KALAW TO INLE LAKE – 3 DAY TREK

BOOKING THE TREK TO INLE LAKE

I booked the 3 day, 62km trek, from Kalaw to Inle Lake, through a place called ‘Uncle Sam’s’. They’re well renowned in Kalaw for being the best place to book one of the treks and I’d definitely endorse them.

Uncle Sam trekking company

The value for money of the tour was incredible. The cost depends on the number of people involved, but as a rule, there’s typically at least 6 people signed up.

It cost me 45,000 Kyat (just under £30) and this included:

• 2 tour guides
• 2 night’s accommodation in remote villages
• 2 evening meals
• 2 breakfasts
• 3 lunches
• boat trip through Inle Lake, to Nyaungshwe
• transport of your luggage to your hotel in the Inle Lake area

Incredible.

Before I get into the detail, let me make it clear that this is a MUST DO if you’re in Northern Myanmar.

WHAT TO PACK

The main part of your luggage will be transported to the hotel / hostel you’re staying at in Inle Lake – or more specifically, in Nyaungshwe, the town just North of the lake. Therefore, it’s important to bring with you everything you’ll need for the 3 days, while not overloading yourself!

I’d recommend the following, as a base packing list:

• 1 bottle of water – you can buy more as you go, no need to weigh yourself down
• 3 t-shirts / vest tops
• 1 pair of shorts
• underwear, but make sure to not scrimp on the socks!
• a hoodie – it gets cold at night and early in the morning
• hiking shoes / trainers
• essential toiletries
• microfibre towel
• wet wipes / toilet roll – you won’t find this en route!
• phone
• camera – the sights are worth capturing!
• bug spray
• sun lotion
• dry bag – to put your possessions in if it starts to rain
• sunglasses
• lightweight poncho
• Anything else will weigh you down unnecessarily

SETTING OFF – DAY 1

After having the briefing from Uncle Sam, our group of 8, accompanied by 2 tour guides, set off around 8:30 am on the first leg of our journey to Inle Lake.

We hiked for around 3 hours, mainly uphill, through forests until we reached an incredible viewpoint where we stopped for lunch.

Inle lake trek day 1 viewpoint

The lunch was better than I’d expected – and this goes for all of the food on the trek. It was all delicious and there was always plenty to go round.

We had chapati with dips, tea salad (which I became a huge fan of), fruit, crisps, a selection of drinks. Much needed after the first 3 hours.

After lunch, we headed slightly further up into the hills and through a village, which was mounted on top of one of the peaks. These guys, must have had quite the view every morning!

After hiking for another hour or so, we descended down and turned onto some train tracks.

This reminded me of the movie, Stand By Me, and they looked like they were maybe disused. I later found out that they were very much in use, but the day’s trains would have passed through already.

On my way down the tracks, I bumped into this local villager, who was walking along and listening to Beat It by Michael Jackson. I took the opportunity to take a snap of this legend.

He loves MJ

Having hiked down the railway lines for an hour or so, we reached an area where we could stop to grab a drink or snacks from some of the locals.

We spent the next couple of hours hiking through some epic agricultural areas, taking in the views of rolling fields and hills. We witnessed locals tending to the soil and harvesting crops and herds of buffalo roaming.

Here’s a few snaps from this part of the trek:

We arrived at a hilltop for a quick breather and found this group of local villagers hanging out after a hard day’s work; waiting to watch the sunset. These people were incredibly friendly and happy to see us and although they didn’t speak much English, we still managed to have a laugh with them before we moved on.

We’d almost arrived at the stop for night 1. Just a few hundred yards more, through some more fields and across this bridge and we’d be there.

A rest was much needed.

ARRIVING AT THE VILLAGE – NIGHT 1

We arrived at the village at around 4:30 pm. We’d been on the road for 8 hours, with 6 of these being solid hiking, so we were certainly in need of a good rest.

The village was even more basic than I’d imagined. Maybe a dozen houses or so, primarily constructed of wood and bamboo.

Cleaning facilities consisted of a large vat of cold water, with a plastic pan you could use to scoop up some to pour over yourself.

The toilet was an outhouse shed, with a hole in the ground and no toilet paper.

Not exactly 5 star, but this was all part of the journey and I embraced it, humbled by the simple way of life these people led.

A kid riding a buffalo like it’s the most normal thing in the world

One of the villagers agreed to let me take his picture:

The people of this village were simple, peaceful and happy people. They have no need to post to Instagram or Facebook and let the world know what they’re doing. They are their world and they live naturally. Unspoiled. A balance of nature. This was very humbling and eye opening to see and be a part of.

COSYING UP FOR THE NIGHT

The room we were staying in was cosy for the 8 of us. We would sleep on the floor, all in row:

Cosy sleeping arrangements

Our guides cooked us up a great meal of rice, curry, noodles, steamed vegetables, soup and we sank a couple of local brews.

