Today we head out early, as we have a long day ahead of us. Just past the checkpost, we cross the river leading to the Nar Phu valleys and a new world will open in front of us. Coming from the relatively well-developed villages of the Annapurna Circuit, we can truly feel that this valley has not been as frequently visited.

The route takes us through some beautiful woods and past several small shelters (caves) and a pilgrims’ ‘Dharmasala’. As we emerge out of a narrow canyon, the trail actually passes under a wide waterfall just before the Dharmasala, from which point the woods become thinner and the vistas wider. The last stretch into Meta takes us up a steep hill from where we get amazing views of some of the giant snowy peaks in the area. Meta lies on a big open plain and consists of a few lodges, which are simple but clean and offer you a good hearty meal.

Walking time: Approx. 6-7 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Trekking to Meta © Mark Beaustead

Trekking out of Meta, we start to see some of the unique, colorful Chortens Nar and Phu are famous for. The trail meanders along the ridge with a good view of the magnificent Nar Phedi monastery, where we will stay in a few days’ time. After another 1 ½ hours hiking through scenic canyonlands and gorges, we reach the “leaning tower of Pisa” monolith, which guards the steep trail up to Phu. From here we get our first view of the three villages as well as the old “Dzong” and the remains of two forts, all now in ruins, but impressively situated atop the flatlands before the village. Just before we cross the bridge into Phu, a line of wonderful Chortens color the landscape and lead into this village, which was built reminds of an amphitheater. Here we truly step back in time!

Once we have settled down in a comfortable lodge, had a warm drink and stretched our tired bones, we go for a gentle and short walk up to the famous Tashi Lhakhang Gompa. Here we can pay our respects to Lama Karma Sonam Rimpoche, a “trulku”, who came to Nepal with HH the Dalai Lama back in 1959.

Walking time: Approx. 6-7 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Phu Village © Suman Thapa

Due to the relatively high altitude, we will spend a day in Phu, where we can rest, explore the tiny alleyways and get to know the life in Phu, or do a longer hike up to Himlung Himal base camp. Phu itself is an incredibly interesting village, and a day is well spent sitting with the villagers as they spin their yak and sheep wool and chat, pound mustard seeds into a paste for oil, or involve themselves in the countless activities that take up a day in Tibetan villages. For photographers, the light is spectacular, and the skies a deep blue, and we may even see some blue sheep on the surrounding hillsides.

Those with lots of energy can go for a hike through a a gorgeous glacial valley leading to Himlung Himal base camp, a 7,125m peak recently opened for climbing. On the trail up you will see endless herds of blue sheep and it is incredible to watch them skillfully clambering up the steep cliffs of the surrounding hills.

If we are lucky, we get to meet an expedition at base camp and enjoy a cup of tea with them. The return trip takes about four to five hours and once you get back to Phu, you will certainly agree that this is an acclimatisation day well spent! Others, who don’t feel like walking so far can explore the surrounding area of Phu and walk west up past the village towards the Chortens on the hillside. This spot provides some incredible vistas and views down over the village and the surrounding fields, forts, valleys and peaks. You will truly be enchanted by this area!

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Enjoying the view above Phu © Sue Beaumont

Today starts with a descent as we retrace our steps back towards Meta. Just before we reach the village, we take a right towards the monastery of Nar Phedi. Make sure you have your cameras handy when we cross a bridge over a deep, contoured and narrow gorge. It is worthwhile to spend some time on the bridge to take pictures and observe the raging river underneath.

As Nar Phedi only consists of the monastery, this will be our accommodation for the night. The rooms are neat and clean and the nuns of the monastery are extremely welcoming. We can join them in the kitchen, have a chat to find out more about their lives in this remote valley and watch them prepare our dinner on a modest fireplace. At 5pm they usually do a ‘Puja’ (Tibetan blessing) and they are very happy for us to come and join them. There is also a small donation box in the monastery where you can leave a contribution for the maintenance of this beautiful and friendly place.

Walking time: Approx. 4-5 hours

Accommodation: Monastery Guesthouse
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Bridge to Nar Phedi © Billi Bierling

Today is a very gentle day. We climb out of Nar Phedi and follow a windy path up a hill that leads us to Nar. We reach the Nar gate at the top and pass by yet another line of wonderfully painted, bamboo-topped Chortens marking our way into the ancient village. We arrive early, so will have some lunch in the sun before doing some exploring around the village and surrounding areas.

Even though Nar is not far from the main Annapurna trail, it feels centuries away. It is rarely visited by trekkers and is about as picturesque as they come. Nar is bit more social and lively than Phu, and during the day you may find the village ‘square’ teeming with chatting women with their back-strap looms weaving wool fabric for rugs and blankets. Each family in Nar seems to have at least one son or daughter in a gompa, and many live at home or visit frequently, so there is the resonating sound of cymbals, chanting and drums echoing throughout the village.

With a few new teahouses built on the outskirts of Nar, we will stay in a comfortable lodge with an extensive menu. Good and plenty of food is particularly important tonight as we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.

