Is the Manaslu Circuit Trek Affected by the 2026 Nepal Floods?
No — the Manaslu Circuit runs on the Budhi Gandaki in Gorkha, a different river from the flood-hit Bhote Koshi in Rasuwa. Here is why the trail and the Larke La are unaffected — and the one road caveat to confirm.
📍 Developing story — live updates
The 2026 Nepal floods are a nationwide, still-developing emergency and the figures are rising. For the latest verified death toll, missing and rescued numbers and trek status, follow our continuously updated Nepal Floods 2026: Live Updates.
Last updated: 29 August 2026. I keep this page honest and current. If you are booked on the Manaslu Circuit this autumn, here is the short answer, and then the detail behind it.
Is the Manaslu Circuit trek affected by the 2026 Nepal floods? No — the trekking route runs on a different river system and is operating normally. The flash flood of 26 August 2026 came down the Bhote Koshi into Rasuwa district in the north — the Langtang road-head and the Tibet border crossing at Rasuwagadhi. The Manaslu Circuit sits in the Gorkha district to the west and drains the Budhi Gandaki, a completely separate watershed. The trail from Machha Khola up to Samagaun and over the Larke La (5,106 m) was not touched by that flood. If you have a Manaslu trip booked for October or November, your plans stand — with one honest caveat about the approach road below.
Manaslu Circuit — the honest status
- Affected by the 26 August flood? No. That flood was on the Bhote Koshi in Rasuwa. The Manaslu trail is in Gorkha, one major valley to the west, on the Budhi Gandaki — a different river that never meets the Bhote Koshi in the mountains.
- Trekking route and Larke La: clear. Machha Khola, Jagat, Deng, Namrung, Samagaun, Samdo, Dharmasala and the Larke La crossing to Bimthang were not in the flood zone.
- The approach road is the thing to confirm. The drive from Kathmandu to Machha Khola runs 8–9 hours through Gorkha, and the last stretch along the Budhi Gandaki is a narrow dirt road that monsoon rain routinely blocks with landslides. This is normal late-monsoon behaviour, not flood damage — confirm the road on the day you travel.
- Best season is weeks away. The flood hit in late monsoon. The Manaslu season is October–November, when the rain stops and the road firms up.
- It is a restricted-area trek. Manaslu needs a Restricted Area Permit, an MCAP card, a licensed guide and at least two trekkers booked through an agency — and all of that paperwork is issued in Kathmandu, nowhere near Rasuwa.
Why Gorkha and Rasuwa are different worlds
Nepal is not one small place where a single flood touches everything. Its trekking regions are split by great ranges and drained by separate rivers that stay apart until the plains. The 26 August flood surged down the Bhote Koshi, which flows out of Tibet into Rasuwa and on into the Trishuli, hitting Timure and Syabrubesi hardest according to reporting collated by Wikipedia's running summary and outlets including CNN. Syabrubesi is where nearly every Langtang trek starts. It is not on the Manaslu route, and no part of the Manaslu journey passes through Rasuwa.
The Manaslu Circuit follows the Budhi Gandaki, which rises on the south side of the Manaslu massif and the Larke La and runs south through Gorkha. It is a different river, a different valley and a different set of villages. A flood on the Bhote Koshi in the north has no physical bearing on the trail to Samagaun — they are days apart on the map.
I want to be straight about one point, because it is the honest complication. This is a nationwide monsoon emergency, not only a Rasuwa event, and Gorkha district did record flood losses during it — but those were in the lower, southern parts of the district, in the settled river flats, reported in the national district-by-district tallies. The upper Budhi Gandaki trekking corridor and the Larke La were not among the areas struck. Do not let a district name in a headline stand in for a trail that sits far above it. The trekking route is a different matter from the lowland floodplain, and I check both before I say a word to a client.
The Manaslu Circuit, stage by stage
The clearest way to see why your trek is fine is to walk it as we actually run it and check each stage against the flood zone.
| Stage / region | Watershed & where it is | Status & what to do |
|---|---|---|
| Kathmandu (arrival, permits, briefing) | Central hub | Normal — permits issued as usual |
| Drive to Machha Khola / Soti Khola | Lower Gorkha, Budhi Gandaki road | Running, but monsoon landslides possible — confirm the road on the day |
| Machha Khola → Jagat → Deng | Lower Budhi Gandaki gorge, Gorkha | Trail open, teahouses running |
| Namrung → Samagaun → Samdo | Upper Budhi Gandaki, below Manaslu | Open — not in the flood zone |
| Dharmasala → Larke La (5,106 m) → Bimthang | The high pass, Gorkha/Manang divide | Open; standard high-pass weather rules apply |
| Dharapani → Besisahar exit | Marsyangdi valley, Lamjung | Open — a different valley again, unaffected |
The restricted-area paperwork — the RAP, the MCAP and the licensed guide requirement — is arranged in Kathmandu before you set out. None of it is issued in or routed through Rasuwa, so the flood has no effect on your permits. If you want the wider picture on which valleys are clearing for autumn, we track the road situation for Annapurna, Manaslu and Langtang in this companion piece.
How we run Manaslu safely this autumn
Nothing exotic — the same discipline that makes this trek reliable in a normal year. We watch the Gorkha road forecast and, if a landslide closes the last section, we adjust the drive or the start point rather than push through mud. We build the acclimatisation days that the Larke La demands. We insist on proper travel and rescue insurance. And we book with a guide who monitors conditions daily and will tell you the truth — including "wait a day" when the weather says so.
A local guide's take
I plan logistics on these trails for a living, so let me be precise rather than reassuring. The 26 August flood was a Bhote Koshi event in Rasuwa; the Manaslu Circuit is a Budhi Gandaki trek in Gorkha. Two different rivers, two different valleys. Yes, Gorkha district appears in the national flood tallies — and no, the flood did not reach the trekking corridor or the Larke La. The one real thing to check for Manaslu is the monsoon-battered approach road, which is a nuisance every August and firms up as autumn comes. Cancelling a Manaslu trip over a flood in another watershed would be the wrong call. Knowing your route, and confirming the road the day you drive, is the right one.
What you can book for autumn
Manaslu departures running normally this October and November
These are the trips we are putting people on right now, priced from the per-person rate a small group pays:
- Manaslu Circuit Trek — 14 days · from US$1,550 per person in a group of eight (US$2,100 solo). The classic loop over the Larke La.
- Manaslu Circuit Trek — 16 days · from US$1,750 per person. The same route with extra acclimatisation.
- Manaslu & Tsum Valley Trek — 19 days · from US$2,250 per person. Adds the sacred Tsum valley side trip.
Want to check a specific date or the road status before you commit? Message us on WhatsApp or use the contact form. No pressure — if a date does not look right, I will tell you.
Related reading
- Nepal trekking conditions right now: region-by-region status after the 2026 floods
- Bhote Koshi flash flood, 26 August 2026: what happened in Rasuwa district
- Nepal Floods 2026: live updates, death toll and trek status
Sources: Wikipedia — 2026 Nepal floods; CNN live coverage. Road-access notes reflect normal late-monsoon conditions on the Gorkha approach and should be reconfirmed on the day of travel.
Cover photo: Samdesherpa via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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