Myanmar as an unlikely walking heaven
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Shan plateau
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| Myanmar (Burma, until recently), is big and very varied: from the snowy Himalayan north, where it borders on China and India, three great river systems run southward and form a landscape of hot, dusty but fertile plains between mountain ranges. To the east, the Shan Plateau is home to a multitude of tribes: the country’s ethnic diversity, while one of its glories, is at the heart of some of its troubles and inherent instability. In the west and south, bordering on the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea, are a long, pristine coastline and hundreds of islands just waiting to be wrecked by tourism; and plains and river deltas.
Myanmar has a long if Byzantine history of competing powers and successive, sometime glorious but often short-lived kingdoms. Its plains and hills are littered with religious and historical marvels, from the temples, stupas and other monuments of Bagan and Mrauk U to old capitals such as Ava, to the pilgrimage oddities of Mout Popa and Mount Kyaiktiyo.
Despite their depressing recent history of stupid, wasteful socialist and then military rule and at times vicious oppression, as well as warfare with dissident tribes in the east, the locals are (to foreigners, at least) sweet and charming and incredibly unspoilt. The hill tribes of the east and north live tough but still remarkably unchanged lives, with huge diversity from village to village, let alone between valleys.
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Overgrown stupa compound, Bagan
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| To go or not: until recently, there were major issues with visiting Myanmar, as a result of the money and affirmation that the regime receives – with counter-arguments to the effect that money to the desperately poor locals and foreign contact is more important. These were well put in the 2009 Lonely Planet. But, with the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, the dabate has for the time being changed; she cautiously welcomes visitors coming to Myanmar. Myanmar isn’t (as at 2013) an easy country to get to or travel in, although much is changing, and quickly: modern cars and lorries are now to be seen and flights are increasing, although the road system remains appalling.
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Mt Popa
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Syphoning petrol
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| Myanmar has some of the world’s best walks and treks, with a huge variety of scenery and tribal ways of lifeto be encountered.
- Excellent mountain hiking and trekking trails in the Himalayan north around Putao: in particular to Burma's highest peak: the snow-capped Hkakabo Razi (5881m) and the more accessible Phon Kan Razi at 3,635m.
- Fascinating tribal trekking in the hills and mountains of much of the country, particularly on the Shan plateau in the east, offers wonderfully varied day and multi-day walks and hikes, walking from village to village among many different ethnic groups around Kalaw, Pindaya and Inle Lake; and Hsipaw and Nanshan, Kengtung and elsewhere.
- The historic and unmissably atmospheric temples, stupas and monuments of Bagan, Mrauk U etc.,
- The weird but wonderful Mt Popa and the crowded but nonetheless atmospheric sacred cliff-top rock of Mount Kyaiktiyo.
The best time for hiking in most of Myanmar is November to early March. Once on the trails, lodging is mostly in local homes, with camping in remoter areas. |
Inle Lake
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Shovelling shit, Shan plateau
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More information on walking in Myanmar
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