Langtang National Park

Langtang National Park, gazetted in 1976, was the first Himalayan protected area in Nepal and remains the closest high-mountain wilderness to Kathmandu. Its 1,710 square kilometres climb from subtropical river gorge to the ice of Langtang Lirung (7,234m), straddling the Nepal–Tibet border north of the capital.

The park protects a genuine Himalayan cross-section: oak and rhododendron forest gives way to yak pasture, juniper scrub and finally glacier and moraine. It shelters red panda, Himalayan tahr, musk deer, Himalayan black bear and, on the high ridges, the elusive snow leopard. The sacred lakes of Gosaikunda, a major Hindu pilgrimage site, sit within the park boundary.

The Langtang valley was devastated by a landslide triggered by the 2015 earthquake, which buried the village of Langtang. The valley has since been rebuilt by its resilient Tamang communities, and trekking lodges are once again open through to Kyanjin Gompa, the high settlement beneath the peaks.

Most visitors enter via Syabrubesi, a 7–8 hour drive from Kathmandu, and walk the Langtang valley or the Gosaikunda route. Spring and autumn offer the clearest mountain weather; the rhododendron bloom in April is exceptional.