Kanchenjunga North Base Camp Trek

You arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu (1,400 m), where our representative meets you and drives you to your hotel in Thamel.

Your guide runs the pre-trek briefing. The Kanchenjunga North Base Camp trek goes to Pangpema at 5,143 m, directly beneath the north face of Kanchenjunga (8,586 m) — the third-highest mountain on earth and the highest in India and Nepal's eastern border region. This is a restricted area requiring a special permit, a licensed guide and a minimum group size.

It is worth being realistic about what this trek involves. It is remote: the nearest road is days away, lodges are basic, and evacuation would be slow and expensive. Two acclimatisation days are built in for good reason. Your guide checks your kit thoroughly — a four-season sleeping bag and a serious down jacket are essential at Lhonak. Overnight in Kathmandu.

An early flight east to Bhadrapur (91 m) in the far south-eastern corner of Nepal, close to the Indian border. The flight takes about 45 minutes and, on a clear morning, runs with the entire eastern Himalaya laid out along the northern horizon — Everest, Makalu and Kanchenjunga all visible from the same window.

Landing at 91 m puts you in the Terai: flat, hot and humid, a world away from the mountains. From the airstrip we drive north, and the road climbs steadily out of the plains into the hills through tea country — this is the Ilam district, whose tea gardens carpet the hillsides in bright green and are among the most photographed landscapes in eastern Nepal.

The drive to Taplejung (1,820 m) takes eight to ten hours on winding mountain road. Arriving in the evening, you have gained over 1,700 m since breakfast. Overnight in a lodge.

A rough jeep transfer down to Sekathum (1,650 m) at the confluence of the Ghunsa and Simbua rivers, taking two to three hours on a track that is often barely a track at all.

The trekking starts here. The trail follows the Ghunsa Khola upstream into a steep, narrow gorge, crossing the river on suspension bridges and climbing steadily through subtropical forest. This lower section is hot and humid, thick with bamboo, ferns and cardamom plantations, with the river running loud below.

The climb to Amjilosa (2,510 m) is the sting in the day — a steep, sustained ascent up the gorge wall on a rocky path, gaining nearly 900 m. Amjilosa itself is a tiny cluster of lodges perched on a shelf with almost no flat ground. You are now properly committed: from here there is no road out. Overnight in Amjilosa.

A long day climbing deeper into the valley, with the vegetation and the culture changing as you go.

The trail continues up the Ghunsa Khola through Gyabla (2,725 m), a small Tibetan-influenced settlement, and then enters magnificent forest — rhododendron, fir and birch, hung with moss and lichen. Waterfalls drop across the trail and the gorge stays narrow for much of the morning. This is prime red panda habitat, though sightings are rare.

Above Phale, an old Tibetan refugee settlement with a small gompa and hand-woven carpets for sale, the valley finally opens out. Ghunsa (3,415 m) is the largest village on the route — a proper Tibetan settlement of wooden houses, prayer wheels, a monastery and a small hydro plant, set among pine forest with peaks rising on both sides. Overnight in Ghunsa.

The first acclimatisation day, and a genuinely necessary one — from here the route climbs steadily to over 5,000 m with nowhere comfortable to retreat to.

As always, the rule is climb high and sleep low. The usual option is the ridge north-west of the village, gaining 400 to 600 m over a few hours, which opens up views of Jannu (7,710 m) — known locally as Kumbhakarna, and one of the most dramatic-looking mountains in Nepal, a sheer wall of rock and ice.

The alternative is a gentler walk around the village itself. Ghunsa is worth the time: the monastery is active, the Tibetan community here has been settled for generations, and there is a small hydroelectric scheme that supplies power to the village. Your guide will check how everyone is coping with the altitude before committing to the higher stages. Overnight in Ghunsa.

The day the landscape turns high and alpine. The trail leaves Ghunsa heading north through pine and juniper forest along the river, climbing gradually at first.

After a couple of hours the trees give out entirely and the valley becomes a bare, rocky corridor. The route crosses a substantial landslide section — loose scree on a steep slope above the river, which requires care and is usually crossed one at a time early in the day before the sun loosens the surface. Your guide will assess it before committing.

Beyond the landslide the valley opens and Jannu (7,710 m) comes into full view ahead, an extraordinary mountain from this angle. Khambachen (4,050 m) is a small seasonal settlement of stone huts and a couple of basic lodges in a wide, treeless valley. It is cold and the facilities are minimal. Overnight in Khambachen.

The second acclimatisation day, and the one that makes Pangpema achievable. Two nights at 4,050 m with a high walk in between is the standard and sensible way to prepare for sleeping at 4,792 m.

The usual excursion climbs the slopes toward Jannu Base Camp, gaining several hundred metres up the side valley for a closer view of Jannu's north face — a nearly vertical wall that mountaineers regard as one of the hardest objectives in the Himalaya. Even from a distance the scale of it is difficult to take in.

