Nepal Kanchenjunga North Base Camp

Taplejung, Nepal · Nepal

Expedition Grade18 daysAsia~£2,800 est.

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Overview

Kangchenjunga's north side is Nepal before the crowds found it. From Taplejung in the far east, the restricted-area trek climbs for a week through cardamom fields, Limbu and Sherpa villages and rhododendron forest — a riot of bloom in April — to Ghunsa's timber gompas, then up the moraine past Jannu's staggering 7,710m profile to Pangpema at 5,140m, where the third-highest mountain on earth fills the sky with its 3,000m north face. You might share the viewpoint with a handful of trekkers; blue sheep will outnumber them. The logistics do the gatekeeping: the restricted zone requires a registered guide and a minimum of two trekkers, road access via Bhadrapur and Taplejung is long and rough, and beyond Ghunsa you sleep in basic teahouses where the menu is dal bhat and the nights fall well below freezing. Acclimatisation days at Ghunsa and Kambachen are built in for good reason. March-May and October-November are the seasons. Eighteen days runs about £2,800 with permits, guide and internal flights — remote Nepal at its most rewarding.