Lo Manthang and Upper Mustang Trek

Trek to Upper Mustang in Nepal.

Upper Mustang is located north of Mt. Annapurna and at an average altitude of 4,000m. It is geologically and culturally part of the Tibetan plateau which lies in Nepal. The valleys are arid and dry with colourful rock formations containing many cave dwellings high up in the cliffs. The first trekking parties were allowed into Upper Mustang in 1992 and there are still very few people visiting Upper Mustang, as a result it is one of the few places left where one can see undisturbed Tibetan culture. It allows limited numbers of trekkers each year in order to protect and conserve the local Tibetan tradition and the fragile environment.

We did this trek in March, 2014 just after experiencing the world's awesome walk "The Annapurna Circuit" along Manang valley with my four Nepalese friends Anup Kc, Bijay Limbu, Sailesh Dahal and Sujin Gwatchha. After crossing huge Mountain pass Thorong La, we arrived and spent our night at Muktinath. Next day we headed towards Kagbeni and finally towards Upper Mustang. This was one of the best historical remote trek ever. The trek unsealed the once Forbidden Kingdom of Mustang, tucked away from the rest of the world.

The Upper Mustang lies just north of the main Himalayan range of Nepal. Mustang, a land where the soul of the man is still considered to be as real as the feet he walks on: a land said to be “barren as a dead deer” but where beauty and happiness abound is spite of hardship, was a part of the Tibetan Kingdom of Gungthang until 1830’s. The wall city of Lo Manthang, unofficial capital of Mustang still remains a kingdom within a kingdom. The early history to Lo Manthang is embellished in myth and legend rather than the recorded fact. Mustang has maintained its status as a separate principality until 1951.

The trek into this fabled forbidden kingdom of vast, arid valleys, eroded canyons, ochre valley, yak caravans, colorful-painted mud brick houses on the back dropped of majestic immaculate mountain of Nilgiri, Tukche, Annapurna and Dhaulagiri had brilliantly made our medieval walled kingdom Mustang trek a very special one.


Foreigners have to pay USD 500 per person for the first 10 days and USD 50 per head for each extra days. 
For Nepalese, its free. Only they have to pay Rs. 500/head while getting inside the Jhong Cave.

We moved along the Kali Gandaki river, which has formed the world's deepest gorge there.

We further traveled beyond Lo Manthang to Chhosar Village to see the Jhong cave which is a cave complex 5 stories high with 42 rooms inside. The cave was almost 2500 years old and has been inhabited on and off.

One can see so many such caves over there and still many of them have not been explored yet.