Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Pokhar

Pokhara valley is the second largest valley in the hill region of Nepal. The beauty of the valley is enhanced by its lovely lakes, Phewa, Begnas and Rupa which have their source in the glacial region of the Annapurna ranges of the Himalayas. Pokhara is situated 200 KM west of kathmandu and is connected by air as well as surface with any mode of vehicle or tourist couch and public bus ride.
The cities of Pokhara and Lekhnath are in this valley. It is located in the Gandaki zone. The city of Pokhara is one of the major cities of Nepal, and probably one among of the the most beautiful cities in the country. It is such a place that's rich in natural beauty. Mount Machchhapuchre (Fishtail) is to the north of the valley whose reflection falls on the crystal clear water of Phewa Lake.
Pokhara valley extends, in the 'Oriental Realm', between the north parallels of 250 7’ and 280 10' and east meridians of 83050' and 84050'. Situated in the mountainous region of the southern Himalayas and trapped between the higher Himalayas in the north and Mahabharat range in the south, it occupies central position in the country. It valley spreads mainly over Kaski district and covers small portions of Tanahun and Syangja district from Pokhara, Tibetan border to the north is 72 kilometers and Indian border to the south is 78 kilometers. Within a small area the elevation ranges nearly from 500 meters to 3,000 meters in the Pokhara valley.
Based on the administrative division on hierarchi
cal order Pokhara lies in Western Development Region, Gandaki Zone and Kaski District. The valley includes Pokhara Sub‑Metropolitan City', Lekhnath Municipality, and some other Village Development Committees. The city is located in the central part of the valley.

ORIGIN OF POKHARA
The development of Pokhara valley and the origin of Annapurna range including the majestic peak Macchapuchhre is ascribed to Geological faulting in the 'Tertiary Period! (between 65‑25 million years ago from now). The convergence of Indian peninsula with Tibetan plate resulted into upsurge of Himalayas from the Tethys sea. After the upsurge of Annapurna range, due to the action of climatic components, glaciers started eroding mountains. The eroded materials ‑ limestone, gneiss and quartzite ‑were transported downwards depositing larger and coarser debris first and smaller as well as smoother debris later. Therefore the northern region of Pokhara has thicker layer of coarser and larger boulders but this thickness decreases southward and smoothness and size reduction occurs gradually. In this way, the tectonic valley was developed due to the hauling of debris as moraine and subsequent deposition as lake deposit.

CLIMATE
Pokhara experiences humid sub‑tropical to warm temperate climate. The climate of Pokhara valley is basically the influence of topography. Yearly mean temperature of the city (827m) is 20.80C whereas monthly averages are ‑ maximum 25.50C (During July and August) and minimum 13.20C (during January). The deviation of temperature from mean value is also interesting: absolute maximum temperature is 37.40C and absolute minimum temperature 2.40C. Average annual rainfall recorded in Pokhara city is 3,755mm while 5,337mm is recorded in Lumle (a village nearby Pokhara city). Pokhara receives both monsoon and winter rains. It is important to note that profound effect of micro‑climatic elements on climatic parameters is clearly observable around Pokhara. Sunshine hours in Pokhara is estimated to be nearly six hours a day on an‑annual average. From June to August, monsoon clouds may create problems to view and photograph the mountains. Rest of the months are almost cloud free but November to March is the best time to avoid this problem. The annual average high wind speed recorded at Pokhara is 4 km per hour from February to June. The air is generally humid throughout the year with 80.16% relative humidity on yearly average. The relative humidity is found to be low in March and high in April.
The climate 'is neither too cold nor too hot Hence, from climatic point of view, Pokhara is enjoyable all year round. However, to visit higher Himalayas northern of Pokhara, especially for trekkers the best period is February to April.

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