Mardi Himal is a trekking peak standing at 5,587 metres (18,330 ft) in the Annapurna region of Nepal.
Practical guides to trekking in Nepal — permits, costs, seasons, altitude and packing — written by the guides who walk these trails.
Ten days covering the four things Nepal is known for — the medieval cities, the Himalaya from the valley rim and Pokhara, the jungle at Chitwan, and the Buddha's birthplace at Lumbini. The fullest circuit that can be done comfortably without trekking.
The non-glaciated crossing between Upper Mustang and Nar Phu: twenty days over a 5,595 m col from Tange into the Damodar Himal, with a week of high desert camps and no other trekking party. Snow and scree rather than rope and crampons.
Twenty-one days linking two restricted areas over a glaciated 6,042 m col — Lo Manthang and the sacred lakes of Damodar Kunda, then roped and in crampons into the Tibetan valleys of Nar and Phu. One of very few Nepali routes above 6,000 m without a summit permit.
The hardest walking route in Nepal: Makalu Base Camp to the Khumbu over three glaciated passes, two of them above 6,000 m, through a closed basin with no exit but forward. Abseils, fixed ropes, camps above 5,500 m, and a climbing CV required at booking.
A 5,350 m glaciated crossing from the head of the Langtang valley to the sacred lakes at Panch Pokhari, named for the mountaineer who explored it in 1949. Six nights in tents, fixed rope either side, and one of the least travelled routes in Nepal.
Twelve days over an old herders' pass that almost no trekkers use. From Barpak up a forested valley to a camp below the Rupina La (4,720 m), then a 1,500 m drop into the Budhi Gandaki. Short, hard, and entirely self-supported.
Ten days in the accessible half of Mustang — the walled medieval village of Kagbeni, a full day at the Muktinath temple complex, and the Thakali apple village of Marpha. No restricted-area permit, mains power, and a landscape that looks like Tibet.
Ten days through the Gorkha foothills on a homestay route — Barpak, Laprak and Gumda, the villages at the epicentre of the 2015 earthquake and rebuilt by their own communities. No permits, no flights, no altitude, and Manaslu on the skyline throughout.
Twelve days up the Rolwaling valley — the hidden valley of Sherpa legend — to the largest glacial lake in Nepal. Beding, Na, and three and a half kilometres of meltwater held behind a moraine dam, without the technical pass at the top of it.
The Langtang valley followed by a genuinely committing crossing: the Ganja La at 5,130 m, often snow-covered, with a roped descent and three nights of high camps beyond it before Helambu. For experienced trekkers, not a first Nepal trip.
The shortest way into the Kanchenjunga massif: eleven days to the Oktang viewpoint at 4,730 m above the Yalung Glacier, where Kanchenjunga, Kabru, Rathong and Talung form a wall across the head of the valley. Lodges every night, from USD 1,125.
The direct route to Pangpema at 5,143 m, beneath a north face that rises more than 3,000 m in front of you. Fourteen days, teahouses every night, and two acclimatisation days that make this the best-judged Kanchenjunga itinerary for altitude.