• Difficulty: Stenuous. Lots of steep up and down and the fast elevation gain means the risk of altitude sickness is high.
• Trek Duration: 14 days
• Max. Elevation: 4,870m
• Accommodation: Camping; very basic herders’ tea houses.
• Start/End Point: Num

There’s only one standard route to Makalu base camp and it’s a simple there and back along the same trail. But this is a real wilderness trek and there are only permanent villages for the first and last couple of days. Most of the time the only other people you’ll meet are herders with their yaks. For me, the highlight of this trek is camping in gorgeous spring flower meadows well away from other people and waking to soaring mountain views.