Upper Mustang Trek
Leaf holiday takes you to splendid view of Mustang an isolated district, from where you can observe Himalayan ranges and mysterious land. Mustang is often called desert of Nepal. The Upper Mustang trekking(popularly called the Mustang trek), is an exotic tour to unspoiled Tibetan villages on the other side of Nepalese Himalayan bordering with Tibet. The main highlights of Mustang trekking are ancient Tibetan villages, rare medieval Budhist arts, the exotic culture and the unique beauty of the Himalayan desert.
The medieval settlement of Upper Mustang and its capital Lo Manthang lie in the remote Himalayan desert behind the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri mountains. Foreigners were not allowed to enter Upper Mustang until 1992 . Upper Mustang is not much in contact with rest of Nepal, and keeps an aura of a remote, mysterious and unusual land, which is one of the unique charms of the Mustang trek. Geographically the land is an extension of the Tibetan plateau, characterized by windy and arid valleys, eroded canyons and unique stratified rock formations. The people in Upper Mustang are of Tibetan origin, migrated from Tibet centuries ago, and belong to Bhotias and Loba communities. They practice Sakyapa school of Tibetan Buddhism. Upper Mustang is perhaps the only place to see Tibetan culture in completely undisturbed state. The houses and monasteries in here have medieval look and unique local architecture. Mostly they are built with stone and sun baked mud bricks.
Recently in 2007, an international team of explorers have discovered invaluable objects of cultural and historical importance in Upper Mustang caves. In high caves requiring technical climbing they have discovered beautiful Buddhist murals, and historical objects, dating back to , according to them around 800years ago. Those having longer holiday can extend their Mustang trek beyond Lo Manthang and visit these caves and further explore the region visiting many of its ancient monasteries and cultural treasures.
A short 25 minute flight takes us from Pokhara to Jomsom .Hiking along the Kaligandaki gorge , the deepest in the world , we head for medieval village of Kagbeni.The trail north of Kagbeni leads to the Mustang trek.Depending on our itinerary , for the next 09 – 12 days we trek through the ancient villages of Samar, Charang and Geling before we reach the capital Lo Manthang at 3750m.Besides Lo Manthang , there are places of great interest including the Namgyal Gompa( which also serves as a local court) and the village of Tingkar, Garfuk and Nifuk.You still find people dwelling in the caves in these villages and some caves have amazing stupas and Buddhist murals . On the longer version of the Mustang trek, we futher explore the region and emerge to popular Muktinath Temple via Yara. After a visit to the holy temple of Muktinath we return by flight from Jomsom to Pokhara. Upper Mustang trekking is not only a culturally rewarding tour, but also a rare adventure. This is a fully supported camping trek. You sleep in the tents and eat the meals prepared by our camp cook. The average walking is 6 hour per day and you carry just your light day pack during the trek.
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