Welcome to the Himalayan country of Nepal. It’s a panoramic thrill flying into Kathmandu on a clear day. The views of snow-capped mountain peaks sprawling down below you are almost ecstatic, beginning a whole chain of memorable experiences that stay with you for a long, long time. And as your plane hits the tarmac, our waiting support team will meet and greet you at the airport and escort you to your hotel.

Today after breakfast we start a guided tour to several of the most historical and spiritual attractions in Kathmandu which are also listed as UNESCO World Heritage sites. We visit the historic Durbar Square, the famous ‘Monkey Temple’ (Swayambhunath) the sacred Hindu temple of Pashupatinath’ and Buddhist shrine (Bouddhanath), which is also one of the largest stupas in the world. At noon, there will be a pre-trip discussion as well as provides opportunity to ask any questions you may have regarding our upcoming adventure.

After an early breakfast, we will start our trip with drive along the Prithivi highway west from Kathmandu, through the beautiful river view cross the Trishuli river and reach Dhading Besi through pitched road. We will stop along the way for breaks and lunch. Four to five hours drive from Dhading Besi takes us Arkhet, driving along the scenic villages, rivers, follow continually Dorandi Khola northwards to Gorkha and Arughat with observing the Mount Manaslu and Ganesh Himal range on the footsteps of Manaslu. From where we continue drive to Arkhet by following the Budhi Gandaki river. Arughat Bazaar is clustered on both sides of the River Budi-Gandaki linked by a suspension bridge, this is the largest settlement in the valley, also a junction to various important places, two hours’ drive from Arughat takes us to Sotikhola.

We continue following the low valley to the north, observing the majestic Himalayan Peaks from time to time on our way up the picturesque densely forested Buddhi Gandaki Valley, passing through a number of small villages tucked into the hillside, until we reach a widening of the valley. In Opposite site, a large tributary stream enters the Budhi Gandaki River. Walking a series of ascent and descent leads to the small and beautiful village of Lapu Besi 880m. From here our path descends to the wide, sandy riverbed which follows a trail meandering below the steep, craggy valley side. We make a last climb up to reach Macha Khola.

We cross the river and head up stream to Khola Beni. The routes soon have to walk on a dramatic gorge with sculptured rocks of spectacular waterfalls and some landslides. After crossing bridge and heading upstream to the tiny village of Khola Besi, and a natural hot spring at Tatopani (Tatopani means ‘hot water’ in Nepali). From hot spring, we hike up to another trial, then, cross the Budhi Gandaki on a suspension bridge. Climb on a wide, then across a landslide and over a ridge to Dobhan. From here, we cross a suspension bridge over the Yaru Khola, and climb the stone stairs and then drop to the river and again climb more stone stairs to Thado Bharyang before ascending to the charming village of Jagat, and the Manaslu Conservation area and police check post where we will need to present our trekking permits.

After spending the night in Jagat the trail begins to climb a rocky ridge where views of Sringi Himal 7,187m emerge. Continue through rich terraced fields of maize, potato, and millet before entering the Nupri (‘the Western Mountains) via bamboo forests. We spend the night in the Buddhist village of Dyang.

From Dyang, pass by numerous Tibetan Mani walls (intricately hand carved stone walls with Buddhist scriptures), weaving in and out of canyons. Enter into a colorful forest of firs, oaks and rhododendrons before arriving in the settlement of Namrung for overnight stay.

Witnessing the lifestyles of Nubri people, you will start the day. Exploring their Tibet-influenced typical lifestyle you will walk past several mani walls, lush terraces and houses through Banjam to enter the fir, rhododendron and oak forest before climbing to Lihi then to Sho.

As you start walking, you will see most of the locals clad in traditional Tibetan dress. As you start further, you will notice some fine paintings in the Kani (gate arches) that you pass before Sho. Walking across the rocky hillside routes, you will finally reach Lho.

Form the place, you can catch the stunning views of Manaslu 8,163m. and Manaslu North 7,157m. On this day, you will gain a quite high altitude, so you must walk slowly and check your body signs.

This is an easy day and we enable to savor the great mountain views. Trek to Samagaon we follow the right bank of the river with views of Peak 29 ahead. A couple of hours climbing through the forest brings us to the village of Shyala, offering views of Phungi, Manaslu and Himal Chuli. The villagers rely on yaks, potatoes and barley for their crops in this distinctly alpine region. As we hike up, the peaks of Ganesh Himal towards the east and the huge peaks of Himal Chuli and Manaslu in the south can be seen. We look down into a little dip where two rows of houses form the main part of Sama. At the far end of the village, overlooking the valley stands the well-known monastery of Samagaon, Tibetan border is very near from here. We stop at Samagaon for the next two nights which will further help with acclimatization.

