Manaslu & Tsum Valley Trek 21 Days

Immediately after breakfast you will go on a sightseeing tour of Kathmandu Valley. With several World Heritage Sites in the valley, Kathmandu is indeed an enchanting place. You will visit Patan Durbar Squares, Swayambhunath, Pashupatinath and Bauddhanath. Later in the evening your guide you provide you a brief about the upcoming trek.

Our long adventure start from Kathmadu after taking early breakfast at the hotel. Today is fully the drive that goes through several small town, villages with beautiful landscape and mountain view. From Kathmandu to Dhading Besi, the district headquarters of Dhading (1050m), the drive is on paved roads, however from Dhading besi to Machhakhola, the drive will be on a rougher surface. Overnight at the guest house in Machha Khola.

After breakfast, we cross Machha Khola and begin along the ascending trail until we arrive at Khorla Bensi. At this location, there is a natural hot spring where you can take a dip and relax for some time. After this fun break, we move further following a path across the forest to arrive at Doban. The next destination on our route today is Lauri, from where we cross a suspension bridge to reach Jagat for the overnight stay.

After breakfast ,we proceed our entry to the restricted area of Manaslu and Tsum Valley and start our trek ascending rocky ridge to reach Salleri. From there we take a descending trail until we reach Sirdibas. After a brief stop here, we will walk up to Ghatta Khola. The next stop on our trail today is Philim, From Philim it will be another 2-3 hours scenic walk to arrive at Lokpa. a  Overnigh at Lokpa

Lokpa is one of the beautiful village for the view of Mt. Himalchuli and Buddha himal. Enjoying morning view with breakfast, we start our trek Chumling. The trek is quite comfortable today as the trek is short with very little ups and down. Overnight at Chumling.

In the morning we start fresh and easy. As soon as we cross a suspension bridge early on in the trek, we begin to see great views of the white peaks ahead. The most prominent one is the peak called Ganesh Himal. Take some pictures if you like, but keep walking to reach the village of Gho. Keep walking to cross the village of Rainjam, the river of Serpu, and a couple of hours more to arrive at the upper regions of Tsum Valley. At this point, we have reached Chokhang-Paro where we will stay overnight.

After breakfast, first we go through the village of Lama Gaun. From here, we travel to Rachen Gompa (or as it is also called, Nunnery Gompa). Take a brief stop and later head on the trail to cross Lar, Phurbe and Pangdung villages and cross Shiar Khola before we arrive at Chule. A little trek further, and we arrive at our overnight destination of Nile.

As Nile is located close to Tibet, today we will not be going further north. Instead we will walk to the western edge of the valley close to Tibetan border. Its only couple of hours comfortable walk to reach Mu Gompa, the largest monastery in the region. Observe and learn the traditional Buddhist culture in Mu Gompa, we will back to Nile for Overnight.

Today is one of the longer day of the trip as we descend down all the way to Chumling from Nile.

In the morning we start our trek returning back to Lokpa and cross the river to head west  where we re-join the trail to Manaslu Circuit. Walking through dense forest we reach Pewa for the lunch where only few service provider are available. Taking our lunch in Pewa, we will have gradual uphill walk for about 2 hours to reach Deng. Deng is a small village of only around a dozen structures. Providing basic accommodation facilities such as a normal hotel or a lodge with showers, the place exhibits noticeable change in cultural practices, now with a distinct Tibetan feel which continues from here on.

Today, we enter the area influenced by Buddhism.Walking few ups and downs through forests, we arrive at Ghap. On the way well preserves paintings and elegant mani wall is interesting. From here valley becomes steeper and we go long climb through bamboo and rhododendron forest to the village of Namrung for the overnight.

After breakfast, we walk for about 3 hours to Lhi. The route is straight for an hour or so before going round a hill. With the Ganesh Himal Range to the back, Mt Siringi to the right coming closer and closer and, in the next 20 odd minutes, Mt Hiunchuli joining the view in front, the walk to Lhi continues. As the Ganesh Himal Range slowly disappears from the back, the path turns into a few short sharp uphills. With the forest giving way to farmland, the landscape suggests the arrival of Lhi, a village with a monastery. Lhi offers a view that includes Siringi Himal, the Pangboche Peak, Himalchuli, a glimpse Mt Manaslu as well as the Naike Peak.We stop for lunch here.

