Chulu West Peak Climbing

We will begin our tour with a drive to Besisahar, the headquarters of the Lamjung district which is located in the western part of Nepal. We will follow the Prithvi Highway up to Dumre from where we will head north towards Besisahar. The drive up to Dumre takes place along the banks of the Trishuli river. The Trishuli river originates from the valleys in the northeast part of Manang, our trek destination, and flows into the Narayani river.

After taking a 90-degree turn from Dumre, we will drive along the banks of the Marsyangdi River, which flows to our right in the opposite direction of our travel. We will see a large Hydropower Project in the Marsyangdi River as we approach the midpoint between Dumre and Besisahar. This is the second hydropower project we meet on the Marsyangdi river, with the first one encountered a few kilometers before we reached Dumre. We will stay at a guest house in Besisahar for the night.

We will begin our day with either a jeep ride or a bus ride from Besisahar. The blacktopped road ends after we drive for a short while from Besisahar. We will get introduced to the beautiful countryside with terraced fields and stone-topped houses. In between these villages lie wide stretches of forests that climb from the top of one hill to another as far as our eyes can see. The Marsyangdi river lies to our right and thunders down like a roaring lion.

There is a high suspension bridge over the Marsyangdi river just before we reach Chyamje. We will get off our couch and cross the suspension bridge. The village of Chyamje will provide us with some rest and tea. We will fill our bottles with hot water and then embark on a glorious trek towards the northern reaches of the Manang district.

The village of Tal welcomes us before we reach Dharapani. There is a beautiful waterfall near Tal where we can soak ourselves if we are interested. We will reach Dharapani after about five and a half hours of trek from Dharapani. We will rest at a guest house in Dharapani for the night.

We will begin our trek from Dharapani after breakfast. We will continue walking along the basin of the Marsyangdi River. We will see that the forest starts to get thinner and thinner as we move upwards. The western Himalayas of Nepal bears a close resemblance to its arid and surreal northern counterpart – the Tibetan Plateau. We will come across the villages of Danaque, Bagarchap, and Timing on our way to Chame.

We will reach a wide valley in the second half of the day. The valley is encircled by mountains like Manang, Tilicho, Pisang, Himchuli, and Chulu on all sides. At the heart of the valley lies the village of Chame, which is the largest settlement in the Manang district and also its administrative head. We will explore the village of Chame and rest at a guest house there.

We will embark on a gentle trek today towards Pisang through dense green forests at the banks of the Marsyangdi River which sweeps up like a carpet to the top of the surrounding hills and gets lost out of sight into adjacent valleys. We can encounter the national bird of Nepal – Danphe – at these heights during winter. If we are traveling in spring or summer the birds usually lay nest in the far northern reaches of the region which are situated at higher altitudes.

The little village of Barthang is situated on the ridge of the mountain and provides us with an opportunity to freshen up mid-trek. We will continue our journey further towards the village of Pisang after heading up from the Barthang. As we approach Pisang, the pyramid shape of the Pisang peak starts to get prominent. Pisang is a village located at the entrance of the Pisang valley. Pisang peak stands at the center of the valley. We will also get a spectacular view of other peaks like Chulu, Tilicho, Manang, and Annapurna from Pisang village.

We will begin our trek towards another trading center in the Manang district today – the namesake village of Manang. It is the second-largest village in Manang after Chame. The walk takes us through sporadic forests, grasslands, pastures, and arid mountainsides; the view changes so rapidly that we will be in awe of the possibilities of nature. If we are lucky then we can also encounter rare animals like the Himalayan blue sheep and the Himalayan tahr.

The Braka monastery lies on our way to Manang. It is the largest monastery in the district of Manang. Before we reach the Braka monastery we will see many Chortens, stupas, prayer flags, and mani walls on our way. Manang is a large village of closely tied houses. We will see traders and mule caravan jostling with pace along the thoroughfares of the village as we approach it. We will stay at a guest house in Manang for the night.

We will head towards the village of Yak Kharka today. The literal meaning of the name of the village is Yak Grazing pasture and you will see many yak grazing pastures in and around Yak Kharka. We will first come across the Jarshang river which we will cross via a wooden bridge.

We will now be moving further away from the Marsyangdi river because we will now turn full 180 degrees towards the Kali Gandaki river valley in the west, which we will enter via Thorong la Pass, before going full circle of the Annapurna Massif by entering the Annapurna Sanctuary from Tatopani, en route to Ghorepani.

Yak Kharka is a small village situated on the slope of the mountain. Herds of yaks will welcome us as we move nearer to the village. We can taste exotic Himalayan cheese and other dairy products in Yak Kharka. We will get a spectacular view of the twin peaks of the Chulu by the time we reach Yak Kharka. We will rest at a guest house in Yak Kharka for the night.

We will head towards the Chulu Base Camp today. We take the Thorong La Pass route from Yak Kharka at first. We will come across the small village of Ledar after walking from Yak Kharka. After walking for a short while from Ledar we will come at an intersection, from where the paths to Thorong La Pass and the Chulu Base Camp get separated.