To ensure proper acclimatization to the altitude, we have scheduled a rest day at Samagaon. The beautiful village of Samagaon is one of the highlights of the trek with excellent mountains views, the close to Manaslu base camp. Ponder at the thousands of mani stones with Buddhist texts and pictures. We see women wearing a nice silver spoon as jewelry at Samagaon. Today is rest day but your guide takes an optional excursion side trip to explore glacial moraine surrounding attractions with sightseeing to Birendra Lake or Pungyen Gompa. Pungyen means bracelet, a good description of the two peaks. Return side trip to Manaslu base camp takes eight hours. Those wishing though side trip but well worth the effort with the Manaslu Glacier and the turquoise lake beneath with mountains as far as the eye can see. If you want to just explore surrounding viewpoints and relaxed day, this Tibetan village gives the opportunity to visit the Pung-Gyen monastery which sits beneath the east face of Manaslu. Higher up again is a cave Gompa and hot springs.

Follow the Budi Gandaki northwards to a bridge over a side stream where the trail forks; the left leading towards the Manaslu Base Camp, the other passing several mani walls heads for the Larkya La. The valley widens along an easy trail past juniper and birch forest to the stone huts at Kermo kharka, and then drops off a shelf to cross a wooden bridge and climbing between forks in the river to a promontory. From this vantage point, one can see the white stone kani marking the entrance to Samdo.

We continue our walk down the edge through some fields to some old mani walls and cross the wooden bridge over the Budi Gandaki and climb gradually up the valley. Another mani wall marks the beginning of ascent to the pass and cross two streams and witness the Larkya Glacier. Go around the valley of the Salka Khola and climb up again and come to the stone guest house 4,460m which is not a lodge but a kind of shelter called Dharmasala, also known as Larkya La Phedi. Today we will be rewarded with the views of Larkya Glacier with the fantastic views of Manaslu looking particularly impressive. We came here today and have a rest to prepare for tomorrows crossing of the famous and most awaited Larkya Pass.

We leave Dharmasala early in the morning as it is the longest and toughest section of trekking around Manaslu crossing the Larkya la pass 5,160m before the wind starts blowing strongly and possible storms appear on the pass. The trail starts gentle climb across moraine; it descends a little to a lake and then becomes rough and indistinct as it crosses to the south of steep grassy slopes. The trail stays on the moraine to a ridge marked by two cairns; from here the prayer flags marking the pass are visible. Descend to the four frozen lakes then make the final steep climb to the pass. From the pass of summit, there are outstanding panoramic view on clear day of Himlung Himal, Cheo Himal, Kangguru, Menjung and the huge Annapurna II on the horizon. Savor the spectacular views from the top of the pass. Bhimtang is long but beautiful. On the descent from the pass the trail follows the top of the moraine to the west and makes a set of steep, rough switchbacks as it crosses the moraine then descends more gently on loose gravel to another grassy moraine at 4,450m. The trail now becomes easier to follow and reaches a small meadow. The valley becomes wider as the Trails heads down to a large meadow, past a mani wall and a small rest house that marks Bhimtang.

From Bhimtang, the trail starts to cross over the side of the moraine and descend to the headwaters of the Dudh Khola, and crosses a wooden bridge, then into pine and rhododendron forest to Hompuk 3,430m with a rock shelter. The rhododendrons appear in a wide range of colors, sheep, horses and monkeys fill the forest. The panoramic view of Phungi, Manaslu, Manaslu north peak, Cheo Himal and Himlung Himal, are clearly visible. 30-minute descent in the forested area reach the meadow of Sangore Kharka. Then cross a landslide before making a steep climb to a ridge decorated with prayer flags. It makes a descent to the river bank at Goa.

The trail continues through fields and intermittent stands of rhododendron and oak to arrive at Tilje, a large Gurung village. Exit the village through a stone arch, cross the Dudh Khola and follow along its embankment descending through scrub forest. The walls of the Marsyangdi Valley loom larger and finally the houses of Dharapani appear in the distance. Pass through Thonje via a wooden bridge and through a chorten-shaped arch, and Dharapani lies across a long suspension bridge over the Marsyangdi. The trail now follows the Annapurna Circuit route in reverse as you pass through the steepest part of the Marsyangdi gorge. We descend to the Marsyandi River and cross the suspension bridge. Climb up and away from the river and hike through a broad, flat valley to the village of Tal 1,675m, situated at the foot of a large waterfall. The trail continues on to Chyamche.

We hop onto a jeep to reach Kathmandu via Besisahar. The road is rough and bumpy up to Besisahar and smoother from then. Enjoying the sceneries of hills and rivers along the highway, we reach Kathmandu after 8/9 hours of drive.

Today is your last day in Kathmandu and is an opportunity to do all the bits and pieces you thought of doing over the past few weeks including any last-minute shopping, returning to places that you enjoyed or didn’t get a chance to visit before your trek. Do let us know if would like help organising anything for today.

After a great breakfast at your hotel, you are free until it is time for us to transfer you to the airport in time for your fight home. We bid farewell for now and until next time!