Manaslu Circuit trek Manaslu Circuit trek - 20 Days Trip Code: T4W 551 Phone: +64 6 356 7043 or Mobile: + 64 (27) 356 7043 Email:ann@trekkingadventures.co.nz Grade: Challenging Group Size: max of 12 Starts: Kathmandu Ends: Kathmandu Trip Overview Day 1 Kathmandu - sightseeing Day 2 Drive Kathmandu Arughat Bazaar Soti Khola Day 3 Trek Soti Khola Machha Khola Day 4 Trek Machha Khola Jagart Day 5 Trek Jargart Deng Day 6 Trek Deng Namrung Day 7 Trek Namrung Lho Day 8 Trek Lho Samagaon Day 9 11 Trek Samagaon Acclimatisation day side trek to Manaslu Base Camp Sama Samdo Day 12 Samdo Acclimatisation day side trek up towards the Tibetan border Day 13 Trek Samdo Larkye Phedi Day 14 Trek Larkye Phedi Larkye La pass Bimtang Day 15 Trek Bimtang Tilji Day 16 & 17 Trek Tilji Dharapani - Chamje Syanje & drive to Pokhara Highlights Bustling Kathmandu Kathmandu tour Flight to Pokhara Kathmandu Tibetan and Gurung culture Side trek to Manaslu Base Camp Side trek to Tibetan border Larkye La mountain pass (5,135 metres) Rhododendrons (in season) Pung Gyen Monastery at prayer time Views the north & East face of Manaslu Views of Himal Chuli, Ngai Chuli, Cho Danda, Himlung, Cheo Himals, Gyagi Kang, Menjung, Kang Guru & the Annapurna range Trekking Manaslu Circuit Beautiful turquoise mountain Lakes Hot springs Day 18 Pokhara 1
Day 19 Fly Pokhara Kathmandu Day 20 Kathmandu Vote with your feet and come walk with me Detailed trip itinerary - (quoted trekking hours are estimated trekking times) Day 1: Kathmandu (the capital of Nepal - 1400 metres above sea level) There will be a meeting at 9am on day one for group introductions and trek briefing (or earlier if everyone has arrived) followed by sightseeing of Kathmandu city, with some leisure time to relax as well. We will meet for a group cultural dinner & traditional dancing (included in price) in the early evening. Accommodation: Hotel/Guesthouse Dinner Day 2: Drive Kathmandu Arughat Bazaar Soti Khola 1,400-750 metres We leave early to drive to the start of the Manaslu trek at Arughati. It is a long drive but travels through some interesting local villages. From Arughat bazaar there are views of Shringi Himal up the valley. The Buri Gandaki valley becomes steeper as we cross the Arkhet Khola through fields and rocky terrain. Day 3: Soti Khola Machha Khola - 760 930 metres 5 hours After leaving Soti Khola the path zigzags up to a ridge in the Buri Gandaki to Korsani. We continue to zigzag through the forest passing waterfalls, green valley s until we reach Lapu Besi. We trek on a up and down path to reach Machha Khola which has a few shops and lodges and fantastic views of the North East view of Ganesh Himal. Day 4: Machha Khola Jagat 930 1,440 metres - 6 hours We cross the river and head up stream to Khola Bensi and. The trek from Khola Besi is through buckwheat and Tobacco fields and a dramatic gorge with sculptured rocks of spectacular waterfalls and some landslides. After one hour we reach Tatopani (hot spring) where we can have a wash in the water spouts. From Dobhan we cross a suspension bridge and climb behind a rocky outcrop to a school when the valley starts to widen. Today is a contrast of narrow and wide 2
valleys and amazing waterfalls. We then cross the river and climb some steps for another fantastic challenging day passing a landslide, ravines and scrambling down to a wide open valley. After crossing a suspension bridge we ascend some stone steps and drop once again to Thado Bharyang before climbing to Jagat and the Manaslu Conservation area and police check post where we will need to present our trekking permits. We will also be able to learn about about the surrounding area and the tourism growth. Jagat has a school with about 70 students, which we can visit. Jagat is our overnight stop and the locals make their living from Tourism, agriculture, education and government positions and is also interesting in that it has very tidy slate pathed streets. Day 5: Jagat - Deng 1,440 1,860 metres 7 1/2 hours On leaving Jagat village we cross Pangaur Khola and then an easy climb to Chautara where there are excellent views of Shringi Himal to the north. Today we pass some Mani walls which have been engraved in the hillside rocks indicating we are mixing in the Tibetan culture. The valley widens passing stone houses of Ghattu