- Length
- 20 days
- Highest point
- 4,990 m
- Difficulty
- Strenuous
- Best months
- May–Oct (rain-shadow, monsoon-trekkable)
- Starts
- Simikot (fly via Nepalgunj)
- Group size
- 2–10 People
- Sleeping
- Tea House / Camp
A remote 20-day camping expedition through Humla's hidden Limi Valley — ancient Tibetan villages, the Nyalu La (4,990 m) and the old Kailash salt-trade route.
- Trek into Humla, Nepal's remote far-northwest corner on the Tibetan border near Mount Kailash
- Cross the Nyalu La (4,990 m) and the Nara La (4,560 m) on the ancient Kailash salt-trade route
- Visit the three timeless Tibetan-Buddhist villages of Til, Halji and Jang in the Limi Valley
- Explore the 1,000-year-old Rinchenling Monastery at Halji, the spiritual heart of the valley
- Trek the trans-Himalayan rain shadow — walkable even through the summer monsoon
- True remote camping expedition with full crew through near-total isolation
- Blue-sheep and snow-leopard country, with juniper, gorges and high desert landscapes
- Reach Hilsa on the Karnali, the Nepal-Tibet border crossing toward sacred Mount Kailash
The climb, day by day
Day 1Arrive in Kathmandu (1,400 m)1,400 m
Arrival at Tribhuvan International Airport, transfer to your hotel in Thamel. Evening trek briefing, restricted-area permit paperwork and equipment check with your guide.
- Distance
- –
- Walking
- –
- Meals
- –
- Night
- Hotel
Day 2Kathmandu — sightseeing & trek preparation (1,400 m)1,400 m
Guided sightseeing of Kathmandu's UNESCO heritage sites, final gear check and shopping for the remote camping trek. Buffer day for flight logistics to the far west.
- Distance
- –
- Walking
- –
- Meals
- Breakfast
- Night
- Hotel
Day 3Fly Kathmandu to Nepalgunj (150 m)150 m
Fly southwest to Nepalgunj, a hot border town on the Terai plains. Overnight here to connect with the early-morning mountain flight to Simikot.
- Distance
- –
- Walking
- 50-min flight
- Meals
- Breakfast
- Night
- Hotel
Day 4Fly Nepalgunj to Simikot, trek begins (2,950 m)2,950 m
Spectacular short STOL flight into Simikot, the roadless capital of Humla. Permit checks, then a short acclimatisation walk around the ridge town as the camping crew sets up.
- Distance
- –
- Walking
- 30–45 min flight + 2 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 5Simikot to Dharapuri (2,300 m)2,300 m
Climb over a ridge then descend steeply to the Humla Karnali river, following it upstream past fields and small villages to camp at Dharapuri.
- Distance
- ~12 km
- Walking
- ~5 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 6Dharapuri to Kermi (2,670 m)2,670 m
An easy day along the river bank to Kermi, a Buddhist village known for its natural hot springs — a welcome soak after the first days on the trail.
- Distance
- ~11 km
- Walking
- ~5 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 7Kermi to Yalbang (3,020 m)3,020 m
Trek through pine forest high above the Karnali gorge to Yalbang, where you visit Namkha Khyung Dzong, the largest monastery in the region.
- Distance
- ~14 km
- Walking
- ~6 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 8Yalbang to Tumkot (3,380 m)3,380 m
Enter deeper Tibetan-Buddhist country as the landscape turns arid. Camp near Tumkot, home to the Sakya-school Dhungkar Choezom monastery.
- Distance
- ~12 km
- Walking
- ~6 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 9Tumkot to Yari / Thado Dunga (3,700 m)3,700 m
Climb above the tree line into open, high desert terrain of the rain shadow, with widening views toward the Tibetan plateau. Camp at Yari.
- Distance
- ~13 km
- Walking
- ~6 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 10Yari to Hilsa via Nara La (4,560 m pass) (3,720 m)4,560 m
A demanding day crossing the Nara La (4,560 m) on the old salt-trade route, then a long descent to Hilsa on the Karnali at the Tibet border, the crossing point toward Mount Kailash.
- Distance
- ~14 km
- Walking
- ~7 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 11Hilsa to Manepeme (3,990 m)3,990 m
Cross the Karnali on a suspension bridge and climb the spectacular cliff-side trail into the Limi Valley proper, camping at the remote spot of Manepeme.
- Distance
- ~10 km
- Walking
- ~6 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 12Manepeme to Til (4,000 m)4,000 m
Continue along the high trail to Til, the first of the three ancient Tibetan villages of Limi, a tight cluster of stone houses around a small gompa.
- Distance
- ~12 km
- Walking
- ~6 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 13Til to Halji & Rinchenling Monastery (3,660 m)3,660 m
A shorter day to Halji, the cultural heart of Limi, where you explore Rinchenling Gompa, a monastery founded over a thousand years ago and still central to village life.
