The Manaslu Circuit Trek over the Larky La Pass is one of Nepal’s best-kept secrets.  Following remote trails which are little touched by the modern world and which see relatively few visitors throughout the year, it offers beautiful views of the Himalayan range, with the magnificent Manaslu (8163m), the eighth highest mountain in the world almost in the palm of your hand.

The trek begins in a small stone-paved village called Arkhet Bazar on the banks of the river Budhi Gandhaki and continues following the river upstream, through small villages and settlements of different Himalayan ethnic groups, from Brahmin, Chhetri, Tamang, Magar, Gurung, and Tibetan. Just as diverse as the ethnic population, so too the scenery varies from the lush, low elevation valleys growing rice and bananas, inhabited predominantly by the Hindu ethnic groups of Indo-Aryan origin, through rhododendron and bamboo forests, where you begin to encounter communities of Tibeto-Burmese origin who practice Hinduism, Buddhism or a mixture of both.

Heading northwards from the starting point, the Budhi Gandhaki Valley opens up to reveal delightful alpine meadows, lush rhododendron, and bamboo jungle and small, typical Tibetan villages in the Nubri Valley, which cluster beneath Manaslu’s sweeping North Face. The trek passes small villages with rows of prayer wheels and spectacular mani stones and prayer flags, which mark the passes and religiously important sites. After a few days walk, the trail reaches Samagaon, the largest and most important village in the region. From there we head west and cross the Larky La Pass at 5,100m, one of the most dramatic pass crossings in the Himalayas. We walk along a classic but tough trail linking the Buri Gandaki with the Marsyangdi Valley, where we reach the old salt routes, which still operate as the main trading routes between the Tibetan plateau and little settlements on Nepal’s side of the great mountain range.