Trip report by site editor Rick McCharles

Pairo 1800m  to Lama Hotel 2420

Slowly. Slowly.

That’s the mantra when starting a Himalayan trek.

I was last to leave the teahouse (9am), leisurely sipping weak milk coffee and petting the lodge cat.

My guide from last year’s Manaslu Circuit trek, BJ Dhakal and his two Canadian clients, greeted me on their way up. BJ had spotted me in one of the checkpoint lineups the previous day.

I pushed the cat off my lap and joined them on the ascent.

There are plenty of flowers hence plenty of bees.

I’d call it semi-tropical, but not jungle.

All day we ascended the narrow Langtang river gorge, footing muddy in places.

BJ stopped for lunch at Bamboo 1970m. So I joined them for yet another pot of milk coffee. And egg noodle soup, a staple of mine in the mountains.

Langtang is busier than I expected given that it’s so much less famous than Annapurna and Everest.

The 2014 Nepal snowstorm disaster motivated some people to switch their destination from Annapurna to Langtang. We weren’t sure whether the high passes on Annapurna and Manaslu were yet open.

The trail works it’s way up both sides of the Langtang Khola (river), depending on which is easier. Bridges are superb.

Everyone but me had seen Langurs on the trail. Finally I stumbled into a big troop.

Almost anything can grow in this climate.

Greens (something like spinach) are needed for the local staple, dal Baht.

BJ had booked rooms at the Origin Lodge, Lama Hotel 2420m, opened 1976. One of the elder men running the place had been here 30 years not once returning to his home village.

We arrived by 2pm. I washed up in the river (rather than buying a solar heated shower), then had a siesta, delaying dinner until 7pm.

For the first time I’d brought with me an adaptor to plug into the light socket. It powered up my phone and laptop in no time.

My legs were working. Feet good. A chronic sore heel (something like a bruise) was my only concern.

Lama Hotel is one of the most popular spots on the Langtang, a good altitude to sleep both up and down. Too crowded for my liking.

see all my high res photos from this day

day 0 | day 1 | day 2 | day 3 | day 4 | day 5 | day 6 | day 7 | day 8 | info | … Gosainkund