Khola. We pass village settlements which have stone houses with slate roofs. We route climbs up past green wheat fields to the village of Philim (1,570metres) where there is another check post to show our permits. The next section of the track offering spectacular views Ekla Bhatti (1,650 metres) and many waterfalls and as we climb there are great views of Himal IV behind us. The trail then enters a steep gorge and descends through some grassy slopes dotted with pine and crosses the Shar Khola & Buri Gandaki Rivers. We continue on through dense woods of rhododendrons, bamboo forest to Deng Khola. After trekking through the gorge we climb briefly to the small village of Deng which is the start of the lower Nubri region (Kutang), where the people are ethnically Tibetan but speak a different dialect than the people of upper Nubri where the people are pure Tibetans. The Kutang dialect, called 'kukay', is a mix of Tibeto-Burman and Gurung. We have views of Lumbo Himal to the rear, as well as Lapuchen and Dwijen Himals. Day 6: Deng Namrung - 1,860 2,560 metres 7 hours The Manaslu Circuit from here changes a bit with the Tibetan influence which is obvious with more Mani walls, and the change in the structure of local homes to dry stone to reflect the climate. Rice and wheat are replaced by buckwheat, barley and Maize in the fields. We are still in the green forest and colourful Rhododendrons (in spring). Today we pass waterfalls, a huge cave more bamboo and the grey Lungar monkeys, ending the day walking through a large stone archway (kani) that marks the entry to the Prok and Ghap communities. The paintings and Mani stones on have fierce looking blue and red characters on the ceiling and walls which are said to stop evil spirits entering the villages beyond. 3
Day 7: Namrung Lho - 2,560 3,180 metres 3 hours We leave Namrung along an easy trail that passes waterfalls and enter the Nupri region who are Tibetan descendants who crossed the mountains over 500 years ago. The influence is obvious with Mani walls, prayer flags and Buddhist Gompas. After Barchem we will be in the Rhododendron forest. After reaching the Tibetan village of Sho (3,000 metres) we will be rewarded with spectacular views of Manaslu s North Peak and also Naike at the head of the valley. Amazing. The lively village of Lho is adorned with colourful prayer flags and has the large Ribang Gompa which sits on a hill above the village. We pass barley fields, a long Mani wall and some large old Chortens and Gompas in the area date back over 500 years, on this next stretch of track. Day 8-11: Lho -Samagaon Samagon will be a Acclimatisation day with a side trek to Manaslu Base Camp (8 hours return) 3,500 4,500 3520 metres Samagaon Samdo 3,500 3,800 metres The Tibtean villages in this region have distinctive entrance gates (kanis). We drop down and cross Damonan Khola and then climb to a fantastic plateau at Shyala, a community of mainly log cabins with some teahouses. Shyala has some of the best mountain views of the whole trek and we will be rewarded with views of Manaslu, Himal Chuli, and Ngai Chuli. Samagaon is a lovely village and a great place to chill out and also the closest village to Manaslu Base Camp. For those that wish to take the 8 hour return side trek to Manaslu Base Camp. The side trek will be a tough day but well worth the effort with the Manaslu Glacier and the turquoise Lake beneath with mountains as far as the eye can see. If we lucky we may get to meet some climbers at Base camp. For those who would like a more relaxed day you could explore the village and some of the surrounding viewpoints. This Tibetan village gives you the opportunity to visit the Pung-Gyen Monastery which sits beneath the East face of Manaslu (a 2 ¼ hour climb). Higher up again is a cave Gompa and hot springs. What better way to sit and admire Mansalu from a hot spring soak. It is a 1 1/2 hr return walk back to Samagaon from the side walk to Manaslu BC. After leaving Samagaon to Samdo we are on an wide trail that runs across grassy kharkas following the Budhi Gandaki. We pass a forest of Himalayan Birch and the long Mani walls of at Kermo Khaka. We may take a side trip to Birendra Kund to view Manaslu northern icefall. Samdo is a Tibetan refugee settlement of about 40 homes created after the Chinese occupation of Tibet. The locals live a typical Tibetan lifestyle herding, yaks, sheep and goats and tending the land growing barley. 4
