General
Popularly known as the highest lake in the world, Tilicho Lake is one of those places that have had next to mythic connotations. The region was almost totally closed for foreigner’s till1974. It was in 1974 when Nixon changed the China policy for carrying out the adventure activities like trekking, expedition and mountaineering in a bid to boost up tourism industry. From the Manang side it is rarely visited. Manang is no ordinary village. Its people are heavily involved in international trade, due to passport privileges granted in the past.
There is no denying the fact that Annapurna region provides some of the world’s best trekking routes. Among them, Tilicho Lake trek is one of them. It has a greater variety of scenery and culture than other routes. The route via Tilicho Lake and the two passes (Masokanto La 5099m and Tilicho Pass 5230m) that guard it from the Kaligandaki Valley has still many things to offer to the visitors. Comparatively, Masokanto La is low altitude pass than Tilicho, but it demands more technical knowledge on climbing.
The recently opened route takes us to the north of Annapurna Circuit, lost valley of Nar Phu which is inhabited by only about 800 people. Ample time will be spent around the valley to explore and get first hand information of the culture of the area. Leaving the valley, we cross the main Annapurna route near Manang then proceed towards Tilicho Lake and then to Meso Kanta Pass and join the trail to Manang and the Kali Gandaki Valley. We cross Thorong La Pass and reach Jomsom. We finally take our flight to Pokhara from Jomsom.