Dhaulagiri Circuit Trek - 20 Days

On your arrival at Kathmandu Tribhuvan International Airport, you will be received by our representative and will then be escorted to your hotel. Following the acclimatization procedure, the rest of your time will be spent relaxing and acclimatizing to the environment. Later in the evening, a pre-trek briefing will be conducted, and you will meet your trekking guide and other trekkers. Your guide will equip you with the necessary information, which will include the itinerary of the trek, the safety regulations, and other equipment required. You will also go through questions you may have and last-minute preparations for the adventure ahead.

This will be after you have breakfast in your Kathmandu hotel, and we shall drive to Tribhuvan International Airport to board a short scenic flight to Pokhara that takes 25 minutes only. To admire the majestic sights of the Himalayas with the Langtang, Manaslu, and Annapurna ranges, look outside the window as the plane gains altitude. After the flight to Pokhara, an amazing city on the shores of Phewa Lake, which is located at the foot of the mountains of Annapurna, you will be driven to your lodging. The afternoon and evening will be free to be used at your leisure. People can walk on the Lakeside promenade, can hire a boat on Phewa Lake, the World Peace Pagoda, or Devi Falls. It is an easy day in terms of working hard but filled with sights and energies, good to take to start into all of it.

After breakfast, you'll embark on a scenic drive from Pokhara to Darbang, the starting point of your trek. The journey offers stunning views of terraced fields, traditional villages, and rolling hills. Upon reaching Darbang, you'll begin your trek towards Dharapani. The trail winds through lush forests and terraced fields, with occasional glimpses of the surrounding mountains. After a few hours of trekking, you'll arrive in Dharapani, where you'll spend the night in a local guesthouse.

Today, you will explore more about the Dhaulagiri area. Starting in the terraced countryside, the trail is easy to hike at Carnella; later on, it gets steep in several areas. You will pass lovely traditional Magar villages of Takum and Sibang, where smiling people wave at you as you pass them walking along the road. On the way, it has amazing scenery of Mt. Dhaulagiri and Gurja Himal coming out between green ridges. The trail goes up and down through forest clearings, and sunny areas really mix up. The day will finish at Muri, a beautiful village located on a spur with green scenery all around and panoramic views of the mountains on the North side. Muri is a culturally interesting place and a village that is near the end of the big settlement.

Today stops at more and more rough country. Then you will first start with the descent to cross a suspension bridge over the Myagdi Khola, followed by climbing through dense forests and small ridges. Rather a lot of the trail goes along the river during the day, so you get occasional views of waterfalls and cliffs and a limited view of snowcapped mountains. You will have to go past several seasonal camps and maybe come across herders with their herds. On your way to Boghara (also Bogar), the countryside becomes more isolated and unspoilt. It is more remote and untraveled than the last few days and is an indication of what one can expect in the wilderness one is about to enter.

On leaving Boghara, the path grows rougher and still more wild. You will have to climb steep passages through dense jungles packed with fern, bamboo, and rhododendron. Myagdi River is always at a nearby proximity. Keep an eye out for langurs, colored birds, and even the traces of the Himalayan wildlife. You can pass over a wooden bridge, and there is a greater degree of steepness and lack of development. The higher one goes, the cooler the air gets, and the forest trees are getting a bit thinner. Dobhan Kharka is a tiny meadow in the forest and the cliffs--and yet it is calm, but wild, where to camp, or rest in a simple teahouse.

The trail today is towards the inner depths of Dhaulagiri wilderness. You will start to hike along the shady forest route, and your route will slowly rise till you are passing through thick forests of rhododendron, pine, and birch. The road is along the river, and in parts, it twists along steep sides of a cliff and passes through peaceful, mossy land. Sometimes there are big views of a long way off, snowy mountains through some craggy clearings. The route is now wilder, and the indications of habitation become fewer, increasing the crude air of adventure. In 5-6 hours of walking, you can reach the Sallaghari, a peaceful high mountain pasture, where herders are also having a good time, surrounded by tall trees, hidden behind walls of mountains. The actual name, Sallaghari, translates to pine forest; the name is not misplaced, as the area offers lots of serene environs and chilly mountainous air.

