Nar Phu Valley Trek

After early morning breakfast, we begin our journey with a scenic drive from Kathmandu for about 6-7 hours (190 Km) to Besisahar. The local bus out of the valley follows the picturesque Trishuli River. As the drive progresses, you can witness beautiful scenery – terraced fields, traditional villages, and views of mountains, including Ganesh and Manaslu peaks.

Eventually, we leave the main highway that heads to Pokhara and drives north to Besisahar. After Besisahar, we continue our drive through paddy fields and reach Jagat – a Tibetan-style village. 

Overnight stay at a Lodge.

After registering our restricted area permits at the police check post at Koto, we travel along the banks of Soti Khola through wonderful pine forests, past several suspension bridges and cascading waterfalls, ultimately reaching Dharamshala in about five hours.

From Dharamshala onwards, the woods become thinner, and the vistas get wider. We continue our trek for about one and a half hours through the forest, ascending steeply to Meta village on the Tibetan Plateau. The views of Annapurna II and Lamjung Himal look great from here.

Highest altitude: 3560/11680ft

Trek Distance:

Trek Duration: 7/8hrs

The path ascends and descends frequently, and by crossing a suspension bridge, you will reach Chyaku. As you continue to climb, you will start to get glorious views of Annapurna before entering Kyang. Kyang provides spectacular views of Pisang Peak and Annapurna II. You will then pass the Phu Khola on a rocky trail leaving behind submarine rocks and perhaps a few campsites before reaching Phu gate – the entry point of Phu Village.  

Nar and Phu villages are famous for their distinct blue sheep, unique culture, and religious practices. While we are at Phu Village, we will not forget to visit Tashi Lhakhang Monastery. Phu Village also provides splendid views of several Himalayan ranges – including Himlung Himal. 

Highest altitude: 4250m

Trek Distance:

Trek Duration: 7-8hrs

We leave Phu Gaon and head to Nar village, crossing two high passes – Phu Pass (5,050m) and Nar Pass (5,400m). The trek passes through many suspension bridges over streams, especially the Mahendra Pul. The trail provides you an opportunity to appreciate Pisang Peaks and several others. 

Highest altitude: 4250m/13944ft

Trek Distance:

Trek Duration:6/7hrs

We will be acclimatizing at Nar for a day. It is a perfect time to rest and explore the Nar village, its people, traditions, and culture. Nar village has several monasteries and Chortens. You will probably be surprised to know that at least one child from each family at Nar studies Buddhism. 

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From Nar, we ascend through the lateral moraine of Temdenzon Khola on a pleasant path that passes through yak pastures while providing stunning views of the west ridge of Pisang Peak. Then, the trek will take you to Jhombu Kharka, also known as Kang la Phedi – the bottom of Kang La pass. 

From Kang La Phedi, we will slowly ascend to Kang La Pass. The path is steep, but it’s not too difficult. We estimate that it will take about 2 hours to cross the pass. From Kang La Pass pass, you will get beautiful views of the Annapurna II, Gangapurna, and Tilicho Peak. Then, we will trek for about three more hours to reach Ngawal Village, where we will stay for the night. 

Highest altitude:5322m/17460ft

Trek Distance:

Trek Duration:7/8hrs

We leave Ngwal and head to Manang along the banks of the Marsyangdi River. As you move forward, you will pass through several forests and villages like Braga and Paugh while enjoying the views of the Tilicho Peak and Annapurna ranges. As we reach Mungli, our path rejoins the standard Annapurna trails. We trek forward till we reach Manang, our destination for this day. 

Highest altitude:3660m/12008ft

Trek Distance:

Trek Duration:4-5hrs

From Manang, we cross a stream and reach Tenki village, then head out of Marshyangdi Valley northwest to Jar Sang Khola Valley. The trail ascends slowly as we pass a few pastures and juniper trees to reach a small village called Gunsan. The houses in Gunsan are made of flat mud roofs. The villagers raise yaks and horses, so you might see yaks and horses grazing in the nearby pastures. After crossing a small river on a wooden bridge, we make our way up the spectacular valleys to an open, peaceful meadow known as Yak Kharka.

Highest altitude: 4110m/13484ft

Trek Distance:

Trek Duration:3-4hrs

Today, we head to the foot of Thorong La pass – Thorong Phedi. From Yak Kharka, you will climb up to a ridge, then head down and cross the Marsyangdi river on a wooden bridge. After continuing on the mountain path, we follow a narrow trail across a slope and descend to Thorough Phedi.

Highest altitude: 4600m/15092ft

Trek Duration: 3-4hours

Today, we will cross Thorong La Pass, one of the world’s highest passes and the highest point of this trek. We push ourselves through the icy air, steep climb, and high altitude, but the views from the Thorong La Pass are worth it. Ahead of you, you will see a panorama of majestic Himalayan peaks extending northwards into Tibet. At the back, you can see several  Annapurna ranges. We will then descend to Muktinath. The descent to Muktinath is pretty steep and will take between 3 to 4 hours.

Muktinath is a sacred place for Hindus and Buddhists. The Buddhists call it -Chumig Gyatsa -in Tibetan, it means “Hundred Waters.” Sure enough, Muktinath temple premises host 108 water sprouts, in addition to an eternal flame. 

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We head down first to Ekle Bhatti Village and then to Jharkot and Khingar villages, where there are a few beautiful monasteries that you can explore. We will walk along the banks of the Kali Gandaki river past Kagbeni to reach Jomsom. The view of Dhaulagiri and Nilgiri is splendid throughout the trail.

From Jomsom, we catch a local bus to Tatopani. This rough bus ride passes by some of the deepest gorges in the world and will take you from the arid high-elevation terrain to the lowlands with lush jungles and farmlands. 

You will also see spectacular views of the Kali Gandaki River, separating Annapurna – the world’s 10th-highest peak, from Dhaulagiri – the seventh-highest. Tatopani is famous for its natural hot spring. You can take a dip in the nearby hot springs to relax your active muscles.

Early in the morning, from Tatopani, we take a seven-hour bus or jeep ride to Pokhara, passing Beni Bazaar. Pokhara is the tourist capital of Nepal. Here, you can enjoy yourself with all the niceties this city offers. Pokhara has so much to offer.

Today we start the day early and depart on a tourist bus to Kathmandu. The 200 km route first follows the Marsyangdi River banks and then the Trishuli River while offering enticing views of the landscape, traditional villages, and terraced farms. The bus makes a final climb, and you will find yourself in Kathmandu, where your trek started.

Enjoy the night life and prepare your day for tomorrow.