Blue sheep are common on these slopes and often visible in large herds, and Himalayan griffon vultures and lammergeiers ride the thermals above the valley. Gentler options include a short walk up the main valley or simply resting at the lodge. Drink steadily throughout the day. Overnight in Khambachen.

A shorter day but a demanding one — over 700 m of ascent at an altitude where everything is slower.

The trail climbs steadily up the valley on rough moraine and open scree, following the edge of the Kanchenjunga Glacier. There is no vegetation to speak of beyond low alpine cushion plants, and the surroundings become entirely rock, ice and sky. The route passes Ramtang and the ruins of an old monastery before the final climb.

Lhonak (4,792 m) is a bleak, beautiful spot: a handful of stone huts and basic lodges on a broad sandy flat beside the glacier, surrounded by peaks on every side. It is genuinely cold here and sleep is often broken at this altitude. Eat as much as you can, drink constantly, and get into your sleeping bag early — tomorrow starts before dawn. Overnight in Lhonak.

The day the trek exists for. We set out early, following the lateral moraine of the Kanchenjunga Glacier north-east on a rough but not technical trail. It is around 350 m of ascent over three to four hours, slow going at this altitude.

Pangpema (5,143 m) — Kanchenjunga North Base Camp — is a flat grassy shelf above the glacier, and the view from it is one of the great sights in the Himalaya. The entire north face of Kanchenjunga (8,586 m) rises directly in front of you, more than 3,000 m of ice and rock in a single sweep, flanked by Wedge Peak, The Twins, Tent Peak and Nepal Peak.

Those with energy can climb the ridge behind base camp for another 200 m and an even wider panorama. We then descend the same route to Lhonak (4,792 m) for the night — going back down to sleep is the right call after a day at over 5,000 m. Overnight in Lhonak.

A long descending day that gives back nearly 1,400 m, and the relief in your breathing is noticeable within the first hour.

The trail retraces the moraine down the valley past Ramtang to Khambachen (4,050 m), where we usually stop for lunch. From there it continues down, recrossing the landslide section — again taken carefully and one at a time — before the valley narrows and the first juniper and pine reappear.

The return to trees after several days above the treeline is a genuine pleasure, as is the warmth. The trail follows the river down to Ghunsa (3,415 m), arriving in the late afternoon. After the stone huts of Lhonak, Ghunsa's wooden houses and proper lodges feel positively comfortable. Overnight in Ghunsa.

A long day descending back through the forested gorge, retracing the route in.

The trail drops from Ghunsa through Phale, with its Tibetan refugee settlement and small gompa, and into the thick rhododendron, fir and birch forest below. The moss-hung trees, waterfalls and enclosed gorge that felt like hard work on the way up are far more enjoyable going down.

The path continues through Gyabla (2,725 m) and then makes the long steep descent toward the river. The final section to Amjilosa (2,510 m) undulates along the gorge wall on a rocky trail that demands attention. The vegetation thickens back into bamboo and cardamom and the humidity returns — a marked change from the dry, thin air of the high valley. Overnight in Amjilosa.

The final walking morning, and a steep one — the descent from Amjilosa loses around 860 m on a rocky trail down the gorge wall, which is hard on the knees after ten days of walking.

The trail follows the Ghunsa Khola down through subtropical forest, crossing suspension bridges, and reaches Sekathum (1,650 m) at the river confluence in the late morning. This is where the walking ends.

A jeep meets us for the rough two to three hour transfer back up to Taplejung (1,820 m) on the same rough track you came down. Arriving in the afternoon, there is time for a hot shower and a proper meal — the first of either for over a week. Tonight is the celebration dinner with your guide and porters. Overnight in Taplejung.

A long travel day. The drive from Taplejung down to Bhadrapur (91 m) takes eight to ten hours, descending through the tea gardens of Ilam and out onto the Terai plains. It is a scenic road but a slow one, so we start early to make the afternoon flight.

The tea country is worth staying awake for — hillsides terraced in bright green, pickers working the rows, and factories where you can sometimes stop and taste. Ilam tea is among the best produced in Nepal.

The 45-minute flight from Bhadrapur to Kathmandu (1,400 m) runs west with the Himalaya along the northern horizon, and on a clear afternoon you can pick out Kanchenjunga behind you. Arriving in the capital, you transfer to your hotel. Overnight in Kathmandu.

Your final day in Nepal. If your flight leaves later there is time for one more part of the Kathmandu Valley — Boudhanath Stupa, Pashupatinath Temple and Swayambhunath are all within a short drive.

Our representative collects you from your hotel and transfers you to Tribhuvan International Airport around three hours before your scheduled departure.

The Kanchenjunga North Base Camp trek is one of the most remote teahouse routes in Nepal, and one of the least walked — you will likely have seen more blue sheep than other trekkers. Standing at Pangpema beneath the north face of the world's third-highest mountain is a rare thing. If you would like to see the other side, the South Base Camp route reaches Oktang beneath the Yalung Glacier, and the full circuit links both. Safe travels.