Annapurna Circuit Trek in October

Conditions are as good as this circuit gets. Dry trail from Dharapani to Ghorepani, no snow on the pass, and the Ghyaru high route giving Annapurna II, III, IV and Gangapurna in air sharp enough to separate individual features.

The pass day is a long one rather than a hard one in October: a 4am start from Thorong Phedi, roughly four hours to the prayer flags at 5,416m, then the 1,600m drop to Muktinath. The Chulu peaks and the brown Mustang hills in first light from the top are what people remember.

The lesson of 2014 is worth carrying even in a settled month. A guide who will delay a crossing or turn a group around matters more on this pass than anywhere else in the Annapurnas, because Thorong La has no shelter between High Camp and the descent, and October is the month when an unseasonal system is most likely to arrive.

Peak season and the circuit absorbs most of it. Villages the whole way along mean real capacity, and the trail rarely feels crowded. Thorong Phedi is the exception and the one place that genuinely bottlenecks, with two lodges serving everyone crossing the following morning.

Everything runs at full strength. Manang is at its busiest, with the Himalayan Rescue Association giving daily altitude briefings. Dashain and Tihar fall in October or early November depending on the year, and vehicles and staff are both affected around those weeks.

Roads are dry and in their best post-monsoon condition, and demand for the Besisahar vehicle and Dharapani jeep is at its annual peak. Book several days ahead, particularly around the festivals.