DAY 1

The tour begins at the  Into the Wild office at 8:30 am. There the leading guide will give a short briefing on the trek and you can prepare. At 9:00 am you will be picked up by the tuk tuk, that will take you to Ban Huay Dam (Khmu Ou village), 26 kilometers North of Luang Namtha in the direction of the border with China, where you will be joined by the local guide.

 

From the starting point of the trek the path will lead up into the hills and into the Huay Dam village. During this part of the trek the guides will give an explanation on non-timber forest products, like edible, poisonous and medicinal plants, such as wild cardamom, galangal, rattan, bamboo shoots and wild banana stalks. After approx. 2 hours of trekking, you will have a picnic lunch with your guides in the forest alongside the path.

 

After lunch the trek will continue for another 2 hours, until you reach Ban Namkae Noi, a Lanten village. Here you will experience incredible views of the hilly farmlands of the Lanten people surrounding the village.

 

In Ban Namkae Noi,  local hosts will prepare a traditional dinner. In the meantime you can take a walk around the village, experience the daily life of the locals, play with the Lanten children and take a refreshing dip in the river. Later you will dine with the locals who traditionally come to help with cooking for the guests that stay overnight in their village.

 

DAY 2

In the early morning you are free to take another walk around the village, to see how the Lanten people prepare for their daily activities in the fields, how they feed their animals and how they take water from the river for use in their homes.

 

At 9:30 am the trek will start with a walk alongside the Nam Tuong River. From there on the path will rise and fall as you hike through small plots of farmland of the Lanten people and secondary forest. After about 2.5 hours you will make a stop to have a traditional Lanten lunch with your guides at the Namkae waterfall, close to the abandoned Namkae Yai village.

 

After lunch you will continue to trek through lush primary forest. The trek will end at around 3:00 pm in the Samyord Mai village of the H’mong people.

 

In the village the local hosts will prepare dinner. In the meantime you can take a walk around the village, where you can watch the daily life of the locals, play with the H’mong-children and can enjoy the beautiful mountainous Phou Samyord landscape. Later you will join the dinner with the locals who traditionally come to help with cooking for the guests that stay overnight in their village.

 

DAY 3

In the early morning you can take another walk around the village, where you will be able to see the difference between how the Lanten and H’mong people prepare for their daily activities.

 

At 9:30 am you will begin the trek, following a path that gradually ascends and descends, through the small plots of farmland of the Samyord Mai people. The last part of the trek you will walk through beautiful primary forest (over 100 years old). After approx. 2.5 hours you will stop to have a traditional H’mong lunch in the forest,

 

together with your guides.

 

After lunch, the trek will continue through primary forest. Towards the end of the trek, you will walk downhill through the farm lands of the Ban Nem Deng people for about 15 minutes. The trek will end at around 4:00/5:00 pm at the main road in Nam Deng, a Lanten people’s village. The tuk tuk will pick you up and take you back to the Into the Wild office in Luang Namtha. 

 

What to bring?

Hat banana, sunscreen, extra set of clothes and shoes in case you get wet, mosquito repellent, warm clothes for the evening (Nov-Mar) women need a sarong for bathing, towel, rain jacket (if wet season), flashlight, money to buy  handicrafts and extra drinks.