You achieve great altitude today and move close to the Italian Base Camp, and this is where you enter the realm of high-altitude Trekking. The path goes up steadily, and the vegetation is radically different; trees thin out, and alpine scrub and grasses take over. You encounter rocky outcrops, and every step will remind you of the altitude. The path goes through landslide areas and boulder fields, and good navigation is needed. What you get in response, however, is an ever-better view of Dhaulagiri I, Manaslu, and the ice-capped colossi around it. As you reach the Italian Base Camp, you will find yourself engulfed by huge glacier walls and mountain peaks on all three sides. The scenery is spectacular as well as awe-inspiring. This camp is named after the first Italian expedition members led by Arduino, who set up this camp in the 1950s during expeditions in Dhaulagiri.

This day is reserved to enable your body to adapt to the altitude as it continues to higher altitudes. Though it is a down day, it is advisable to move lightly so as to help acclimate. During your acclimatization period, you can go out on brief acclimatising hikes around the camp, e.g., to climb the adjacent ridges to get a bird-eye view of Dhaulagiri I (8,167m), Tsaurabong Peak, and the Myagdi Valley below the camp. These ridgelines provide you with a feel of the magnitude of the glacier landscape you are getting into. In daytime, you can gaze at how the light and clouds are casting themselves around the mountain, you can rest, having a hot drink in your hands, and you can get ready on the mind-set of the more technical parts that are coming.

This day is a short but rough trek. And you will commence by fording the glacial moraine, in which you climb on some very steep, stony, and rough ground. The setting gets harsh and unwelcoming, the gray and white rock extends out everywhere like the glacial ice, and crevasses periodically break through. Today, you have to be careful; you will have to use trekking poles to be stable on the ice. The path runs close to icefalls and seracs, and one can hear the occasional roar of avalanches on the huge face of Dhaulagiri. On arrival at Glacier Camp, in a barren yet spectacular location at the foot of sheer rock walls and glacier cliffs, you will highlight your trip by camping on the periphery of the icefield. It is one of the most dramatic, wild as well as campsite in Nepal.

On this day, you will be staying at Glacier Camp, where you will have time to acclimate more to the high altitude. Depending on the weather and your inclination, your guide will possibly lead you on a brief, steep climb up onto a local ridge or shallow icefield where there will be far-reaching views of the path to Dhaulagiri Base Camp and the Hidden Valley way, far away. The terrain is filled with blue ice, granite rocks, and snow fields that even reach up to the horizon. The health and rest day is vital, seeing that the hike, henceforth, will be some of the most challenging and remote portions of the circuit.

It is also one of the most dramatic days throughout the trek. You will start climbing from Glacier Camp up the lateral moraine of Dhaulagiri Glacier. The ground is steep, icy, and shaky in places, so you have to be careful when you are walking over a combination of loose rocks, snow fields, and glacier ice. On the way to Base Camp Dhaulagiri, what becomes more and more impressive is the scenery: the icefalls on the sides of Dhaulagiri I (8,167m), the 7th highest mountain in the world, cascade down to the valley floor, and the glacial amphitheatre opens a wild and impressive panorama. Here, the loneliness is tremendous-there are no villages, no lodges, only the naked face of Himalayan force. You will sleep on the periphery of the glacier and be surrounded by 7-8000 peaks.

Today would be necessary to enable adapting to the altitude before passing the 5,000-meter passes. You can decide to spend time at the base camp or you can have a leisurely trek to a nearby ridge or observation point with broad outlook of the Dhaulagiri Icefall, Tukuche Peak and Dhaulagiri II, III and V. This day forms your stamina and makes you ready to go through the most physically challenging period of the trek. It is also a wonderful moment to take a picture of the large mountain amphitheater and think about how much you have achieved. It is a real wilderness experience; there exists no trace of civilization, only the silence of snow and stone.

