mind-bending and even looking right at it, seems impossible to comprehend.
Dhaulagiri is the 7th tallest mountain in the world. On many Far Xplorer trips (Palpa & Mustang) we camp right at the very foot of this monster as it towers overhead at 26,795 feet above sea level.
10) The most consistent bucket-list destination for adventure travel
In 1953 Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary summited Mount Everest and rang in a new era of adventure travel. Since then, Nepal has maintained a perennial position in the world’s list of top-ten adventure destinations. The only usurpers to that title are worthy contestants like Tanzania, Peru, Morocco, Costa Rica, and Thailand. Of those places, Nepal is the most diverse and still has the fewest visitors.
Tourists arrive in Kathmandu in 1966. Much has changed, but many things remain the same. (The “2023” denotes the Bikram Sambat Nepali calendar date, 57 years ahead of our calendar.)