We drank a few more local brews and played cards by candlelight before turning in around 9 pm. Day 1 done!

DAY 2 – HOT, HOT, HOT

I hate to say it, but I slept terribly on the floor that night and gave up trying after a while.

I sat and watched the sun come up with one of the kittens (presumably belonging to this house we were staying in) and heard what I believe were morning prayers resonating in the distance.

This was quite a moment and I felt blessed that I was able to experience this. I felt humbled by the knowledge that I was free to choose to experience and be a part of this life, but able to move on as and when I wish.

SETTING OFF

Around 7 am we were served breakfast. I can’t remember what this consisted of, but I can remember that there was coffee. That was so needed!

This was the day when we all would be tested. Our bodies aching from yesterday’s hike, we strapped on our bags and made our way off on the road again.

We hiked up a really steep incline and 20 minutes later we could look down on the village we’d just come from. Already up in the hills and quite the view.

THE STRUGGLES

This day was so much harder than the first.

We would be hiking for longer than the day before, it was much hotter and there was no breeze or shade. We also had to contend with the aches and pains from carrying our gear for over 20 km the previous day.

We’d been fortunate on the first day in that there was a frequent breeze and some rainfall, which had cooled things down. We’d also had plenty of stop offs during day 1, but on day 2 we’d only have one. For lunch.

When we finally arrived for lunch, after hiking for 4 hours, we hardly spoke to each other. We were wiped out.

Here’s some of the sights from day 2:

Pagoda ruins

Chillies harvested

Farmers harvesting root ginger

ARRIVING AT THE VILLAGE – NIGHT 2

After trekking for 8 hours in 36 degree heat, with only a lunchtime stop off, we were all totally destroyed and relieved to have arrived at where we would stay for the night.

This village was similar to the first in terms of its size and the construction of the buildings.

The washing facilities were pretty much the same, except there was an element of privacy, with a cubicle of sorts. This was constructed from three makeshift panels connected together and there was no door. Getting naked to wash myself with a pot of water, knowing anyone could just walk past was kind of liberating though and when in Rome and all that.

Another difference at this village was that there was a shop nearby, so we stocked up on snacks and drinks and relaxed until dinner was prepared for us.

We relaxed and had dinner and a few beers and spirits were lifted, happy in the knowledge that we’d completed day 2 and were now fairly close to the finish line.

The sleeping quarters were fairly similar, in that we would be laying on the floor in a row, but there was a bit more space this time and more blankets to put down.

I was in for a much needed and more comfortable night’s sleep.

Night 2’s sleeping arrangements

The sun set on day 2 and we stayed up for a few hours, playing cards, drinking, listening to music and talking until we could barely keep our eyes open.

FINAL DAY – TO NYAUNGSHWE

After a much better sleep, I woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the final day, despite my body aching from the previous 2 days.

We had a breakfast of pancakes, sweetcorn, fruit and coffee and got back on the road again around 7:30 am.

It was really cold and misty that morning, but this was a welcome change from what we’d experienced hiking on day 2 where the heat had been so oppressive.

We knew that would soon change though, so we made the most of the cool, early start and headed on our way.

Halfway through day 3’s hike, we stopped at a booth where, as tourists, we had to pay an entrance fee for the Inle Lake area. This cost 13,500 Kyat, or $10 USD.

We arrived for lunch after around 4 hours, and we were then only 10 minutes walk from where we would take the boat ride, up the river and through Inle Lake.

The hiking was done. Time for a group shot.

Job done

THE BOAT RIDE

We reached the river, which leads in to Inle Lake. All 10 of us jumped into one of the long boats and sped up towards the lake, with this dude at the helm:

SILVERSMITHS

Half way up the lake, we stopped to see how the locals make jewellery from smelting silver.

This was obviously intended for us to then spend our money on some of their wares, which we didn’t, but it was cool to see their process of creating the jewellery

Finished product

BACK ON THE BOAT

After leaving the jewellery shop empty handed, we hopped back on the boat and made our way through the rest of the lake and up to the town of Nyaungshwe.

There were dozens of boats speeding up the lake as well as local fisherman, standing on the bow of their boats – net in hand – trying to get their catch of the day.

ARRIVAL IN NYAUNGSHWE

After around an hour on the boat, we arrived in Nyaungshwe.

We hopped out onto the jetty and made our way to our respective hotels.

Arrival in Nyaungshwe

The trek from Kalaw to Inle Lake had been tough, but it was an incredible experience and one that I’d recommend to anyone who has the chance to travel in Myanmar.

I spent a few days in Nyaungshwe, but to be honest I didn’t do too much while I was there. I spent most of the time catching up on the photography and video I’d shot while on this trek, but there might be a short blog post coming up on the town itself.

Stay tuned for the next post!

In the meantime, here’s a video diary of the trek, for a bit more detail on the experience.

I hope you enjoy! Please post any feedback or questions in the comments section below!