This is really one of the highlights of the Dhaulagiri Circuit and also one of the hardest. You will get off early, because the trail to French Pass is a long and steep one. The path goes over glacial moraine, loose scree, and snow with strong winds, and thin air, challenging you. The view at the head of the pass is worth the effort you put in, and you are rewarded with a magnificent view of Dhaulagiri I, Tukuche Peak, Nilgiri, and the vastness of the Hidden Valley. Having imbibed the scenery, you will plunge into this distant and enchanted valley--little visited, and bounded in a ring of jagged crests. The camping site here is on expansive grass plains flanked by white mountains and provides one of the most surreal camping grounds during the trek.

Coming after the trying passage through French Pass, it is a day of grace. You will bask in the tranquility of Hidden Valley, a high-altitude plain with numerous mountain ranges that include Sita Chuchura, Tukuche, and Dhampus Peak. Side hikes to neighboring ridges exist as options, or you can just sit back and enjoy the magnificence of the area. This valley has a pristine effect about it--no tea houses, no villages, only snow, rock, and silence. In case you are in an adventurous mood, you might want to go on a side hike to Dhampus Peak Base Camp, which provides views of Mustang. Not even 5,000m+ has such peace.

The path now starts with a sharp climb up to Dhampus Pass, which is the second big high-altitude pass of the trip. It is situated in-between the Annapurna and the Dhaulagiri masses with views which are inimitable in either direction. The landscape is high alpine, which may be snow on the trail, particularly in the early season. You will start the descent of a rocky scree and finally into grassy pastures by departing the pass. On the way down, you will see the vegetation returning, and you will come to Alu Bari, the forest camp, which is frequented by the yak herders. Today is an achievement day-you have now done the high passes on the Dhaulagiri Circuit.

Today, you will get away to civilization after a few days of rigorous adventure in the wilderness at high altitude. The trail goes south down the beautiful pine wood and alpine meadows, slowly exposing you to cultivated land and human settlement on your way to Kali Gandaki Valley. On the trek, it is quite possible to encounter the yak herds, mountain goats, a whole view of Nilgiri and Tukuche peak, and the Mustang region to the north. The track will be easier in comparison with the past days, but your knees can also remember the sharp slope. You will finally reach Jomsom, which is a windswept town located along the banks of the  Kali Gandaki River. Jomsom seems like coming back to the comfort with its airport, eateries, and comfortable hotels. It is ideal to rest, have a hot shower, and get in touch with the world.

The morning will be very early as you transfer to the airfield of Jomsom Airport to take a short and mountainous flight to Pokhara. The lightweight plane will provide mind-blowing scenes of Annapurna, Nilgiri, and the Kali Gandaki Gorge- the deepest Gorge in the world. Once you land in Pokhara, you will board a flight to Kathmandu, thus ending your aerial tour to Nepal. Transfers to Kathmandu mean that when you arrive, you will be sent to your hotel. The other parts of the day are at your own time to either rest or visit the capital city. You may opt to stroll in Thamel, buy some souvenirs, and have dinner in a rooftop restaurant in Kathmandu. It is an atoning visit to civilization after almost two weeks adventuring in the wild.

Today, we will give you the day to enjoy as you wish. It can be interesting to visit some of the UNESCO World Heritage sites in Kathmandu, e.g., Swayambhunath (Monkey Temple), Pashupatinath Temple, Boudhanath Stupa, or the Kathmandu Durbar Square. Alternatively, you may want to take things easy and have some masala tea in a garden cafe, go to art galleries, or have a spa or massage to relax after the trek. This contingency day also helps in any event of delay of the flights in Jomsom. Whether you wish to have culture, comfort, or both, it is an ideal time to rethink your marvellous trip around the Dhaulagiri area. Evening we we will have wellfare dinner with cultural show in typical Nepalese restaurant, overnight in Hotel.

This is your last day amidst a memorable Himalayan journey. You will be transported to Tribhuvan International Airport, depending on your flight schedule, to go back home or to your next flight. Leaving Nepal, you will have the memories of high mountains, calm valleys, kind people, and the unspoiled wilderness of the Dhaulagiri Circuit. This trek is not only about physical challenges- it is also a spiritual and emotional journey to one of the most inaccessible, remote yet spectacular corners of the globe. All the best and Namaste.