- Details
A huge congratulations to our 2025 Nanga Parbat Circuit group! They have just completed an epic trek in Pakistan, this is a rarely attempted journey that included crossing the Mazeno La at 5,400m. This international team brought together trekkers from the UK, Ireland, Australia, and Canada.
This remote trekking expedition was years in the making, spearheaded by our international leader, Ade Summers. For years, Ade and I had been very interested in the idea of circumnavigating the Nanga Parbat mountain. We'd both driven past its slopes with groups on the Karakoram Highway (KKH) and marvelled at it from the plane en route to Skardu for the K2 Base Camp trek. The intrigue of why one of the world's few 8,000m peaks remained largely untrekked fuelled our interest. After designing the trip together, Ade led a reconnaissance trek to Nanga Parbat in June 2022.
Ade's leadership was supported by an incredible Pakistani trek crew, including our Sirdar, Faqir, and guides, along with the brilliant cook, Aslam. Their local knowledge and unwavering support were instrumental to the group's success. Thank you!
Every adventure to Pakistan comes with an element of the unexpected. In the lead-up to departure, there were moments of uncertainty with a regional conflict between Pakistan and India from May 7 to May 10, 2025. This was followed by the airstrikes of Iran by Israel and the USA from June 13th to 22nd, 2025. Fortunately, these were short-lived and, ultimately, did not impact our trek at all. Similarly, shortly after our group safely departed Pakistan, the region experienced heavy rains, leading to flash flooding and landslides. The route our group had driven back to Islamabad just days earlier over the Babusar Pass was blocked by landslides. These events serve as a powerful reminder that an expedition to Pakistan is always a true adventure, requiring a flexible and open mindset. Inshallah!
Ade sums up his experience leading this group:
“It was an amazing trek around Nanga Parbat. More than just a trek, but also a cultural experience, visiting remote valleys and remote villages. A great achievement to cross Mazeno Pass and visit the three mountain faces of Nanga Parbat. It is a hard but so rewarding trek. Crossing the Mazeno La was challenging, not so much the climb but the descent on the other side. There was no snow this time, so the loose rocky steep scree was hard work and difficult. The weather was very hot; in fact all of the mountains of Pakistan were unseasonably warm this year. It never really got cold, even at High Camp before crossing Mazeno La. In summary, this is an amazing but challenging trek, but only for very experienced groups with a strong spirit of adventure.”
One of our trekkers Matt, sums up his experience in his AITO Traveller Review:
“A first-rate trek around a magnificent mountain, seemingly little-visited by others. The Nanga Parbat Circuit affords fine views of all of the three major faces of this 8,000-metre peak, visiting the three Base Camps used by mountaineers ascending the peak (although only one of these sees much use nowadays as the other two faces are far more difficult to climb). We did not meet any other trekkers, which made for a far better experience.
The Mountain Company (TMC) offers impeccable customer service and plans its treks incredibly carefully. Acclimatization is taken very seriously, which adds a few days to the itinerary but leads to a far more enjoyable and safer experience for everyone in the party. The local guides and crew used in Pakistan were also magnificent, and were great company.”
Ade checked in every day while on trek by sending his GPS location via his Thuraya satellite phone. I dropped these coordinates onto a Google Map, and you can view their route at Google Maps for Nanga Parbat Circuit in June 2025.
As Ade noted in his summary, Pakistan experienced unusually high temperatures this past summer, conditions that also challenged mountaineers on the 8,000-meter peaks. Our own Nanga Parbat Circuit group also encountered much warmer conditions than normal. Ade's reconnaissance trek in 2022, on similar dates, saw a snowy descent of Mazeno La. However, this past summer, our group navigated loose rock, which significantly increased the risk of rockfall.
We do our best to plan our trek start dates to ensure optimal weather and conditions. However, it's becoming increasingly difficult to predict as these conditions are changing significantly year by year. After a thorough debrief, Ade and I agreed that an earlier start date for future treks would be beneficial, giving us a better chance of a snowy, and thus safer, Mazeno La crossing. Therefore, we're moving the Nanga Parbat Circuit start date to June 4th for 2026, shifting from the June 18th start in 2025.
Another key change for future expeditions involves our itinerary. Our original plan for the 2022 recce aimed to circumnavigate the entire Nanga Parbat mountain. However, it became clear that taking a commercial trekking group, supported by porters, over the high passes from the Diamir side to the Raikhot side near Fairy Meadows was not feasible. While highly experienced independent trekkers have completed this route without porters, it carries a very high risk of rockfall on a challenging trail. Furthermore, it would be physically too much for most trekkers after several demanding days approaching and crossing the Mazeno La. For our 2025 group, after successfully crossing the Mazeno La and visiting Diamir Base Camp, we descended to the roadhead at Diamoroi and drove around via the Karakoram Highway (KKH) to Fairy Meadows.
The feedback from Ade and the group highlighted that the natural endpoint of the trek is Diamoroi, where we bid farewell to our porters and kitchen crew. This realisation has led to an adjustment to the itinerary that should improve the experience for future trekking groups: we'll now begin the trip by visiting Fairy Meadows. This not only creates a more natural flow but also offers significant benefits for acclimatisation to the high altitude. An additional advantage of finishing at Diamoroi is the opportunity to drive directly over the Babusar Pass and enjoy an overnight stay in Naran. Naran provides a welcome respite with its cooler temperatures, a stark contrast to Chilas, which is known for scorching temperatures up to 45 degrees Celsius at this time of year. This revised route also ensures a much shorter drive from Naran back to Islamabad.
If you would like to see Ade's photos of the trek, you can view our Facebook page or Instagram account. I suggest you also watch Piotr's video from Ade's recce around Nanga Parbat in 2022.
The Nanga Parbat Circuit trek would be an ideal choice for those seeking a remote adventure away from the crowds. If you are looking to explore a remote trail with virtually no other trekkers, offering incredible mountain views, the Nanga Parbat Circuit offers an unparalleled experience. Unlike the increasingly busy K2 Base Camp, you're unlikely to encounter other international trekkers here, except for local Pakistani tourists at Fairy Meadows and Tarashing. Beyond the stunning landscapes, this trek also provides a unique cultural immersion. On the Diamir side of Nanga Parbat, you'll visit traditional villages and have the opportunity to meet locals, many of whom work with us as porters.
We believe it's crucial for Pakistan's tourism to diversify beyond K2 Base Camp. The Karakoram mountains hold immense, unrealized potential, and by exploring quieter trails like Nanga Parbat, we aim to showcase more of this incredible region's beauty and contribute to a broader, more sustainable tourism landscape.
We are planning to organise our Nanga Parbat Circuit in June 2026. Please get in touch with us if you are interested in joining this group.
Trek on!
Roland Hunter
The Mountain Company