Day 12: Samdo Acclimatisation day 3,875 metres side trek to Tibetan border. It is really important to rest and acclimatise her which will help in the days to come. There are some great side trips which will further help your acclimatisation when we trek to Lajyung pass near Tibet which is northeast of Samdo. The other option is to trek up the slopes to the north of Samdo for some great views of the entire Manaslu range. Day 13: Samdo Larkye Phedi (Dharamshala) 3,800 4,460 metres 4 hours From Samdo we drop through some fields to some old Mani wals and a stone arch before dropping to Gyala Khola and then climb to some Mani stones (which marks the beginning of the ascent to the pass) where we can see Juniper growing. Also looking down upon Larkye Bazaar which is a trading area where the Tibetans sell large herds of goats if you are there when the Nepali Dashain festival in October/ November. Today we will be rewarded with views of Larkye Glacier which comes from Manaslu. The peaks of Larkye and the north face of Manaslu are still a impressive sight to see. The track becomes steeper to the edge of the Fhuge gorge at 4,000 metres before reaching Larkye La Dharamsala. Day 14: Larkye Phedi - Larkye La Bimtang 4,460 5,135 3,700 metres 7 9 hours We will start early as it is the longest and toughest section of the Manaslu Circuit crossing Larkye La pass. We have the most amazing views up the Bimtang valley of the Himalayas surrounding us starting with Cho Danda and Larkye Peak. We walk along the Larkye Glacier making a gradual climb up to the summit of Larkye La pass at 5,135 metres. From the summit there is a panorama view on a clear day of Himlung, Cheo Himals, Gyagi Kang, Menjung, Kang Guru and Annapurna 2 on the horizon. There is a steep walk down from the pass on switchbacks for about 1 ½ hours with views of glaciers and turquoise lakes. An easy gradient leads us down to a wider valley and large meadow past a Mani wall and to Bimtang (3,590 metres) and a well-deserved rest. Day 15: Bimtang Tilji - 3,590 2,300 metres 6 hours 5
The track south of Bimatang is magical with lush vegetation as we continue down the valley with views of the west face off Manaslu, following a lateral moraine before crossing a branch of the glacier melt and more moraine and then climb a ridge to some prayer flags. The trail then descends steeply passing Rhododendrons and Pine forest as we trek towards Dudh Khola. We then cross a large landslide to the settlement of Yak Kharka. We climb a ridge and a long descent passing fields and more Rhododendrons and oak trees to the large Gurung village of Tilije which will be our overnight stop. Day 16 17 - Tilji Dharapani - Chamje - Sangye Pokhara 2,300-1,860 1,430 1100 900 metres Upon exiting the Tilji village through a stone arch we descend further through the walls of the Marsyangdi Valley. Once crossing a long suspension bridge over the Marsyangdi we arrive at Dharapani and turn at the junction we come to the Annapurna Circuit trail and police check post. The next couple of days will be spent walking down the Dudh Khola and Marsyangdi Rivers through the Gurung villages of Tal in a wide open valley, and on down to Jagat and Sangye. We will then transfer to Pokhara for some well-earned rest and relaxation. Day 18: Pokhara Chill out day Today will be a leisure day to unwind and explore Pokhara town, maybe take a canoe trip on the Phewa Tal Lake, or visit many some of the other sites. There are many restaurants and places to have a massage if you wish to just relax and unwind. Accommodation: Guesthouse/hotel Day 19: Pokhara - Kathmandu 900 1,400 metres We take a 30 minute flight back to Kathmandu, catch up on last minute shopping and meet for a farewell dinner in the evening. Accommodation: Guesthouse/ hotel Day 20: Kathmandu After checking out of your hotel your trip will end, however you may wish to stay on an extra few days to relax or visit the many historical sites that Kathmandu has to offer Price includes: 6
