Bimtang: Manaslu's west face, the night after the Larkya La

Coming down off the pass

By the time you reach Bimtang you've left Dharamsala by headlamp, climbed to the top of the Larkya La at 5,106m, and then started down. Day 11 is about 26km and 8 to 9 hours in all, and the descent is the longer half of it.

On our spring 2023 crossing the first part of the Bimtang side was a steep snowfield. It eased off lower down, and the last stretch brought us to a lodge sitting below the glacier (Exhibit B).

Trekking poles earn their place on this descent. So do gaiters if there's been fresh snow. Your guide keeps the pace steady on the way down too, because tired legs on a long downhill are where people slip.

The climb itself has its own post: what the Larkya La day is like, from the headlamp start to the top.

Sleeping lower again

For four nights before the pass you sleep higher each time, or stay at the same height. Bimtang is the first night lower down. These are the overnights on either side of it:

Bimtang sits lower than Samdo and only 190m above Samagaon, where you took your rest day. After Dharamsala, the highest and coldest night on the trek, the air feels thicker and most people sleep better.

It also means that once you're over the top on Day 11, every step is downhill, and going down is what helps at altitude. Our post on altitude sickness on Manaslu explains how your guide watches for symptoms on the days before.

The night in Bimtang

Bimtang is a teahouse night, like every night on the circuit. After the basic lodges at Samdo and Dharamsala, that's a welcome step back up. You get a bed and a hot meal, and nobody needs an alarm set for before dawn.

It's still 3,720m, though, so the evening is cold. Keep the down jacket handy and use your own sleeping bag. Spring can also bring snow here. On our trip it snowed overnight, and we woke on 3 April to the lodges under fresh snow (Exhibit A). It didn't hold us up. The trail ahead was all downhill, and we set off on time.

Our post on teahouse life on the Manaslu Circuit covers rooms, food and showers.

Manaslu's west face in the morning

For a week and a half you've been looking at Manaslu from the east. From Lho and Samagaon it fills the top of the valley. At Bimtang you've walked around it, and the west face rises straight above the meadow.

The morning is when to look. Our photo was taken early on 3 April, after the overnight snow, with the face clear. Get up a little before breakfast, take your tea outside and give it a few minutes. It's the last big view of the mountain you've just walked around, and trekkers often talk about this morning more than the pass itself.

If the cloud is down, the descent toward Tilije opens up its own views of snow peaks above the forest, and later of the Annapurna range to the west.

Day 12: the walk to Tilije

The numbers. About 22km and 6 to 7 hours, dropping 1,420m from Bimtang to Tilije at 2,300m. It's the last walking day of the trek.

The ground. Below Bimtang the trail crosses a wide glacial outwash plain (Exhibit D), then goes into pine and rhododendron forest. It gets steeper as you go lower, and the views open up west toward the Annapurna range.

Your legs. Six or seven hours of downhill the day after the pass is hard on the knees, even with your breathing easy again. Poles help a lot, and so does slowing down on the steep parts. Tilije is the last night on the trail, so there's nothing to rush for.

On Day 13 a jeep picks you up in Tilije and takes you through the last permit check at Dharapani and down to Besisahar. We cover that part in the way home from Tilije, and every day with its altitude and hours is on the 15-day Manaslu itinerary.

The other side of the mountain

Up to Dharamsala you've followed one valley, the Budhi Gandaki, up from the gorge into the Tibetan villages. Over the pass you come down into a different valley, on the Annapurna side, and see the mountain from the back.

This side is quiet too. Manaslu is a restricted area, so everyone on the trail walks on a permit with a licensed guide, and the circuit sees a fraction of the people you'd meet on Everest Base Camp or the Annapurna Circuit. On a clear morning in Bimtang you can have the west face nearly to yourself.

Everything else about the route, from permits to price, is in our Manaslu Circuit Trek guide.

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