Climb through the Jhong cave complex

The Jhong cave sits in the cliff above the Chhoser valley, its entrance reached by a short climb from the path. A caretaker collects a small ticket. Inside, rooms have been cut into the soft rock on several levels, linked by narrow passages, holes in the floors and ceilings, and wooden ladders. Some rooms have niches, hearths and smoke-blackened ceilings that show people once lived here. Small windows look out over the valley.

Your guide explains what the caves were used for over time: burials in the earliest periods, homes when the region was unsafe, and later meditation cells and storerooms for monasteries. Some caves elsewhere in Mustang have yielded paintings, manuscripts and human remains, but the Jhong cave has long been open and is now mostly empty, which makes it easier to imagine daily life in its rooms. Look for tool marks on the walls where the rock was cut by hand.

The climb inside is not hard, but it is cramped, dusty and dark in places. A head torch is essential, and you need both hands free for the ladders. People who dislike tight spaces may prefer to see only the lower levels. Allow an hour or so, then sit outside at the entrance and look across the valley at the hundreds of other caves still out of reach. It is a quiet, thoughtful place.