We will take the path to the Chulu Base Camp which first goes over the ridge and then climbs down a little to show the majestic view of the Chulu Peaks. The Chulu Base Camp is located at a considerably high altitude compared to Yak Kharka and thus today’s part of the trek is one of the toughest, comparable with the ascent to Chulu west itself. We will either set camp or stay at a temporary teahouse in the Base Camp for the day.

We will spend the day at the Chulu West Base Camp. This will help us acclimatize for the further journey because we will be entering the altitude of above 5,000 m and 6,000 m in subsequent days. The base camp provides a wonderful view of the mountains like Chulu, Manang, Tilicho, Damodar, Nilgiri, Dhaulagiri, and Annapurna.

We will learn how to use equipment like ropes, ice axes, and harnesses and take part in a team-building exercises. We will also learn how to communicate and coordinate effectively in the mountain slope. We will spend the night at the Base Camp.

Chulu High Camp is situated at 600 m higher altitude than the Chulu West Base Camp. We will take a slow but slippery walk towards the high camp following breakfast. The magnificent view of the Gangapurna peak along with gigantic peaks like Himchuli, Annapurna, and Dhaulagiri is one to behold.

We will reach the Chulu West High camp after five hours of walking from Chulu West Base Camp. We will slide into our camps early because a strong and chilly wind blows in the High Camp after sunset.

We will wake much before sunrise today because our target is to summit the peak before the strong winds that blow in the mountains during mid-day. The climb must be done carefully because will need to lay ropes for the most part of the journey. Our team leaders and professional helpers will lead the way for us along the mountain slopes.

After we get to the top of the Chulu West Peak, we will see another prominent peak on the same ridge towards the east, which is the Chulu East Peak. There are numerous other peaks on the same ridge, which extends its way to the mountain in the Manang range. The Manang range goes further northwards to merge with the larger Damodar system of mountains. We will get a 360-degree view of some of the highest and most beautiful mountains in the world from the top of Chulu peak. We will get back to the Chulu West Base Camp after the climb.

We will head towards the Thorong Phedi today. This part of the trek takes us up and down the same route, we walked yesterday and the day before up to the intersection from where the roads to the Chulu West Base Camp and the Thorong Phedi separate. We will once again come across the village of Ledar, this being the third time we have encountered the village.

As we head towards Thorong Phedi we will see snow covering most of the ground, with occasional patches of grassland and pastures being seen. If we are lucky then we can catch a glimpse of the Himalayan Blue Sheep in these areas. Thorong  Phedi is situated at the base of the Thorong La Camp and will be our abode for the day.

This is the most challenging part of the trek after the ascent to Chulu West Peak. We will walk almost uphill from the base of Thorong Phedi along glacial slopes until we reach the pass. The pass is covered with prayer flags and signs rested there by travelers.

The Thorong La Pass connects the district of Mustang in the west with the district of Manang in the east. We will enter the Mustang district and head towards the village of Muktinath located on its eastern ridges. The temple of Muktinath and its famed 108 taps, bathing upon which is believed to wash away sins, is located in Muktinath.

We will drive along a road carved on the edge of high mountain cliffs today. Our target for the day is the village of Tatopani where lies the most famous natural hot water spring of Nepal. The road leading up to Tatopani provides one of the most thrilling driving experiences of your life.

We will rest at a guest house in Tatopani but before that, we will head towards the natural hot water spring and relax with a calming balm-like bath on the waters that are heated by the natural mountain system.

We will resume trek today and head towards the village of Ghorepani. Between Tatopani and Ghorepani are located sweeping green valleys of the Annapurna Sanctuary. We will walk across dense forests of rhododendron and cedar while being welcomed by chirping birds and shy animals who readily hide in bushes at the sight of humans.

We will reach the beautiful village of Ghorepani at the end of the trek. The village is settled by the local Gurung people and provides a great peek a boo into the history of the Gurung people. We will stay at a guest house in Ghorepani for the night. We also have the option of staying in homestays with the locals.

We will begin the day with a hike to the top of Poon Hill which is located near the village of Ghorepani. The top of Poon Hill provides a spectacular end-to-end view of mountains in the central and western parts of Nepal. It is ideal to reach Poon Hill before sunrise because the sight of the sun glistening against peaks like Machhapuchhre, Annapurna, Dhaulagiri, HImchuli, etc. is one to behold for a lifetime.

We will get back to our hotel after enjoying the early morning view from Poon Hill. We will resume our trek after breakfast and head towards Nayapul, which is situated at the foot of the mountain. We will catch a bus from Nayapul and will be Pokhara bound with a three hour ride. We will rest at a hotel in Pokhara for the night.

We will go full circle of the Annapurna Massif, including the adventurous climb of Chulu West Peak today. We will board a tourist bus from Pokhara. Our trip will come back to square one as we reach Dumre.

We will drive back along the same route we took earlier from Kathmandu on the Prithvi Highway now. The bus will drop us at Kathmandu during mid-day. Our trip ends after you check back into your hotel.