The Trishuli River Although not the most inspiring river for rafting in Nepal, is very much popular several reasons-it is close to Kathmandu and for a cheap bus ride you can be on the river in hours if a warm-up is what you need on arrival in Nepal. The major road running alongside it is, for most people, a down marker. It does however provide easy access to transport and villages along the way. For a family trip, Trishuli River provides a less serious and committing adventure than many of the other rivers. From a rafting point of view there are some good rapids but it is best run, in my opinion later in the season. On passing the main rapids in September 1999, many were washed out and only the biggest were evident.
Travel to the Trishuli River the journey to the Trishuli River takes about 3 hours by bus from Kathmandu, 5 hours from Pokhara. Most groups put-in at Charaudi and take out at Mugling and others continue till Narayangarh to make it a 3 days trip. From Narayanghat you can visit the Royal Chitwan National Park.
On the river The early sections contain class 2-3 rapids and build up steadily to class 4. ‘Teen Devi’ is a good class 4 above Benighat. Below here the river is class 3 as far as ‘Upset’ (4). After this the river winds its way down to Mugling at the Confluence of the Marsyandi.
Other options exist on the Trisuli for kayakers. A bus from Kathmandu to Betrawati or Trisuli bazaar can add another 15-20km of river to a trip. The advantages are that this section is away from the big road. It is predominantly lower in grade though at 2 – 3.