Teri La Pass Trek

Spring (late March to mid-May) and autumn (October to early November) are the two viable windows for the Teri La Pass Trek. Both seasons bring stable high-pressure weather that keeps the pass clear of fresh snow during the crossing day; late autumn and late spring both carry risk of a storm resetting the conditions. Autumn is the drier and more stable of the two and is the most popular choice for the Upper Mustang section, where roads and the Jomsom flight schedule benefit from post-monsoon clarity.

Spring is colder at elevation and may hold more residual winter snow on the Teri La approach, but rhododendrons are in bloom on the lower approaches around Koto. The Upper Mustang rain-shadow effect means that even the monsoon months of July and August are drier than the lower hills, but the Nar Phu gorge is wet and the Teri La is snow-loaded, so monsoon trekking here is not recommended. Winter (December to February) closes the pass with deep snow and wind.

The Teri La Pass Trek requires four separate permits and, by law, a licensed guide. The Upper Mustang Restricted Area Permit costs USD 500 per person for the first 10 days and USD 50 per extra day, making it one of the most expensive trekking permits in Nepal. The Nar Phu Valley Restricted Area Permit is an additional fee, currently requiring a registered agency booking; confirm the current rate with Swotah before departure as it is subject to revision. ACAP (Annapurna Conservation Area Permit) at NPR 3,000 for non-SAARC nationals and TIMS (Trekkers' Information Management System card) are also compulsory.

Solo trekking and unguided trekking in both restricted zones is not permitted under Nepal Tourism Board rules. Swotah handles all permit applications on receipt of a passport copy and photos and confirms current rates in the pre-trip documents. Carry originals throughout the trek: checkposts in both Nar Phu and Upper Mustang inspect documents on the trail.

Accommodation on the Teri La Pass Trek is camping from Koto all the way to Chhusang near the end of the Upper Mustang descent, a stretch of 16 consecutive nights. Swotah's camping team carries tents, cooking equipment and all food for that section; clients walk with a daypack only. The camp cook team sets up before the group arrives each evening. Some villages along the Upper Mustang section (Tangee, Yara, Lo Manthang) have guesthouses that can be used as an option, but the standard itinerary is full camping to keep permits and logistics clean.

Koto has basic guesthouses for the night before the restricted section begins. From Jomsom onward, the trek moves to hotel accommodation: simple guesthouses at Jomsom, then hotels in Pokhara and Kathmandu. A four-season sleeping bag rated to at least -10 C is required for the nights above 4,000 m, particularly the base camp night before the Teri La crossing.

All meals on the trek are prepared by the Swotah camping cook team from Koto to Jomsom. Dal bhat (lentil soup with rice and vegetables) is the daily staple, supplemented with noodles, soup, eggs, pasta and pancakes where ingredients are available. Above 4,500 m the menu simplifies and portions that fuel a pass day need to be eaten even when appetite is suppressed by altitude: eating and drinking are the most reliable prevention for AMS.

Water above 3,500 m should be treated before drinking, either boiled at camp or purified with tablets, a filter or a UV pen. Aim for 3 to 4 litres a day from day 6 onward to aid acclimatisation. Carry a 2-litre reusable bottle, and plan that water above Naar is from glacial streams: the cook team boils all drinking water at high camp, but the guide can advise on treatment for between-camp fills. Plastic-bottled water is largely absent on this route.

The Teri La Pass Trek begins with two drive days from Kathmandu: first to Pokhara (about 7 hours by private vehicle), then Pokhara to Besi Sahar, and on a rough off-road track to Koto (2,600 m) at the entrance to the Nar Phu Valley, typically splitting into two drive days. Koto sits on the Annapurna Circuit road just north of Chame; the Nar Phu restricted checkpoint is at Koto, not further along the main circuit.

The trek exits via the Mustang road to Jomsom and a domestic flight from Jomsom airport to Pokhara with Tara Air or Summit Air, then a connecting domestic flight Pokhara to Kathmandu. Jomsom flights are notorious for weather cancellations, particularly in strong afternoon Kali Gandaki wind; build at least one buffer day around the Jomsom departure. Swotah books the domestic segments and monitors the schedule.

Nar Phu Valley is a restricted gorge-and-plateau system north of Chame on the Annapurna Circuit, opening into Tibetan-style terrain at Meta and Naar. The valley runs roughly 25 km from Koto to the head of the Nar Phu Khola and holds fewer than 500 permanent residents across both villages. Naar (4,100 m) is the upper settlement, with Tibetan-style stone houses, chortens and a gompa dated to the 11th century, and the local dialect and dress are distinct from the Gurung culture of the lower Annapurna trails.

Access restriction to Nar Phu dates to the 1970s, when Nepal closed the valley to prevent cross-border movement with Tibet. Modern trekking permits re-opened it to guided groups only, and the relative difficulty of access means the trail stays quiet even in peak season. The high camps above Naar, the approach to Tribeni and the Teri La base camp corridor are generally walked by fewer than a handful of groups per month.

Lo Manthang (3,810 m) is a walled medieval city at the heart of Upper Mustang, the former Tibetan kingdom of Lo, and was off-limits to all outsiders until 1992. The walls enclose a palace, three major monasteries (Thugchen Gompa, Champa Lhakhang and Chyodi Gompa) and about 150 households in packed, flat-roofed buildings painted in white, red and ochre. The king of Lo still maintains the palace. From the Teri La side, trekkers approach from the north, arriving via Yara rather than the standard southern circuit from Kagbeni.

The approach and descent through Upper Mustang passes striking geological features: the Dhakmar ochre-and-red cliffs, the sky cave complexes near Chhoser and Luri Gompa, and the eroded badland landscape of the Kali Gandaki headwaters. Upper Mustang receives less than 250 mm of rain per year because the Great Himalayan wall blocks monsoon moisture; the result is a dry, windswept plateau that looks more like Tibet than the rest of Nepal.

A licensed guide is mandatory on every restricted section of this trek, and Nepal requires a minimum group of two trekkers booked through a registered agency. Swotah guides hold Ministry of Tourism licences, have technical mountain first-aid training, and carry the Nar Phu and Upper Mustang checkpoint documents. A guide who has crossed the Teri La before is standard practice on this route, given the navigational demands on the pass day itself.

The camping team (cook, kitchen assistant and porters) is the logistical backbone of this trip. One porter carries 20 to 25 kg and we cap loads at that weight regardless of distance. Swotah provides duffel bags for porter use; trekkers carry a 20-25L daypack and a warm layer during the day. Tips for the guide, porters and cook are customary at 10 to 15% of the trip cost and go directly to the seasonal workforce on the trail.

Mobile coverage in Nar Phu is minimal: Nepal Telecom (NTC) has a signal in Naar and at Koto, and nowhere reliably between. Upper Mustang is slightly better-served in Lo Manthang, where NTC and Ncell have a basic signal. Expect to be fully off-grid from day 4 to approximately day 15. Swotah provides a tourist SIM in Kathmandu and the guide carries a mobile; satellite communication is available to the guide team for emergencies.

Both valleys are ecologically and culturally fragile. Carry all waste out of the restricted sections, use treated water rather than plastic bottles, respect the gompa interiors and local religious protocol (remove shoes, ask before photographing), and walk clockwise around chortens and mani walls. Camping-team kitchen waste is carried to disposal points in Jomsom. Booking with a registered agency is also a direct conservation act: the restricted-area permit fees fund the local area management committees in both Nar Phu and Upper Mustang.