KATHMANDU: Tucked away in the hills of Gorkha and Lamjung, a new trekking route is quietly emerging as one of Nepal's most compelling Himalayan journeys — and it has just received a significant boost with its inclusion in the federal government's 100-point governance reform agenda.

The Buddha Himal Himalchuli Great Lakes Circuit (BHHGLC) is a 15-day trail that winds through some of the most pristine and least-visited landscapes in the Nepali Himalaya. 

Jointly developed by the Trekking Agencies' Association of Nepal (TAAN) and five rural municipalities in Gorkha and Lamjung — with support from the Nepal Tourism Board and UNDP — the circuit was built not by tourism bureaucrats, but by people who know and love these mountains.

Five lakes. Five valleys. Five peaks

The trail earns its name from the sacred lakes that punctuate the journey — Narad Pokhari, Dudh Pokhari, Meme Pokhari, Thulanagi, and Baraha Pokhari — each carrying its own mythology and each offering a stillness that feels increasingly rare in the world's popular trekking corridors.

Between the lakes, the route descends into five distinct river valleys: the Daraudi, Chepe, Dordi, Ngadi, and Marsyangdi. Each valley has its own character, its own rhythm, and its own communities — communities that have seen few foreign faces and who offer the kind of warm, unperformed hospitality that veteran trekkers travel years to find.

And above it all, five of Nepal's most dramatic Himalayan giants keep watch: Buddha Himal (6,672m), Himalchuli East (7,893m), Himalchuli West (7,540m), Ngadi Chuli (7,871m), and Himalchuli North (7,371m). These are not the peaks that appear on every poster and coffee table book. They are the ones that reward those who seek them out.

The Dordi Himal Trekking Route — one of the sub-circuits of the BHHGLC — has just been named in Nepal's national governance agenda as a priority destination for organised tourism development. 
Government attention and infrastructure investment will follow.