Walking time: Approx 3-4 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

The big chorten before Nar © Mark Beaumont

We get up before sunrise, put on our headtorches and head out through the still sleeping village towards the Kang La pass that will take us back to the popular Annapurna Circuit. It is not a difficult pass, however, it can be a long day as we will certainly start to feel the altitude here. Once on top of the pass you will have passed the 5,000m-mark and can enjoy an amazing view over Annapurna II, Gangapurna, Tilicho Peak. The trail down starts off pretty steep but if you enjoy scree running you will certainly have a lot of fun on the descent! After resting our sore knees and shaky legs, we lunch on a plateau overlooking the peak, and then continue to contour to the left towards Ngawal. Ngawal, on the upper Pisang route of the Annapurna Circuit is certainly very different from the ancient villages we visited over the past few days and we are stepping forward in time again. The lodges are big, the menus much more comprehensive and there will be wifi and phone signals in most of the lodges.

Walking time: Approx. 7-8 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

View from Kang-La towards the south Annapurna range © Suman Thapa

Descending past Manang’s airstrip at Hongde, we come to a level area from where the north-east face of Annapurna III rises majestically above us. From the wide plains of the Sabje Khola Valley, Annapurna IV [7525m] also becomes visible. Just beyond this point we cross the considerably reduced flow of the Marsyangdi Khola via a wooden bridge to the tiny village of Mungji. Cultivated fields appear on both sides of the path and off to the right, below a craggy mountain, we can see the village of Bryaga with its splendid monastery, it is well worth a visit and there is plenty of time for this today. Large chortens and mani walls abound and the tall peaks of the Himalaya spread out before us – Annapurna II, Annapurna III, Annapurna IV, Gangapurna [7455m] and, to the rear, Tilicho Peak [7134m]. After a short steep climb we reach Manang which is a surprisingly large village for this remote mountain region.

After lunch, at Manang we continue our on the trail bound for the stunning Tilicho Lake. From Manang we head out through the western gates and then follow the path down to the river. After crossing the Khangsar Khola on the bridge below Khangsar we ascend the slope to the village, a village still in the old Tibetan style and which is also known as the ‘last village of Nepal’.

Walking time: Approx. 6-7 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Khangsar Village © Evan Galbraith

This morning we continue on from Khangsar on a large, recently built path past a Gompa (monastery) and on up towards a high ridge. We reach an intersection of the new trail and the old trail – and we take the new trail and climb to a high crest before descending on switch backs carved out through the scree slopes. We reach a side valley and, crossing the little stream at the bottom, we come to a building known as Tilicho Base Camp.

Walking time: Approx 5-6 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Tilicho Peak view © Mark Beaumont

We get an early start this morning as we have a great but long day hike ahead of us. It is about 3-4 hours to the Tilicho Lake, a stunning body of bright turquoise water, claimed to be the highest lake in the world. We are hiking through the high alpine landscape, with plenty of bare rock and snow and it is so incredible to come apon the vibrant colour of the lake in this less than colourful landscape! How long we spend at the lake is determined by how long it took us to walk there and our energy levels; we don’t want to leave it too late to return to Khangsar.

Walking time: Approx. 7-8 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Tilicho Lake © Evan Galbraith

This morning we climb out of Khangsar and take a small trail leading around the side of the hills going north. We cross the main river and climb up to Yak Kharkha, where we have lunch.

Leaving Yak Kharkha, we climb gradually to a ridge before descending to the headwaters of the Marsyangdi and crossing via a covered wooden bridge. After a short ascent up the mountain path on the right bank, we follow a narrow trail across an unstable scree slope and then descend to Thorung Phedi and a free afternoon to either hike up to the lodge at High Camp for some acclimatization, or an afternoon of reading and chatting with other trekkers in the sunny, all-glass dining area of the lodge.

Walking time: Approx. 6-7 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Happy trekkers © Mark Beaumont

Up early for the four hour walk to the top of the Thorung La at 5400m, where we are treated with spectacular views over Mustang and the surrounding peaks. The descent is almost as demanding as the ascent to the top of the pass, so a cup of chai and a snack at the local tea house at Chabarbu, at the bottom of the descent, is a required stop. And on to lower Mustang, which we have actually reached just after the pass, and the serene temple complex of Muktinath.

Muktinath is an important pilgrimage site for Buddhists and Hindus situated in a tranquil grove of trees, and contains a wall of 108 waterspouts in the shape of cows heads spouting sacred water, the Jwala Mai temple with a perpetual spouting flame and the pagoda-styled Vishnu Mandir, all of which make up the auspicious combination of earth, fire and water. We bed down for the night, finally, at the Royal Mustang Lodge, with a great dining area and hot showers.

Walking time: Approx 9-10 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Thorung La (pass) © Evan Galbraith

Today you will trek down to Jomsom via Lupra village (2790) where there is a Bonpo Monastery. While we have to go up the mountain again for a way in order to reach the trail, it is a great route that trekkers on the Annapurna circuit don’t normally use, so we will be far away from any crowds and the jeep trail to Jharkot and Muktinath.

Bonpo is an ancient pre-buddhist religion not represented by many monasteries these days, so it is a rare and special chance to learn about this ancient animist religion, while taking a stunning alternate route back to Jomsom. We reach Jomsom by mid afternoon with plenty of time to have a shower and relax before we celebrate the end of our trek in style in the evening.

Walking time: Approx. 6 hours

Accommodation: Tea House
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Dhaulagiri-and-Tukuche Peaks © Arun Karki

We will catch a morning flight to Pokhara, and then continue on to Kathmandu. The mountain views are tremendous en route.

Accommodation: None
Meals included: Breakfast

Boarding Jomsom Airport © Dan Barham