Upper Mustang was the Kingdom of Lo, closed to outsiders until 1992. North of the Annapurnas the land turns dry and wind-carved: red and ochre cliffs pitted with ancient caves, villages of whitewashed mud brick, barley fields and long mani walls, and at the end the walled city of Lo Manthang with its fifteenth-century monasteries.
The walking is moderate and never very high, between about 2,800 and 4,300 m, but the days are long and windy. The region sits in the Himalaya’s rain shadow, so it is one of the few treks that works in the monsoon. A special permit and a licensed guide are required, and we arrange both.