The Narayani River

The Narayani is born at Devghat, a few kilometres upstream of Bharatpur. There the Kali Gandaki, which cuts through the Himalaya between the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri massifs, meets the Trishuli, which rises in Tibet and runs down past Langtang. What leaves the confluence is one of the largest rivers in Nepal, and it is often called the country's deepest.

From Devghat the river runs south past Narayangadh, the riverside half of Bharatpur city, then bends south-west. For most of its remaining length in Nepal it has Chitwan's forests on one bank and the farms and villages of Nawalpur on the other. It leaves the country at Tribeni and continues across the Indian plains as the Gandak, joining the Ganges near Patna.

How the river changes through the year

• October to February: low, cold and clear, green over the gravel. Sandbanks appear, and winter birds arrive from the north.
• March to May: the lowest water of the year and the warmest days. Long beaches of sand and stones line the bends.
• June to September: the monsoon fills it bank to bank. It runs fast and brown with silt from the mountains.

Places along the river

Devghat

The confluence, with temples, ashrams and a long footbridge. See Devghat.

Narayangadh

The city waterfront, with the road bridge, riverside paths and tea stalls. In the evening, half of Bharatpur seems to come down to the water.

Bis Hajari Tal

Not on the river itself, but part of the same lowland: a cluster of forest lakes south-east of the city. See Bis Hajari Tal.

Amaltari

A village of Tharu and Bote families on the Nawalpur bank. The Bote have fished and ferried on the Narayani for generations. See Amaltari.

Tribeni

The river's last stretch in Nepal, where it reaches the Indian border.

Life in the river

The Narayani is one of only two rivers in Nepal where the gharial, a slender-snouted fish-eating crocodile, still breeds in the wild. Read more on river wildlife.