The Longest Mountain Bike Descent in the World
3 Days, 120km and a 4,530 Metre Vertical Drop
This is downhill mountain biking at its finest. The most epic of trails, slashes a line on the slopes of the World’s 7th and 10th highest mountains to the bottom of the world’s deepest gorge. A flowing ribbon of soul-fulfilling tracks and trails, ladies and gentlemen, this the greatest show on earth, on the grandest stage on earth – the Himalaya.
In a world of cava, what follows is a champagne dream. Starting at 5,411m on the Thorung La you’ll be presented with your steed; a top of the line, full-sus, all mountain freeriding machine.
The Annapurna range cuts into the heavens like skyscrapers and from the Thorung La you’ll be rewarded with an infinite mountain panorama. Ahead is the Kali Gandaki Gorge (the world’s deepest) and what lays in front is the biggest descent of your life. Ready, set, drop 2791m without even having to put in a pedal stroke… unless you want to go faster! The riding here is technical, rocky and the best kind of challenging. Home for the night is in Tukuche, where we’ll tuck into home-made apple brandy.
You’ll be feeling the flow on this slope style descent, linking up smooth rolling single track, negotiating rock bands and carving your way down the expansive mountain terrain. Following the winding Kali Gandaki river below you’ll be face to face with the monster 8000m high snow slopes of Dhaulagiri. This is a day of riding you’ll never forget! The perfect end to the perfect day is soaking in the natural hot springs at Tatopani.
One last blast on fast flowing trails all the way down to Beni. No need to rush today as we’ll savour every last moment on our bikes. There’s a myriad of trails at our disposable, this is truly a pick your own adventure as we make our way back into civilisation.
Grit and Dirt – The Details
So you’re feeling the stoke, you’re desperate to ride #TheBiggestDescent and you want to know how to do it? Great! There are several ways to get to the start of this epic ride.
- A. 10 day trek – See our Annapurna Hike and Bike page
- B. Fly from Pokhara – a flight in a light aircraft, one hour by 4×4, and a two day hike covering 1800m of ascent on our Epic Downhill MTB in Nepal.
- C. Complete the entire Annapurna Circuit by Mountain bike
- D. We also offer this ride as part of our Nepal Xtreme tour but it misses out the first 10km of the ride.
Is This for Me?
This is a serious trip. If you’re confident on technical terrain, ride regularly and the idea of riding in a remote, high altitude, alpine setting with limited facilities excites you, than this is the trip for you.
Please be aware you will be descending from 5411m above sea level. Altitude can affect your balance and judgement and the ability of your riding. The first ten kilometres of this trip from the Thorung La to Muktinath is a serious undertaking and is considered a no-fall zone. It is roughly a trail centre grade red on steep flowing single track. A crash could result in a long fall over cliffs.
We do have the ability to start in Muktinath, cutting the first ten kilometres of the trip, this is the norm for our Mountain Madness, Nepal Xtreme and Annapurna Hike & Bike Trips.