MUSTANG - NEPAL 2015 - 18-31 OCT - unofficial NRF 2015 gathering

adamz

- Ever wanted to visit one of the most mystical place on Earth?
- Ever wanted to spend 14 days that will change your perception of life?
- Ever wanted to see the highest mountains on Earth?

Together with my friend Gokul from Real Himalaya I've worked for the last couple days to give you an opportunity to visit Nepal, one of the most incredible countries in Asia. In the 14 days you will see not only the icons of Nepal - Kathmandu and Pokhra but also the most spectacular and secluded place Nepal can offer to tourists - Kingdom of Lo | Mustang. Opened for tourists in 1992 is still one of the least explored regions in Nepal, mostly due to extremely high permit fees and poor connectivity with the rest part of the country. It's also one of the last places on earth to feel the true Tibetan culture.

Short itinerary (with altitude)
Day 01: Arrival at Kathmandu (1340m/4400ft)
Day 02: Kathmandu sightseeing, including Bhaktapur (1340m/4400ft)
Day 03: Flight from Kathmandu to Pokhara (840m/2755ft)
Day 04: Sunrise from Sarangkot, drive from Pokhara through Beni to Tatopani (2600m/8530ft)
Day 05: Drive from Tatopani to Kagbeni (2900m/9500ft)
Day 06: Drive from Kagbeni to Ghami (3510m/11515ft)
Day 07: Drive from Ghami to Lo Manthang (3840m/12600ft)
Day 08: Exploration of Lo Manthang (3840m/12600ft)
Day 09: Exploration of Lo Manthang (3840m/12600ft)
Day 10: Drive from Lo Manthang to Chhuksang (2980m/9780ft)
Day 11: Drive from Chhuksang to Kalopani (2530m/8300ft)
Day 12: Drive from Kalopani to Pokhara (840m/2755ft)
Day 13: Flight from Pokhra to Kathmandu (1340m/4400ft)
Day 14: Mountain flight in the morning from Kathmandu, later final departures

options for day 13 is to drive to Chitwan National Park from Pokhra and spend 2 nights there, however this will require the whole group to agree to extend the stay for 1 more day till 1st November.

Minimum group size: 3 people
Maximum group size: 7 people (2 cars - 6 person Land Cruisers or similar)

Timing: 18th - 31st October - best photography season in Nepal due to small amount of haze - mountains are crisper than in April.

Photography: the whole trip is oriented on photography. Depending on number of people we will have either one or two photo coaches / one per car. If you are on forum you will know both of us. One group will be coached by me. The second group will be coached by your favourite mod Ali - golf007. In Kathmandu I'll have a dedicated workshop on animal photography near the monkey temple. In Pokhra and Mustang we'll concentrate on landscape and people photography. I'll also bring video projector and once we arrive to our sleeping destinations we will go through the pictures we all took during the entire day.

Price: $4500 - including: photographic coaching through entire trip, accommodation, food, permits (including $500 per person for entering the Mustang Valley), internal flights, guides, drives, entrance fees, so basically everything except: international flight to Kathmandu ($800-$1500 depending on your location), visa fee ($25/15 day visa, $40/30 day visa - payable at the Kathmandu airport at arrival), optional extension to Chitwan National Park ($200), personal expenses.

If you have any more questions please don't hesitate and contact me either through PM or mail.

Below some pictures from my previous Nepal travels:

Msmoto

Without question, this would be an exciting journey. The absolute beauty of the land and its people, an opportunity which would be high on my bucket list if I were a bit younger.

I would certainly hope we have a couple folks who will take Adam up on this phenomenal trip offer and capture some images for all to enjoy.

tcole1983

I wish. If this was 5 years from now I would be all over it. A 4 month old isn't conducive to my bank account or being able to leave the country for an extended amount of time.

adamz

I know exactly how it is tcole. My first one is 21months old and my second one is due at the end of November

Photobug

Hey guys...it doesn't get cheaper as they get older.

tcole1983

Hey guys...it doesn't get cheaper as they get older.

If I don't have to pay $320 a week for child care it should get cheaper ;-)

dissent

Won't be possible for me this year, but man it sounds like a great opportunity for those who can go. Go luck to you all.

adamz

I know Photobug the older the child the more $$$ you have to spend...

Photobug

I know Photobug the older the child the more $$$ you have to spend...

I just kept putting money aside to handle NAS. It was tough because the wife wouldn't let me take $$$ out of the savings account. Once the kids were out of college I was able to take some $$$ from savings.

proudgeek

Unfortunately, my travel budget is blown for the year with one big trip planned and one in the bag. Would love to spend a week with you in Nepal. Have some friends from there (my town has a fairly large Sherpa community) and it's supposed to be amazing. Another time.

Beso

This sounds like an amazing opportunity. My schedule is tight but I will have to give this serious consideration.

adamz

would be great Beso if you could make it!

kanuck

Amazing, I would have been able to make this adventure before, but the dates just don't quite match up for me. I have to do a difficult and expensive training session in Chiang Mai from November 15th-December 12th. I will be leaving my current job on November 1st. After my training is done, I will be visiting Burma from Chiang Mai, then into India for about 3 or 4 months. Come April, I will make my way up to Nepal and head east to Tibet via train.

I hear Mustang is untouched and not busy because it is far out of the way for the common traveler/trekker. Damn shame Originally I was heading out to Nepal on Oct 15th to take advantage of the best time to trek and photograph the Himalayas, but now I will have to settle for early spring because of my intense training session that I just finished pre-paying for.... (

Msmoto

I wish everyone a very safe and fulfilled journey. Thanks to Adam for putting this phenomenal trip together.

Yetibuddha

I wish I could be there. I am a much better photographer than in 2001 when I "summited" Everest Base camp. Have fun every one.

jkennedy

I have lived on Sarangkot, Pokhara for the last 4 years and I find that the clearest (and guaranteed) mountain views for photography are in December/January... which is nice as there are not too many other tourists and it's not too cold...