Manaslu Circuit
Twelve days around the world's eighth-highest mountain, over the Larkya La and down through the Annapurna foothills.
- Region
- Manaslu Conservation Area, Nepal
- Days
- 12
- High point
- 16,929 ft
- Entries
- 13
In September 2025 I walked the Manaslu Circuit in Nepal: a teahouse trek around the eighth-highest mountain in the world, with a private guide and a porter, on roughly the same schedule as a small group of South Africans. It started with a jeep ride into the Budhi Gandaki gorge, climbed through jungle, rice terraces and Tibetan Buddhist villages, crossed the Larkya La in snow, and came down into the Annapurna region in mud.
I wrote most of it on the trail, on bad wifi, at the end of long days. The posts are lightly edited from those notes, with the GPS tracks and heart-rate data from my watch alongside.
On the trail
- Day 01Kathmandu to Machha KholaSeven hours of jeep jolts along the Budhi Gandaki set the tone for the trail ahead.2025-09-22
- Day 02Through Kak and High WaterMule trains, landslides, and one waterfall that nearly washed me into the Budhi Gandaki.2025-09-23
- Day 03The Final Mile Is Always the WorstDeng in sight, but an hour of stairs, sweat, and curses between me and the tea house.2025-09-24
- Day 04Stairs to SomewhereFrom Tibetan stupas to organic apple farms, a grueling climb through the high jungle toward Namrung.2025-09-25
- Day 05Goodbye to the ForestsHeat, helicopters, and the bittersweet climb into Shyala—the last green chapter before the alpine world.2025-09-26
- Day 06The Day the River Ate the BridgesIcy crossings, improvised bridges, alpine valleys and saying goodbye to the last suspension bridges2025-09-27
- Day 07Snickers, Showers, and Clouds over ManasluA monastery full of silk, a lake fed by glaciers, and what may be the last perfect shower of the trek.2025-09-28
- Day 08Between Yaks and PlywoodThe climb into Samdo and Dharamsala: smooth trails, thin air, and the most basic lodgings of the trek.2025-09-29
- Day 10Five Minutes on Top of the WorldFrom ankle twists and crane flies to emotional mountain reveals and a brutal crossing of the Larke Pass.2025-10-01
- Day 11From Ice to MudLeaving Bhimtang’s snow and cold for forests, ankle-deep trails, and the dirtiest room of the trek.2025-10-02
- Day 12The Last Dal BhatFour kilometers of mud, a hundred waterfalls, a final farewell to my porter, and a seven-hour drive to Kathmandu.2025-10-03