Experienced English speaking Local Guide who is a 8 times Everest Summiteer Ascend to Manaslu Base Camp, The Tibetan Border, Larkye La pass Acclimatisation days in Sama and Samdo Flight Pokhara to Kathmandu including transfers & departure taxes (value of USD110.00) Transfers Kathmandu Arughat Bazaar & Syanje Pokhara (value USD200.00) Cultural dinner with local entertainment (valued USD30) excludes drinks Half day sightseeing in Kathmandu including entrance fees (value of USD40.00) Porter to carry your large pack Trekking Adventures policy of one porter = one pack (which means less weight for the porters) Trekking Adventures T-Shirt (value of USD65.00) Four x Guesthouse/hotel (in Kathmandu and Pokhara) and 15 nights teahouse (lodge type with comfortable foam mattress and pillow) on twin shared basis Arrival and departure transfers Manaslu special trekking permit and Tims certificate (value USD250) Local porters: The guides used are all experienced. Each person will have a porter to carry their baggage however you will be expected to carry your own day pack which should be large enough to carry all you will need throughout the day e.g. raincoat, water bottle, camera, spare clothing, snack food, etc Tipping: It is customary to tip the tour leader, local guides and porters at the end of your trek Please allow US$100 which is payable in Nepali rupees. Gifts: Guides and porters also appreciate any discarded warm clothing, shoes, and packs Accommodation: All accommodation as detailed in this itinerary are in hotels/ teahouses twin/triple/ while trekking, and standard hotels in Kathmandu. Extra accommodation can be reserved for you in Kathmandu before and after your tour at a discounted price. Nepal Visa: 7
Prior to departure you may need to obtain certain visas depending on your nationality. Specific information is given to you in your pre departure information. A visa may be obtained at point of entry into Kathmandu at a cost of approx USD$40 for 30 day multiple entry. Clothing Note: While there is no technical climbing equipment required you should take warm and appropriate leather walking boots, sleeping gear and clothing as the trek in the Manaslu region can get very cold in the evenings Donations: Please note you will be expected to make a donation when entering Monasteries, schools. Pre departure information: Further to the information provided in this itinerary, a pre departure information booklet will be sent to you. This Pre departure booklet provides you with information regarding visas, joining instructions, clothing/ equipment list, health requirements, vaccinations, extra hotel accommodation, training tips for fitness etc. Please read it carefully to make sure you are fully prepared. Important note: The enclosed notes are intended as a guide only, indicating a typical itinerary and series of activities and highlights. While every effort will be made to follow the route published on any departure and the distances travelled, driving time and available activities can vary for a number of reasons, in the event of political problems or natural difficulties which are beyond our control and prevent travelling to a particular area, Trekking Adventures reserve the right to substitute an alternative activity for that section of the trip. Overnight stops may vary on occasions from those suggested Please note that your leader has the authority to amend or cancel any part of the itinerary if it is deemed necessary due to safety concerns The leader will try to ensure that the trip runs according to plan, but please be prepared to be flexible if necessary. Remember if you do not undertake some training before hand and you are found not be fit enough for the trip, this may jeopardise you being able to remain on the trek.(please read the terms & conditions carefully regarding this). Price does not include: Entry Visa to Nepal, Drinks, tips, laundry and other items of personal nature Meals except where indicated in the itinerary personal gear, International airfares and Travel Insurance Single supplement 8
Optional extras before or afterward your trip: Chitwan Safari (3 days), Everest Mountain Flight (approx. 40 minutes) Annapurna Circuit Annapurna Base Camp Overland to Tibet (13 days). Mt Everest Base Camp Updated December 2013 Trekking Adventures (Formerly known as Trekking 4 Women), P O Box 5543, Palmerston North 4441, Phone: +64 6 356 7043, Fax: +64 6 35 67 044, Mobile: + 64 (027) 356 7043 Email:ann@trekkingadventures.co.nz, web: www.trekkingadventures.co.nz 9