- Distance
- ~8 km
- Walking
- ~4 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 14Halji to Jang (3,930 m)3,930 m
Trek to Jang, the third and most easterly Limi village, a fortified Tibetan settlement. Time to meet villagers and absorb the timeless rhythm of the valley.
- Distance
- ~9 km
- Walking
- ~4 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 15Jang to Talung (4,370 m)4,370 m
A long climb up the valley through grazing pastures of blue sheep and yaks toward the foot of the high pass. High camp at Talung to prepare for the Nyalu La.
- Distance
- ~14 km
- Walking
- ~7 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 16Talung to Shinjungma via Nyalu La (4,990 m pass) (3,620 m)4,990 m
The trek's hardest and finest day: an early start to cross the Nyalu La (4,990 m), the high point, with sweeping Himalayan panoramas, then a long descent to forested camp at Shinjungma.
- Distance
- ~16 km
- Walking
- ~8 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 17Shinjungma to Kermi (2,670 m)2,670 m
Drop steeply back into pine forest and rejoin the Karnali valley, returning to Kermi and its hot springs to celebrate the completed loop.
- Distance
- ~15 km
- Walking
- ~7 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 18Kermi to Simikot (2,950 m)2,950 m
The final trekking day retraces the river trail and climbs back up to Simikot, where the crew celebrates the end of the expedition.
- Distance
- ~18 km
- Walking
- ~7 hrs
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
- Night
- Camp
Day 19Fly Simikot to Nepalgunj to Kathmandu (1,400 m)1,400 m
Early STOL flight to Nepalgunj and connecting flight back to Kathmandu. Evening at leisure in Thamel — note that Simikot flights are weather-dependent and a buffer day is built in.
- Distance
- –
- Walking
- flights
- Meals
- Breakfast
- Night
- Hotel
Day 20Departure from Kathmandu (1,400 m)1,400 m
Free time for last-minute shopping until your final transfer to Tribhuvan International Airport for your onward departure. This day also serves as a buffer against Simikot flight delays.
- Distance
- –
- Walking
- –
- Meals
- Breakfast
- Night
- –
The price includes
- Humla (Simikot) Restricted Area Permit, local area/village fee and TIMS card
- All domestic flights: Kathmandu–Nepalgunj–Simikot and return
- 3 nights hotel in Kathmandu (twin share, with breakfast) plus airport transfers
- Licensed, experienced English-speaking trekking guide and full camping crew (cook, kitchen staff)
- Porters or pack animals to carry all group equipment and supplies
- All camping equipment — two-person tents, dining tent, toilet tent, kitchen gear, mattresses
- All meals (breakfast, lunch & dinner) during the trek, freshly prepared by the camp cook
- Guide and crew wages, insurance, food, accommodation and equipment
- Comprehensive first-aid kit with oximeter and emergency oxygen
- Kathmandu city sightseeing tour with a guide
- All government taxes, service charges and official paperwork
You pay separately
- International airfare to and from Kathmandu
- Nepal entry visa fee
- Travel and high-altitude rescue/evacuation insurance (mandatory)
- Lunches and dinners in Kathmandu
- Personal trekking gear and clothing (sleeping bag and down jacket can be rented)
- Drinks, bottled water, hot showers, battery charging and Wi-Fi on trek
- Personal expenses — laundry, telephone, souvenirs
- Tips for guide, cook and crew (customary)
- Emergency helicopter charter or extra hotel nights due to flight delays
- Any costs arising from circumstances beyond our control (weather, flight cancellations, political situation)
The Limi Valley Trek is one of Nepal's last true wilderness journeys — a remote camping expedition deep into Humla, the country's far-northwest corner, where the trail brushes the Tibetan border within sight of the routes to sacred Mount Kailash. This is restricted-area trekking in the fullest sense: you fly to roadless Simikot, then walk for two weeks through a trans-Himalayan rain-shadow landscape of gorges, juniper, barley terraces and high desert that sees only a handful of foreign trekkers each year.
The heart of the trek is the Limi Valley itself, home to three ancient Tibetan-Buddhist villages — Til, Halji and Jang — that have changed little in a thousand years. At Halji you stand before Rinchenling Gompa, a monastery founded over a millennium ago, still the cultural and spiritual centre of the valley. Between the villages the trail follows the old salt-caravan route that once linked Tibet and the lowlands of Nepal, crossing the Nara La (4,560 m) above Hilsa and the formidable Nyalu La (4,990 m), the trek's high point and finest viewpoint.
A trek for the monsoon and beyond
Because Limi sits in the Himalayan rain shadow, like Mustang and Dolpo, it is one of the few regions in Nepal that is trekkable right through the summer monsoon, when the rest of the country is rained out. The prime windows are May, late September and October, but mid-June to August offers clear, dry trekking when few other trails are open.
Genuine remote wilderness
This is full camping support — tents, a dedicated cook and crew, and pack animals carrying every supply, because there are no tea houses for most of the route. You trek through blue-sheep and snow-leopard country in near-total isolation, with high passes, long days and real remoteness. It is demanding and logistically complex, and it rewards you with an authentic Tibetan frontier that almost no one ever sees.