Ama Yangri

The dashed line is the mapped corridor through the valley and its villages, not a surveyed footpath. The real trail switchbacks around it — treks are verified against the corridor, not metre by metre.

From the Sherpa village of Tarkeghyang up through rhododendron and juniper to the prayer flags on Ama Yangri, the guardian peak of the Yolmo valley. Langtang, Dorje Lakpa and the Jugal Himal fill the skyline north; on a clear morning you can pick out Shishapangma across the border. Steep and high enough to feel the altitude, and usually done as an overnight from the village.

• Langtang National Park entry