THE BEST OF LANGTANG

Arrive at Kathmandu Airport. Upon arrival, met by representative and transferred to the hotel. At the hotel, the guests will be welcomed with a welcome drink and assigned to their rooms.

18:00 Hrs: A short briefing about the tour will be carried out at the hotel lobby. Later board the waiting vehicle and proceed for a welcome dinner at typical Nepali Restaurant.

Overnight at the Hotel

After a leisurely breakfast, board the waiting vehicle and drive towards Syabru Besi which takes around 5 ½ to 6 hrs. Hot lunch break will be arranged at a convenient spot on the drive en route.

Upon arrival at Syabru Besi, we check in to the lodge for the night.

Rest of the day is free to explore.

Dinner and overnight at the lodge in Syabru Besi

Today's trail starts meandering through the cool deciduous forests of oak and maple that cover the lower sections of the valley and climbs through massive stands of spruce, fir and blue pine. Towering walls close in and your paths will skirt precipitous drops, which fall into a silt-laden river below. It's a classic transition from temperate lowland forest to high-altitude Himalayan valley.

Descend through the village of Syabru and continue down the ridge until you come to a trail to the east that drops sharply off the ridge and through a dense forest. Cross a bridge (1960m) over a tributary of the Langtang Khola and then climb for a short distance. The trail continues level for a ways before descending, still in forest, to the Langtang Khola. The trail follows the south bank of the river through a deep gorge with no views of the mountains, crossing another tributary in about an hour. In another hour from this tributary, cross yet another bridge (2050m) to the north bank of the Langtang Khola. The trail begins climbing up from the river at this point and in an hour, shortly after the trail levels off; you join the old Langtang trail (2380m) from Sherpa Gaon and Syabru bensi.

Another hour from this trail junction brings you to the Lama Hotel in the village of Chongong (2400m). Like all of Langtang's guest houses. At this point you start to become aware of the firm control the government exercises over the parks - with results that are often good, but sometimes questionable. On one hand, there are strict controls on tree-felling, and the park has remained mercifully free from the satellite dishes that dominate some over-trekked parts of Nepal.

Dinner and overnight at Lodge in Lama Hotel                              Trek duration: 5 ½ to 6 hrs

A day further on the forest peters out and you start getting the first tantalizing glimpses of snow-capped peaks. From the Lama Hotel the trail climbs steadily for an hours on the trail crosses to the north bank of the river and climbs steeply for an hour up through the Langtang gorge before the ascent eases and the valley widens out into an area of fir and rhododendron. Pass the Ghumna Chowk which has one hotel. Climb a short steep hill from the river path and soon arrive at Ghoretabela (3010m). At times the trail becomes very steep but only for short distances. Gradually the air becomes thinner and the climate colder. At Ghoretabela (3010m) the trail leaves the forest and a spectacular view of Langtang Lirung (7246m appears. Ghoretabela was once a Tibetan resettlement camp but is now n army post. There are few good lodges where we'll stop for hot lunch.

After Lunch, we continue up the valley, leaving the forests behind, the trail ascends steadily up to Langtang village, passing below a monastery about 30min beforehand. Langtang is an interesting Tibetan-style village with stone- walls enclosing houses and fields where you just might see your first yaks. The Langtang National Park headquarters is also located here.

After Langtang, you can see a community of typical flat-roofed Tibetan houses and the valley flattens and broadens into open pasture. This is perfect for raising yaks, and you'll see these imposing beasts everywhere.

Upon arrival at Langtang, we check in to one of the lodges for the night.

Rest of the day is free

Dinner and overnight at the lodge in Langtang                            Trek duration: 5 ½ to 6 hrs

Set out through the village and after a short climb arrive at a Chorten. From this point there is an amazingly long Mani stone wall which is truly a memorable sight. Continue along a gently sloping path atop terraced hills and after passing two villages the valley widens and becomes U – shaped. The trail enters a level, dry riverbed and after crossing the flow from the Lirung Glacier, visible on the left side are the Kim shun (6745m) and Yansa Tsenji (6543m). Cross an old lateral moraine and arrive at Kyanjin Gompa. Out here there is a Government rest house, cheese factory and a monastery. From Kyanjin, there are 180 degree views of the mountains at eye to eye level which is simply breathtaking.