After lunch, we walk again for another 3 hours to Sama Gaun. A sharp uphill continues for 2 hours before arriving in Shyala. The view from Shyala has the whole of Manaslu Range up close. Another one hour of straight trail easy on the legs takes us to Sama Gaun.The village, the biggest so far, is a fully functional town with most facilities: big monasteries, a high school, a much better health post. There are no major roads, however. The use of mules and yaks for transporting goods is common here.

Today is the excursion or rest day in Sama Gaun. Depending on your fitness and desire, you may hike to Manaslu Base Camp through Birendra lake which will take 7-8 hours to complete. A walk around the village, an inspection into the local way of animal husbandry dominated by yaks, some shopping of local goods and an hour’s hike to the Birendra Lake fed by the Manaslu glacier is another option to enjoy the day. Overnight at the guest house.

Today we have only three hours of pleasant walk to the Samdo Village. The trek is comfortable compare to other days with only gradual uphill to follow. As there are no other settlements on the way, we walk directly to Samdo for our Lunch and Overnight stay.

After breakfast, we walk all the way to Dharmashala. Along bare hills and towards rocky elevations, the route is a mix of steep and gradual uphills. Dharmashala, a stopover with only one construction that accommodates 35 people, is where we stop for lunch as well as for the night. The place also comes with dormitory-style big tents, which often feels warmer than the rooms and accommodates 120 people maximum in peak season. For some, the thinning of the air now starts taking its toll. Overnight at guest house.

Today we start our trek early in the morning with pack lunch for the day. It is steep uphill walk for about 3~4 hours to the Larkya top. Once we reach the top, we have great panoramic view of Mt. Himlung, Kang guru, Annapurna II and more. Take a picture and enjoy the sheer happiness of the moment that you have reached the highest point of this trek.

From the top of Larke La, the trail descend all the way to Bhimtang for about 3 ~ 4hours. Depending on the condition, usage of crampons and ice axe are may be necessary as the trail might be covered by the snow. Specially in the month of March, April as well as end of November and in winter, the pass is fully covered by the snow.  Overnight at Bimthang.

After breakfast, we walk for about almost 4 hours to Surki. With very narrow footpaths on edges at places, the trail walks us through a big forest down a gradual decline with Mt Manaslu to the left.Surki is a small village with around only half a dozen houses, now also serves through its teahouses, highlighting the impact of tourism on economic activities even in the remote parts of the world;

From Surki, it’s two hours more to Goa. The route is similar to the one previous; but the forest slowly becomes thinner as human settlements encroach land for their purposes.The view therefore changes with the landscapenow filled with farmlands of maze or wheat or potatoes and clustered houses. Goa, a relatively new settlement with 50-60 constructions encouraged by trekking to add necessary value, is situated on an ideal location as a view point for the whole Manaslu Range.In the past, Tiliche and Dharapani were the two most preferred stopovers.

After breakfast, we walk for about 3 hours to Dharapani. A downhill easy on the legs, the way walks everyone through either hills with grasses, shrubs and sparsely populated trees or farmlands or villages; Dharapani, on the highway to Manang, is our stopover for lunch. Entering the Annapurna Conservation Area from Manaslu Conservation Area againrequires a permit; and this is the check-point.

After lunch, we head off to Beshisahar on a local transportation. Beshisahar, a small town with Gurung dominance, has grown in popularity as a trailhead for Annapurna Circuit Trek since the 1990s.  Spend the night in Beshisahar.

We head off to Kathmandu on a local bus early morning. Along the banks of the famous Trishuli and Marshyndi river, this almost 6-hour journey takes all its passengers on a ride, albeit with some bumps here and there, through numerous important settlements. With guaranteed two stops for breakfast and lunch, the bus ride comes to its final stop in Kathmandu.

In the evening, allow us the pleasure of your company during the fare-well dinner organized by Vista Trek. Spend the night in a hotel.

Depending on your scheduled time of flight, our staff will transfer you to the airport for your flight ahead.