Annapurna I

Annapurna I (8,091m) holds a special place in mountaineering history as the first eight-thousander ever climbed. Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal reached the summit on June 3, 1950, in a dramatic expedition that nearly cost them their lives — both suffered severe frostbite and Herzog lost all his fingers and toes.

Annapurna I is statistically the most dangerous of the 14 eight-thousanders, with a fatality rate of roughly 30% for those attempting the summit. Its massive south face (the tallest rock face in the world at over 3,000m) presents one of the greatest challenges in Himalayan climbing.

While the climbing route is for elite mountaineers only, the Annapurna region offers some of Nepal's most popular treks: the Annapurna Circuit (a 2-3 week trek circumnavigating the entire Annapurna massif) and the Annapurna Base Camp trek (7-10 days into the heart of the sanctuary).

The Annapurna Conservation Area is the most visited protected area in Nepal, with diverse ecosystems from subtropical to arctic.