PM: You have the option to rest amidst the mountain scenery or climb the northern flank of the Kyanjin RI (4773 m). From the top you can have a bird eye view of the valley below and the views of Langtang Lirung (7,245m) and the Ganesh Himal to the west and the Ganja la Himal to the south and a view of the pass crossing which leads to Helambu.

Dinner and overnight at the Lodge in Kyanjing Gompa

Trek duration 3 ½ to 4 Hrs.

Rest day for acclimatization, or have the option to trek to either to the foot of the Langtang Lirung glacier or to Langshisa glacier.

Full day excursion for Kyanjin Gompa / Langshisa Glacier / Kyanjin Gompa with packed lunch: From Kyanjin Gompa enter a wide alluvial delta. Cut across the gently undulating surface and cross a stream to arrive at an airstrip from which the entire outline of the Langtang Lirung can be appreciated. Pass the airstrip and follow the river as Langshisa RI (6427m) appears at the far end of the valley while the form of Gangchempo on the opposite bank is transformed. Climb the rocky terraced hills from the river path and arrive at the stone huts of Jathang. Beyond Jathang, descend once more to the dry river bed an then return immediately to the terraced hills to see the terminal moraine of the Shalbachum Glacier pushing into the valley. Just before this moraine is Nubamatang with its five stone huts.

Cut across the grassy fields and climb the terminal moraines diagonally for a grand vista – Directly ahead in the wide mountain valley are Pemathang Karpo RI (6830m), Triangle and Pemathang ri. (6842m), to the right is Langshisa ri. Descend to Langshisa Kharka (4125m) for views of Kanshurum (6078m) and Urkinmang (6151m) at the far reaches of the Langshisa Glacier.After lunch, return back to Kyanjing Gompa

Dinner and overnight the Lodge

Since you'll be acclimatized and will be descending, you should be able to reach Bamboo in a day's walk (approx. 6 ½ to 7 hrs) from Kyanjin Gompa.

Dinner and overnight at the Lodge

After breakfast, trek towards Thulo Syabru. The trek begins with a pleasant morning walk through the tropical forest and with a descent on an undulating trail, retracing our step on the main trail to Syabru Besi following on the high side bank of Langtang Khola (river) till you arrive at the teashops just at the foothills. Descend further to the river, cross on a wooden bridge then start to climb till the trail junction. From here take left side trail, the trail undulates for some time and slowly begins to ascend and traverse across steep, sometime rough country. It is a delightful trail surrounded by beauty- exactly what trekking is about, and in the morning it is pleasantly shaded.  The trail continues to climb to a small lonely tea shop at the ridge, where one can make a brief stop before proceeding to Thulo Syabru. The trail traversesfor sometime, from here you can also have the glimpse of line of houses of Thulo Syabru which sits atop a prominent ridge far above. Descend down to the bridge cross over it then climb up to the village. The climb is through the scattered settlement, terraced farm lands and ultimately to a cluster of houses at Thulo Syabru at an elevation of 2200 m.

Once you leave behind the pleasant village of Syabru, climb past the gompa, school and army post, and switchback up the steep hill above the village. There are a few houses and potato fields’ steep trail and pleasant teashops in the settlement of Mukharka at 3000m.

Dinner and Overnight at Lodge

After breakfast, The trail continues less steeply, now mostly in forests, past an old chorten to the top of the ridge and two shoddy tea shops at 3000m. Coming out of the forest, the trail climbs a bit more before reaching the top of the ridge. There is a view of Dhunche far below in the valley. The trail continues across the head of a second valley, then reaches a final ridge at 3260m. The small Buddhist monastery of Sing Gompa is about 100m along the trail to the left. This is the main attraction at Chandan Bari, elevation 3250m. Because you'll be crossing a 4610m pass, it is essential that you spend the rest of the day acclimatizing to the high elevation. From Chandanbari, hike down to Dhunche which will be around 3 hours.

Dinner and overnight at the Lodge in Dhunche.

Drive the same way back to Kathmandu.

REST OF THE DAY ON OWN

Overnight at the Hotel

REST OF THE DAY ON OWN. (Reporting time is at least 3 hrs before flight time)