A chorten greets the early morning sun against a backdop of Ganesh Himal II, VI and IV from the village of Nyilie a few hours away from Mu Gompa , the last outpost in the Tsum Valley

A nun at the entrance of Dhepudoma nunnery at 4000 metres situated on the edge of a cliff higher than Mu Gompa

A monk and a pony at the entrance of Mu Gompa 3700 metres high up in the Tsum valley

An afternoon thunderstorm approaches near the village of Chule where this large chorten stands before the village entrance

As clouds funnel their way up the gorge of the Sardi Khola, a nun watches from her high post outside the entrance of Dhepudoma nunnery 4000 metres on a cliff in the remote Tsum Valley

The kitchen of Mu Gompa where a lama is served a cup of salted butter tea

Monk at the entrance of Mu Gompa

A chorten surrounded by spring blossoms on the trail near Choekhang Paro

Women cultivate the wheat fields near the village of Pangdun , half an hour south of Chule on the trail to Mu Gompa

Near Yaru Bagar , south of Jagat, the Budhi Gandaki flows though this flat plain

A trekker heads towards Mu Gompa high above the twin villagesof Nyile and Chule seen in the valley below

A mule caravan heads up the valley

The harbinger of the monsoon rains - dawn at Philim 1400 metres before the valley of Tsum

The foaming waters of the Budhi Gandaki just below the village of Dobhan