Manaslu Circuit Trek in May

In raw temperature terms, the pass is at its friendliest all year. No snow, mild pre-dawn air and long daylight for the Bimtang descent make May the gentlest month to attempt a 5,106m morning for anyone nervous about the altitude.

The lower gorge is where May demands some discipline. Cloud and the odd storm build over the Budhi Gandaki from around midday, so an early start and an early finish through Jagat, Deng and Namrung, already built into the itinerary's shorter daily stages, pays off.

Above Samagaon the sky cooperates again. Manaslu shows up well from Lho and the ridge above the village in the morning hours before the day's haze sets in, and the Birendra Lake walk is about as comfortable as it ever gets.

The April rush fades fast through the first half of May, leaving a genuinely quiet trail. Every teahouse from Jagat to Dharamsala runs at full capacity, and even the two guesthouses at Dharamsala have space most nights, a rarity compared with April or October.

Roads generally hold through May, though the first pre-monsoon showers can occasionally slow the Arughat to Machha Khola stretch late in the month. Vehicles are easy to find once the April rush has passed, and there is no real need to book ahead.