Nar Phu Valley Trek

As soon as you arrive at the Kathmandu Airport, the representative of Orbit Alpine Adventure receives you. Then, he or she takes you to the hotel which is reserved for your accommodation. After becoming fresh, you can take a short stroll around the tourist centre, Thamel and collect some trekking gears. In the evening, the agency invites you to a cultural restaurant for a welcome dinner as a part of hospitality. Then, the trekking guide gives you all the information about Nar Phu Valley trekking itinerary.

After breakfast, the journey to the gateway to Nar Phu Valley trekking starts in a private jeep from the hotel you have stayed. First of all, you drive along the Prithvi Highway up to Dumre, a town nearby beautiful Bandipur. Then, you follow the Dumre Beshisahar Road that is about 43 kilometres long. From Beshisahar, you drive along the challenging off-road until you reach Koto by enjoying the incredible scenery.

Today, you are going to enter in to the hidden valley of Nar Phu Khola region by leaving Annapurna Circuit region. As Koto is the gateway to Nar Phu Valley restricted area trekking, you need to get your special permit checked here. Then, tou cross the bridge over the Marsyangdi River and reach a relatively unique landscapes to the Annapurna trekking region. The steep trail takes you along some dense woodlands, small caves used for shelter during rainfall and many travellers’ inns. Walking past a deep narrow gorge, you reach the region that is less dense forests but wonderful Himalayan view. 

Moving ahead through the rocky trail, you come to sight the wonderful chortens of Nar and Phu villages. These Bhotia villages are famous the Tibetan Buddhist shrines and cultural practices distinct from rest of the other parts of the Himalayas. You continue the trekking by enjoying the Nar Phedi Monastery, which is a stopover during the trek to Nar Phu Khola Valley. Then, you reach Phu Village by enjoying the old dzongs and their debris including the three prominent Bhotia Villages of the Nyeshang Valley. The Tibetan Buddhist chortens decorated with the colourful prayer flags welcome you into the classic village after you go across a bridge.

Today is the acclimatization day around Phu Village, which is popular for its unspoiled nature and typical culture resembling with that of Tibetan Plateau. Take enough rest until late in the morning as you have no hustling bustling schedule today. Most of the people here are found spinning the yak and sheep wool for making their livelihood. They share their day-to-day activities with one another to make their social bond stronger. You can take a short stroll to an ancient shrine, Tashi Lhakhang Monastery, which is an important cultural milestone of this region. There, you can meet Lama Karma Sonam Rinpoche who came to Nepal with Dalai Lama in 1959 after Tibet conflict.

You can talk to the people who speak a different dialect called ‘Nar Phu’ or ‘Narpa’ to know more about their culture and tradition. You can also hear the interesting anecdotes from them to enrich your Nar Phu Valley trekking experience. If you love a little challenge, you can hike to the base camp of Himlung Himal (7,125m) for amazing vistas of the entire Nar Phu Valley and the surrounding mountains. Himlung Himal is recently opened for the climbers who love to experience peak climbing in Nepal. 

Today, after breakfast, you trek down towards Nar Phedi, which is famous for a Tibetan Buddhist Gompa. Do you remember that you saw it day before while walking to Phu Village? After walking for about six hours along the rugged trail showing amazing vistas, you reach the gompa. The Gompa provides food and accommodation services to the trekkers reaching this region.

The monks and nuns themselves prepare food items to welcome the guests and the guests leave certain amount in the donation box. The amount collected from the national and international tourists is spent on maintenance of the monastery and other provisions. The regular worshipping session around 5:00 pm is the unique experience to do while in this gompa. You really feel peace of mind that you forget the hardships you faced during the trekking hours.

You begin the journey following the windy path that goes along the colourfully painted chortens and mani walls as if welcoming the guests. Although Nar Phu Valley is not much far from Annapurna Circuit trekking, very limited trekkers visit this region. It is because of the lack of the publicity by the concerned authority. Even though in the same valley, Nar Village seems more engaging than Phu Village. People here are conscious about the latest hot and happenings around the world. They watch news and views even while spinning yak and sheep wool. There are some teahouses around this village serving varieties of food items, specially the local cuisines.

Actually, Nar Village acclimatization day is kept for preparing you to cross Kang La Pass (5,306m) that connects this valley with Manang. But you are not going to cross this challenging pass of Nar Phu Valley trekking package. So, you will be exploring the natural and cultural wonders of this mystic village located in the trans-Himalayan region. Hiking a little high altitude place from here, you can have a mesmerizing sight of Chulu East, Pisang Peak and Kang Guru. These are some of the trekking peaks of Nepal, which are the attractions for the international enthusiastic travellers.

Similarly, you can talk with the local people of this village to learn more about their unique dialect and its in-depth meaning. They share the interesting myths hidden behind their typical culture and tradition. Although they may not be able to speak in other languages properly, they are kind-hearted and helpful to others. They may be far from the modern means and technology, but they are the honest human beings in the world. You can also taste their local food items for a lifelong memory that you can share with your people back in home country.

Today, early in the morning, you begin the journey towards Koto, the starting point of Nar Phu Valley trek. While descending, you come to see some seasonal settlement areas around Upper and Lower Chyaku. From Meta, you follow the trail that passes along dense rhododendron and pine forests, small mountain streams and natural waterfalls. Walking with the flow of the Nar Phu Khola, you reach Kota after walking for about 5 hours. 

Today, as soon as you have your breakfast, you begin the return journey to Kathmandu from Koto. On the way, you come to see Timang and Dharapani villages before you reach Beshisahar, which is the gateway to Annapurna region trekking. After you arrive Kathmandu, you will be transferred to the hotel. In the evening, we organize a farewell dinner program at a restaurant as a culture of the agency.

Today is the last day of one of the best remote treks of Nepal to Nar Phu Valley which you completed wonderfully. Therefore, the team member of Orbit Alpine Adventure escorts you up to the Kathmandu Airport as per your flight schedule. Have a safe and happy journey; see you next time!