7 Mar 2023 Prakash Devkota
For whatever expedition you make, the first thing you do is find the right gear that eases your journey and keeps you safe. You can’t expect to make it as far as you’d like without the proper essentials. Mt. Manaslu is one of the most challenging mountains, so you must gear up and bring all the essentials required for the trek/expedition.
However, picking the items for a multi-day expedition like Manaslu can be challenging and stressful. You’ll have to be extra careful when choosing the essentials, as every item can make a difference. You might need various quality clothes and modern tools like an ice ax and a carabiner.
Other items include a day rucksack where you can keep all your belongings. However, we recommend you keep the backpack as light as possible but without leaving any items.
Check our Manaslu Expedition Package
Equipment List For Manaslu Expedition
Base Layers
Manaslu’s snowy slopes and icy trails are cold most of the year. It’s frigid at the top with climate extremes and lower temperatures. Therefore, you must carry a base layer to stay warm and avoid getting frozen. A thermal layer will absorb your sweat and keep you dry and warm. It’s better to consider light-insulated layers with synthetic material as an option since it retains heat. They are designed to wick away moisture and maintain your body’s heat.
Short Sleeve
Short sleeve shirts are the best when trekking Manaslu in summer. They are comfy, lightweight, and breathable. Short sleeve shirts relegate your body temperature and provide your skin with UV protection.
Long Sleeve
Long-sleeved wear is fabulous in retaining moisture and providing a certain degree of protection to your skin. They have perfect layering that keeps you warm and prevents the sun from beating down your skin. The long sleeve shirts will also protect you from twigs and thorns while hiking through the bushes and forests.
Trekking Trousers
Lightweight hiking trousers are the best thing to wear when climbing Manaslu. They’ll provide you with enough room for breathability and keep you comfortable. Also, they dry quickly, as most trekking pants are made of nylon or polyester.
Down Jacket
Down Jackets are the most prized possession of any hiker. They are usable in the frigid region where the winds are high. Down Jackets are great insulators with soft and warm feathers. They are long-lasting, fluffy, and highly breathable. The down jackets are easy to compress so that you can bring them all along the way.
Waterproof Jacket
A waterproof jacket would be convenient if you’re climbing Manaslu. It’ll help you battle the cold and keep you warm even when it’s raining or snowing. The waterproof jacket is water resistant, so they don’t let the water sip in and keep it dry.
Trousers
You can carry a pair of comfortable walking trousers when it’s cold or in the evening. Climbers can also wear trousers as short as they are quite comfortable and easy to use. Most of these trousers are adaptable with zippers in them.
Mid Layer
Mid Layer bottoms are great for adding an extra layer of warmth over your base. It is a standard shield, protecting your body from rain, wind, and cold. The outer shell traps your heat and doesn’t let the wind pass through it, allowing all the moisture to soak in. You can find the mid-layer of all kinds, fleece jackets, sweaters, long-sleeved tops, or hoodies.
Food & Water
Although your travel agency arranges your daily meal, it’s better to stock some of your own. You can carry a few good snacks and energy bars for protein during the run. Consider bringing a reusable water bottle, as you can refill it anytime all along the way.
Hiking Shoes
Hiking shoes are the greatest asset for any outdoor adventure, let alone hiking. They’re nice and comfortable to wear on any terrain, rugged or steep. The hiking shoes are built to protect your feet from rough wilderness trails and prevent bruising and abrasion. They provide you with good traction to ascend the steep trails.
Backpack
To enjoy a great expedition like Manaslu, you must have a solid backpack to carry your belongings. Depending on the length of the itinerary and personal interests, you might need a 40 to 50 liters backpack. On a trek, you need a flexible, waterproof backpack that provides maximum protection.
Trekking Poles
Trekking Poles are essential items for any hiker. They are pretty beneficial, providing propulsion on the ascent and aiding in balance. Trekking poles give more stability on the rugged terrain of Manaslu and protect your knees on descent.
Crampons
Crampons are required to climb the steep icy terrain of Manaslu. They improve mobility and add security to prevent accidents and falls. Steel crampons are used for mountaineering as they are handy and durable. The spikes on the crampon improve grip on ice and make walking easy on the snow.
Carabiners
Carabiners have always been the best bud of mountaineers. It has provided them with the most accessible means of traveling by just linking the harness and a rope. Hikers use carabiners to ascend the rugged cliffs and snow slopes where you don’t get a grip.
