The Langtang Valley is located only 19 miles North of Kathmandu and yet it has changed little since the opening of Nepal to the world. The area is strongly influenced by its proximity to the border of Tibet. The valley is dominated by Langtang Lirung (7246m / 23,730ft), the highest peak in the area. This is a superb introduction to trekking, among some of the most beautiful scenery in the whole of Nepal. And for the climber, Yala Peak (5500m / 18,045ft) and Naya Kanga (5846m / 19,180ft) offer a wonderful introduction to mountaineering in the Himalaya.
From Kathmandu we have a 7 hour drive to the trailhead. Initially we trek through dense forest of oak, birch and pine before the valley opens out into alpine meadows. In the spring these high meadows are carpeted with a rich variety of alpine flowers, gentians, violets, edelweiss and primulas are just a few. The forests are also in full bloom with rare tree orchids to be found and the colourful rhododendron (Nepal's national flower).
Beyond Langtang village is the summer settlement of Kyangjin (3817m) with its small monastery and cheese factory. Our camp here is in a superb setting dominated by the fluted northwest face of Cangchempo, while Kyangjin Ri at 4708m, provides a spectacular viewpoint. From Kyangjin we move further up the valley to Yala, a small yersa [summer hamlet] at 4641m. Using this as our base we walk to the top of Tsergo Ri 5066m / 16,592ft the highest point on a broad flat plateau. The views from here are spectacular, a 360 degree panorama of snow capped Himal including Langtang Lirung, Pemthang Ri, Langshisha Ri, Dorje Lakpa, and Ganchempo, Tilman's fluted peak.