Pioneers Leg 15 · Saturday 21 November 2026

Chitwan to Hetauda

A morning jeep safari, lunch at the hotel, then 66 fast km to Hetauda.

Distance
69km
42.6 mi
Climbing
622m
2,041 ft
Descent
342m
1,122 ft
High point
471m
1,545 ft

The day's digital “cloth” map

  1. Start
    0.0 km / 0.0 mi
    Royal Tulip, Chitwan
    Breakfast 06.30. Jeep safari 07.30–10.30. Shower and checkout 10.30–11.30. Lunch at the hotel from 11.00. Leave from 12.30 onwards and finish before dark.
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    38.6 km · 24.0 mi to water stop
  2. Water stop
    38.6 km / 24.0 mi
    Water stop at Manahari
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    28.5 km · 17.7 mi to the hotel junction
  3. Junction
    67.1 km / 41.7 mi
    Hotel split in Hetauda
    Turn right for the Samana Hotel, left for the Avocado & Orchid.
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    Samana 0.4 km, Avocado & Orchid 1.5 km
  4. Hotel
    67.5 km / 41.9 mi
    Samana Hotel, Hetauda
    One of tonight's two hotels. Turn right at the junction. Dinner 19.00 is at the Avocado & Orchid Hotel.
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  5. Hotel & dinner
    68.6 km / 42.6 mi
    Avocado & Orchid Resort, Hetauda
    One of tonight's two hotels. Turn left at the junction. Dinner 19.00 is here at the Avocado & Orchid Hotel.
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Ride25 crew

Call the crew for a lift, a mechanical or if you are lost. Everyone is also in the ride WhatsApp group.

100
PoliceAmbulance 102. Free from any phone in Nepal.

Tourist Police: 1144

Tonight’s arrangements

Samana Hotel or Avocado & Orchid Hotel, Hetauda: check your allocated hotel. Dinner 19.00 at Avocado & Orchid for everyone.

Route map

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  • Route
  • Stops
  • Wind, km/h

Elevation

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Wind and weather

Too far ahead for a forecast yet, so these are the conditions on the same day last year. Winds were light, around 5 to 10 km/h, mostly west north westerly. Dry, about 21°C early and up to 26°C. The live forecast appears here automatically in the two weeks before the ride.

Typical conditions from Open-Meteo records for the same day in 2025. Check the live forecast on the morning.

Riding notes

  • Practically a day off. Good fast roads, but the afternoon start means riding in the warmest part of the day.
  • Keep your camera handy on safari: rhinos, crocodiles and, if you are very lucky, a tiger.
  • Dinner is at the Avocado & Orchid Hotel for everyone staying at either hotel.
  • Get to bed early. Tomorrow is the biggest day of climbing on the leg.
  • Leave from 12.30 onwards and finish before dark. Check your hotel allocation: at 67.1 km turn right for Samana or left for Avocado & Orchid.
  • Target finish 17.00. If you’re behind at the afternoon stop, the crew will ask you to take a lift.

The country you ride through

History on the road

Morning

Jeep safari

Chitwan is home to the Royal Bengal tiger, leopards, gharial and mugger crocodiles and more than 500 species of birds.

0 to 69 km

The East West Highway

The road follows the Rapti valley along the Mahendra Highway, which runs the length of Nepal. Hetauda grew up as a staging post on the old route from the plains to Kathmandu.

Look out for

  • One horned rhinos
  • Gharial on the riverbanks
  • The Rapti valley
  • Hetauda's hills ahead

Local heroes

Famous faces from along the route

The Tharu, the indigenous people of the Terai, have lived around Chitwan for centuries. Hetauda's ropeway once carried goods over the hills towards Kathmandu before the roads were built.

Call crew leader, Mel+44 7947 765600 Police100