We did a fantastic Panauti - Dhulikel - Nagarkot valley rim trek independently, but a bit differently to most people. That is, we did it in the opposite direction because we wanted to end in Bhaktapur. 

What to take: Take your sleeping bag for the budget lodges, and a very minimal set of clothes (jackets, change of socks and underwear), some minimal toiletries, water bottles, camera and your first aid kit. Store the rest in your hotel in Kathmandu (all hotels in Nepal provide this service for free). Also, there is no need for trekking permits for treks around the Kathmandu Valley.

Day 1: We started by first taking a local bus (from the big bus station on Durbar Marg opposite Ratna Park, number 26 on pg 132/3 map in Lonely Planet's "Nepal" guide, 3^rd edn) to Banepa, then changing to a bus to Panauti. Ask locals when you get to each place which bus to get on. From there we trekked to Dhulikel via Namobuddha (see pg 251 map of above book, that largish village with no name in the map in the bottom left hand corner is Panauti). It's a great walk through some very interesting villages and rural life. The tracks are quite good, and locals will always tell you the direction when you ask. It is quite a long walk on this route so it's a good idea to get started early in the day. We actually started walking from Panauti at 11.00am, and in hindsight we should have started earlier. We got a surprise by the fact that there are very occasional buses that bounce along these dusty, potholed tracks between Panauti and Dhulikel via Namobuddha. So if like us it is getting late in the day and a bus is coming, jump on it and shorten the trip to Dhulikel. We caught one around about the village of Kavre.

Also in hindsight we should have spent some time exploring Panauti first, it is apparently a fascinating place, and what we saw of it did look really nice (photo of Panauti). However, we were running out of time.

So, spend the night in Dhulikel, there are great views of the Himalaya from here. We stayed in the Dhulikel Lodge, which has moved from where the pg 249 map shows and the LP Nepal guidebook describes. It is a newer building, further north from the bus stop on that 249 Dhulikel map (on the bend). Nice place, and excellent views from the roof. Also in hindsight, we should have spent more time exploring old Dhulikel, it too looked fascinating. But we made the old mistake of concentrating on the trek and not the destinations.

Day 2: The next morning we took a bus back to Banepa, because this part is a busy sealed road and probably not worth walking. Now from here we did this trek in the opposite direction that most people do it. Most people trek from Nagarkot to Dhulikel and not visa versa like we did it. The reason is that it was uphill nearly all the way for us! However it is OK, bear in mind our 9 and 11 year old kids did it with their own (light) packs! From Banepa we actually caught a bus to Nala (see pg 217 map). This is where the road ends, too. This part of the route is very flat and less interesting, so it may be an idea to catch a bus like us. Nala itself was a very interesting little village too, very nice to walk through. From here we basically started our steady climb to Nagarkot. The trail is quite good, but in places there are a few options, you will need to ask for directions. Usually this is easy, but towards the end there is no fields and few locals (only forest) and you may have to wait for people to come along to ask them. Either that or try a path for a while! Finally you end at the bottom of the hill that the lookout tower is on. Buy a drink from the little stall there then climb up. We were up the lookout later in the day (well, about 3.30pm), and this was too late for a good view of the Himalaya as clouds had moved in.

Day 3: The next day we walked down to Changu Narayan. In fact, this was the reason for us doing the trek in this direction, we wanted to end in Changu Narayan and then Bhaktapur. It was a longer walk than we anticipated to Changu Narayan, we kept thinking we'd come upon it any minute. We thought we were fairly close when we got to the point on the pg 217 map where the walk track (dotted line) meets the hairpin bend in the road (strong line) about half way between Nagarkot to Changu Narayan. Changu Narayan and the village is very interesting though, and well worth a visit.  The LP guide also says catch a bus from Nagarkot to the half-way point mentioned above and walk the rest, but we disagree. I think they say that because they think you have to walk alongside the road. However, you actually follow a village trail away from the road, passing through mini villages and close to everyday life. This first section was the most interesting part of this Day 3 part of the trek!