5 Days – Chin State / Mt. Victoria

CHECKLIST – 5 DAYS CHIN STATE / MT. VICTORIA

Baggage: We provide a duffel bag for your personal gear, which will be carried by your porter. You should pack what you may need for the trek depending on the length of the trek. Personal belongings not required for the trek may be left in the car. You may wish to pack items in an inner plastic bag, since the duffel bags are not waterproof.

Daypack: Your daypack should be medium-volume and able to hold your personal belongings such as medications, camera, extra clothes and drinking water, etc.

Water bottle: We initially provide two water bottles for each guest. We suggest you carry one in your daypack. Your porter will carry the other.

Clothing & footwear: We recommend bringing one pair of lightweight hiking boots, a couple of t-shirts, one pair of trousers for evenings, shorts or skirts, two pairs of thick socks, one long-sleeve shirt, one sweatshirt or fleece jacket and one good quality raincoat.

Personal items: We recommend bringing items such as a flashlight or headlamp with spare batteries, water purifying tablets, a pocketknife and reading and writing materials; these things are essential. A personal first-aid kit is also essential for your convenience.

Insects: For the most part, the jungle is free of biting insects, but we do encounter some insects in the lowlands such as sand flies around the river banks and leeches in the lowland bushes. It's important to use insect repellent to keep them away.

ACCOMMODATION:
(Mindat) Room comes with attached bathroom. Hot shower available from 6:30 am to 8:00 am and 5:30 pm to 7 pm. With 24-hour electricity from a solar unit and Wi-Fi on request.
(Kanpelet) Room comes with attached bathroom. Hot shower & electricity are available while the generator is running.
(Aye village) A designated village house offers dormitory-style accommodation, but provides a Western toilet facility and hot water.
(During trek) Nights will be spent at local homes or in tents. Bedding such as a mattress, pillow and blanket will be provided. The toilet will be clean but of the local squat type. A limited amount of hot water will be supplied for face washing in the morning on request.

Meals: Breakfast is usually served around 7 or 8 am; lunch is usually simple, light and served at mid-day whereas dinners are more extensive and usually at local restaurants, guesthouses or local homes. Clients with special dietary requirements must inform us of these at the time of booking.

Guide: Unless an alternative arrangement has been made in advance, we provide an English-speaking guide.

Trekking hours: All our treks are designed to include 4 to 6 walking hours per day. Your day normally starts at 8 or 9 in the morning, followed by breakfast. We try to reach our destination well before nightfall in time to freshen up and relax before dinner.

Flora and fauna: This region generally isolated and is home to many species of birds and plants. Some rare flowers can be found on Mt. Victoria’s summit that cannot be found anywhere else in the world. Mt. Victoria offers a great opportunity for bird-watching. One can come across several species of birds in lowland tanbark forests through the high elevation up to the summit. Due to its isolation, the southern region of Chin State has retained its unique Chin tribal culture. The Chin are of Tibeto-Burmese descent and live in the hills of Chin State bordering Bangladesh and India. As hill people, they have been isolated and to this day little is known of their animistic culture. The women of the Chin tribes have various patterns tattooed on their faces and wear beautiful amber necklaces.

Fitness: This trek is classified as "Easy to Moderate" and is thus suitable for most trekkers, as it involves relatively short days on paths and trails. A reasonable level of fitness is required, as these trips involve a certain amount of ascending and descending and the occasional challenging day. During your expedition, you will be under the direction of your trip leader; he or she has total authority to determine your suitability to participate. You may also be asked to sign a waiver form.

Temperature: Our season is between October and April, when there are mostly clear skies, warm days and cool evenings. Temperatures steadily decrease between late December and early February. The average temperature is between a low of 4-10 degrees and high of 20-30 degrees Celsius.

Medical & travel insurance: As a precondition of booking, it is compulsory for all clients to have prior medical insurance which must cover emergency evacuation. In addition to this, you need comprehensive personal insurance which should cover flight cancellations and other events due to unforeseen circumstances.

Emergency evacuation: In the event of an emergency, you will be taken to Bagan and given further medical care. Please ensure that your insurance policy covers such unlikely eventualities.