Sunglasses
Carry a pair of sunglasses to protect your eyes from cold. You may also use it as protection against UV radiation in the extreme climate of Manaslu. Mountaineering sunglasses are generally different from the regular pair of shades. They have dark lenses to prevent snowblindness and eye strain, especially at high altitudes with intense UV rays.
Neck gaiters
A large enlarged neck gaiter will protect you from UV rays and wind. It wicks the moisture, protects you from sunburn, and keeps your neck warm. The extra insulation in the gaiter will trap the air between fibers and warm it.
Sun Hat & Gloves
The heat can be quite intense in high altitudes, so a sun hat is much recommended. You’re also advised to bring a glove to prevent frostbite.
Sleeping Bag
Although Manaslu is a teahouse trek till base camp, there are many places where accommodations are limited. Also, finding a shelter might be difficult if you choose the wrong time. Therefore, it’s nice to have your sleeping bag, which will trap the air and keep you warm. A lightweight quilt with an insulated cover and a zipper will be lovely when hiking.
You will be sleeping in a tented camp from above the base camp; sleeping bags are the most.
Personal Items
Travel Documents
You can’t miss out on your travel documents when hiking anywhere in Nepal. You have to bring the necessary documents and visa to travel around the country.
Travel Insurance
Travel Insurance is a must if you’re climbing Manaslu. The plans cover
It protects you from financial losses and covers your doctor’s visit, emergency medical evacuation, and repatriation.
Camera & Adapter
Bring your camera to capture beautiful moments and take a shot of Mt Manaslu. You should also carry an extra battery, just in case. Remember, the trek to Manaslu is in the remote region, so bring an adapter, or you may not be able to charge your phone.
Sanitary Items
Shampoo, Conditioner & Hairbrush
Although bathing daily is hygienic, it’s impossible to do it on a trek. You must bathe once every two weeks, though, so carry your shampoo and conditioner. You might also want to take a brush to fix your hair. Carry a travel-friendly toiletry bag to pack all your belongings.
Toilet Paper
You can surely not expect to find toilet paper in a remote region like Manaslu. The lodges and guesthouses may not be able to facilitate, so get your rolls if needed. Around four-pack of toilet paper is enough for two weeks of travel.
Similar articles you may like:
Quick drying towel
A small, thin, light towel will be required for your travel. Polyester or nylon will be an excellent option as they are highly absorbent, soft, and can dry in just a few hours.
First aid
Many remote places in Manaslu don’t have immediate care or emergency facilities. So, carrying a first aid box with all the needed medicines would be better. This will prevent your injury from getting worse and relieve the pain.
You must carry Ibuprofen, Diamox, and other medications that aid recovery. Catching a cold during the trek to Manaslu is normal, so take some medicines for the common cold.
Prescribed Medicines
If there are any prescribed medicines, bring them as well. Don’t expect to buy them on the trail. There’ll likely be no medication anywhere near the region.
Water purification tablets
You can easily get water anywhere in the Himalayas. The teahouses and lodges provide drinking water to all their guest. However, you can also drink natural water only after purification. So carry a few water purification tablets, so you can use them every time you refill the bottle.
Band-aids and medical tape
Trekkers are often likely to get hurt when doing a multi-day trek like Manaslu. Walking several hours day after day, week in and out, can hurt your leg, so put some medical tape and a band-aid in your kit.
Prakash Devkota
Managing Director and Team Leader
Mr. Prakash Chandra Devkota is an established name in the Tourism Sector in Nepal. He is a focused individual gifted with a brilliant mind. He is also hugely dedicated to social work. Born in the Gorkha district, a beautiful hilly region of Nepal, he first entered the tourism industry as a guide in 1997. He has gained extensive experience in almost all the trekking and climbing routes like Mera, Island, Lobuche and, Ama Dablam, etc.
He registered Nepal Guides Treks & Expedition in 2009 AD. Due to his passion for adventure and efforts to provide quality personalized service to his clients, he has established himself as a successful tourism entrepreneur. He has dedicated most of his time working diligently to elevate the tourism industry and collected more than 15 years of experience in organizing trekking and expeditions in Nepal, Bhutan, and India. He believes in the power of the tourism industry and the employment opportunities that can be created through it. He constantly looks for innovative ways to run the company.
Mr. Devkota has always been an avid practitioner of eco-friendly tourism and has always promoted environmental conservation throughout his career. He motivates his staff to embrace eco-friendly tourism through responsible tourism practices. He believes promoting eco-tourism will preserve natural resources and positively impact the environment.
