Tsum valley Trek - 17 Days

Welcome at Tribhuwan International Airport, then transfer to your hotel.

Free day for preparation and sightseeing in Kathmandu

We head out from Kathmandu for the long drive to Soti Khola, driving through Arughat along the way on the dusty road. Soti Khola is set on the banks of the Budhi Gandaki River, our companion and guide through the Manaslu valley whose source we'll eventually touch on when we ascend to the pass of Larke La.

The trek commences with an easy day of walking on the route to Machha Khola, (the name means 'fish river') with pleasant views of the surrounding jungle and occasional waterfalls adding their own soothing sound bite to the hike.

The trail will lead us through the banks of the Budhi Gandaki river to Khorlabensi. Once we continue from Khorlabensi then we will arrive at Tatopani(Tatopani meaning hot water). Tatopani is another interesting place where you can experience the natural running hot water. Probably we might have lunch at Dovan before we arrive at Jagat for the overnight. Jagat is a big town and the restricted area will start from here. It will offer a neat and clean stone paved trail, mani walls, MCAP office (Manaslu Conservation Area Project), Siringi Himal etc.

A series of striking suspension bridges dominate our path today as we steadily make our way up the trail past numerous waterfalls towards the Gurung village of Philim and its pretty setting. From there the trail climbs again and branches away into the Tsum Valley, with the striking image of Ganesh Himal and Shringi Himal drawing our attention as we make our approach to Lopka to end our day on the trail.

Lush jungle and three more suspension bridges usher us into the mystical Buddhist valley, and after an initial sharp climb the rest of our hike to Chumling is a fairly leisurely one that allows us to relax and take in the beauty of the valley.

Glorious views of the Ganesh Himal serve as our backdrop during the day as we steadily ease higher along the Shiar Khola, a minor tributary of the Budhi Gandaki, a small Tibetan monastery along our path reminding us of the valley's strong Tibetan influences. The day finishes off with our arrival at Chhokangparo, the largest settlement in the valley.

With the tributary still acting as our guide we make our way deeper and higher into the valley, following the ancient trade route to Tibet as we make our way past chortens, stupas, mani walls, monasteries and nunneries, all reminders of the close cultural and historical bonds to Nepal's mystical neighbor to the north — not for nothing is Tsum Valley known as 'Little Tibet'. We can pause briefly to inspect Milarepa cave before our arrival at the monastery of Mu Gompa where we'll stay the night and enjoy the hospitality of the resident monks — truly one of the cultural highlights of the trek.

Today's journey represents an exceptional opportunity to travel along an ancient route linking Nepal to the fabled land of Tibet to the north, making our way through high altitude yak pastures and soaring peaks to the pass of Ngula Dhojyang and the border crossing where local people are still permitted to cross in pursuit of age-old trading practices.

This long day's hike gives us amply opportunity to view the region from a different perspective as we head south past the Ganesh Himal ranges to the serene monastery of Gumpa Lundang, where we have another opportunity to enjoy the warm hospitality of the local monks for the night.

The ascent to the base camp takes approximately four hours, perhaps a little less, and once there our efforts are rewarded with some of the finest views on offer of towering Ganesh Himal and the surrounding alpine wilderness. After a suitable amount of time to savor the view we retreat back down the trail to Gumpa Lundang and another night as guests of the monastery.

Our return path takes the alternative route towards Ripchet, which gives us a new and rewarding perspective on the landscape as we make our way to Lokpa.

We continue to drop down in altitude, passing back through the picturesque village of Philim and back over the suspension bridges, following the tumbling waters of the Budhi Gandaki as they descend towards Sirdibas, Jagat and Yaruphant. The alpine terrain from on high has long given way to the dense and moist jungles of the subtropical foothills as we complete our long journey with our arrival at Dovan.

The trail along the Budhi Gandaki River continues south to Tatopani, where we can again avail ourselves of the hot springs before making our way down towards Khorlabesi and onto Macha Khola before finishing off the day with our arrival at Soti Khola.

Our drive via local transport takes us along the Marsyangdi and Trishuli rivers as we pass through the full panoply of Himalayan scenery on our way to Kathmandu, with a smattering of villages dotting a verdant green landscape interwoven with a patchwork quilt of crops and terraced fields, the snow-capped peaks in the background adding the final magnificent touch to the rolling panorama.

Departure from Kathmandu or an opportunity to link up with another of our programs.