Himalayan Bike Descent - Mustang

Jomsom · Nepal

Challenging10 daysAsia~£1,500 est.

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Overview

Upper Mustang is the closest thing left to old Tibet: a rain-shadow desert kingdom of ochre canyons, cave cities and whitewashed gompas, opened to outsiders only in 1992 and still gated by a US$500 restricted-area permit. Riding it by mountain bike beats walking it. You cover the wind-scoured plateau between Kagbeni and the medieval walled capital of Lo Manthang at a natural pace, then earn the trip's great prize: the long descent following the Kali Gandaki, by some measures the world's deepest gorge, with the 8,000-metre walls of Annapurna and Dhaulagiri framing the valley ahead. Expect rough jeep track, technical single-track options and altitudes between 2,800 and 4,000 metres that punish the unacclimatised. The valley wind is the daily variable: it builds like clockwork by late morning and blows upvalley all afternoon, so ride at dawn. Because Mustang sits in the rain shadow it rides well even during the June to September monsoon, though spring and autumn are ideal. Ten days from Jomsom with permit, compulsory guide, lodges and bike hire runs about £1,500; fly in via Pokhara and pad the schedule, because Jomsom flights cancel on wind more mornings than not.