Makalu Base Camp Trek

After an early breakfast, we set out on a guided tour to the primary historical spots in Kathmandu. We will tour symbolic monuments, temples, monasteries, palaces and UNESCO World Heritage Sites that include: Boudhanath, and the temples of Pashupatinath. As we stroll along the exotic locales of Kathmandu, more diversified cultural settings in the valley welcome us with warm hospitality. At Boudhanath, one of the biggest stupas in Asia, we get deep insights into Buddhism. This may invoke your spiritual senses. There will be a brief orientation followed by trek preparation during late afternoon at the hotel lobby.

Early in the morning after breakfast, we will drive to domestic terminal of Airport in Kathmandu. Taking 50 minutes of scenic flight close to Himalayas with breathtaking views of Mountains and peaks, we will take flight to Tumlingtar. We will stay overnight in Tumlingtar.

Makalu Base Camp Trek begins on this day. After our breakfast at Tumlingtar and assembling the crew, we will take the raised path to arrive at the confluence of Arun, Koshi and Sabha Rivers. We will climb uphill through many pretty small highland villages, subtropical forests and terraced lands to reach Mane Bhanjyang. Moving further through ridges, we will arrive at Arun Than. Passing through Sheka and Bhotebas villages, we will cross Bamboo and rhododendron forest to reach the Gurung village of Chichira where we will stay overnight.

Our campsite in Chichira allows breathtaking view of Makalu Mountain. Leaving Chichira early in the morning, we will cross the glaciated river and move through verdant forest of bamboos and rhododendron to pretty small villages of Sherpa and Rai ethnics. We need to take the descending path to Num village which is perched atop the ridge above Arun koshi River. We will stay overnight in Num.

Lowering down from Num, we will walk past forest and terraced farmlands to reach Lumbang settlement. From Lumbang, we will take sharp descend further to Arun River. Many slopes covered in forest can be found in the narrow valley. We will follow the slippery path to Arun Koshi River. Crossing a suspension bridge, we will follow the ascending trail uphill to Sedua. We will stay overnight in a large camping site in Sedua / Seduwa. Seduwa also serves as the entry point for Makalu Barun National Park. We need to show our trekking permits to officials in Seduwa.

Our campsite in Sedua allows scenic views of surrounding mountains. We will take an easy walk passing through rivulets, Mani walls, meadows and terraces and reach the top of ridge over Ipsuwa and Kasuwa rivers. We will pass through crop fields in tiny Sherpa villages. Walking through the crop fields, we will reach Tashi Gaon village where we will stay overnight.

We will follow the ascending trail via colorful rhododendron and oak forest. We will cross rivulets at few points to arrive at meadow full of lush green vegetation. The meadow is used as grazing land for local cattle. The area is crowded with Shepherd huts (Chipla). We will follow the steep trail through Kharka and take stone steps to Khongma which is perched atop the ridge. Stay overnight in Khongma Danda.

Being at the top of hill, our campsite at Khongma Danda allows picturesque views of Chamlang Mountain (7321m) and other peaks. We will follow the scenic path decorated with prayer flags all the way to the foothill of Shipton Pass. We will travel along the ridge through a rhododendron forest to Ghungru La (4050m). Brief descend from Ghungru La will take us to small turquoise blue lake. We will cross Shipton Pass and arrive at Keke la Pass. Once we cross Keke La, we will lower down to valley full of rhododendron at Mumbuk where we will stay overnight.

We will leave our campsite at Mumbuk and walk through colorful rhododendron and fir forest. We will lower down from forest to the Barun River. The trail progresses along the small cave (3,250m). We will lower down from the cave and enter in Barun Valley. The valley is remote and accepts only few visitors each year. Walking through the valley, we will cross Barun River and reach Yangle Kharka. Brief walk from Yangle Kharka will take us to Nehe Karka where we will stay overnight.

From Nehe Kharka, we will lower down and cross small pass to reach Piphuk Kharka (3,930m). The trail progresses along cascading waterfall to a meadow. We will cross the grazing land of Yak Kharka and pursue the trail along moraine from Barun glacier. The path is scenic that allows views of several peaks above 6,000 m height. Leaving the valley, we will cross rhododendron forest and reach Sherson where we will stay overnight.

After early breakfast, we will follow the ascending trail to small pass that is located 100 m above Makalu base camp. We will lower down to river and reach the base camp that is located on the western edge of river. The Base Camp allows scenic views of southern face of stunning Makalu Mountain. The Base Camp is a desolate place where there is no vegetation. We will stay overnight in Makalu Base Camp.

Makalu Base Camp is our final destination for this trek so we will be pursuing a return trip from this day. We will leave Makalu Base Camp early in the morning and take a descending path via Sherson and Merek to reach valley. We will descend from the valley and follow the easy path to Yangre Kharka where we will stay overnight.

Yangre Kharka which is also known as Yangle Kharka is the cattle grazing area. We will lower down through the lush green vegetation. After couple of hours of walk, we will arrive at rugged terrain which will eventually lead us to Mumbuk. We will stay overnight in Mumbuk.

Leaving Mumbuk early in the morning, we will walk through verdant forest of rhododendron and fir and reach base of Keke La Pass. We will climb Keke La and reach Shipton La from where we need to cross yet another pass named Ghungru La to reach Khongma where we will stay overnight.

We will lower down from Khongma ridge and follow the path lined with rhododendron forest. Exiting from the forest, we will move through rocky area. Continuing further through the grass land, we will arrive at Sherpa village of Tashi Gaon. We will exit from Tashi Gaon and walk through terraced fields. The path is scenic with views of mountains. We will lower down to Arun River and make it to Seduwa/ Seeduwa for overnight stay.

We will leave Seduwa early in the morning. Following the descending trail through farm fields, we will reach Arun River in an hour. We will move through small villages of Mulgaon and Walung. Crossing farm houses, we will pursue the less trekked trail along Arun River gorge valley. This is an easy walk that progresses at low altitude. We will reach Chhoyang where we will stay overnight in a camp that we will set up near Arun River.

We will leave Chhoyang and pursue the scenic trail along Arun River which will take us to Parangbu village. Brief walk from Parangbu will take us to Mangtewa Phedi. Journey continues through area clustered with small villages. Series of bending path at lower elevation will take us to Bumling where we will stay overnight.

This is the last day of trek. We will reach Tumlingtar on this day. The path takes us along Arun River and farm terraces to Kulung village. Walking further, we will reach Kartikeghat. Exiting from Kartikeghat village, we will reach the suspension bridge. We will cross Arun River over a bridge and enter sub-tropical forest that will lead us to Tumlingtar. Stay overnight in Tumlingtar.

It takes 50 minutes of scenic flight to reach Kathmandu Airport from Tumlingtar. Once we arrive at Domestic terminal of Kathmandu Airport, you will be transferred back to the hotel for comfortable stay.

Free and easy day to spend, perhaps doing shopping or rest at hotel’s beautiful court-yard. At eventide, we will relish a farewell dinner to celebrate your successful completion of the ‘Everest Base Camp and Kalapathar Trek.’ While enjoying our supper, we will also be entertained to a scintillating cultural dance performed by the local belles Please do not hesitate to let us know if you would like to extend your stay. Kindly email us for more details on extensions.

Thank you for joining us on this trek and it has been a pleasure getting to know you during this time. We hope this venture has enriched your experience with happy memories. Keep in touch and hope to hear from you soon. Bon voyage for a safe and pleasant trip home.