Dolpo Trek: Dunai to Jomsom

Arrive at Kathmandu. Transfer to your hotel. Overnight Hotel.

After breakfast, drive to Pashupatinath, Nepal’s most sacred Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva, with its two-tiered golden roof and silver door. Shiva, meaning “The Auspicious One”, also known as Mahadeva (“Great God”), is a popular Hindu deity and is considered to be the Supreme God within Shaivism, one of the three most influential denominations in Hinduism. Here, you’ll probably witness a Hindu cremation along the banks of the Bagmati River and many ascetics and Sadhus.

Then on to Bhaktapur, which is located about 20 km east of Kathmandu in the Kathmandu Valley, Bhaktapur is known as the ‘City of Devotees’, the ‘City of Culture’, the ‘Living Heritage’, and ‘Nepal’s Cultural Gem’. It is one of the 3 royal cities in the Kathmandu Valley. The others are Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, and Patan. Bhaktapur is filled with monuments, most terra-cotta with carved wood columns, palaces and temples with elaborate carvings, gilded roofs and open courtyards. As a World Heritage site listed by the UNESCO, Bhaktapur has been heavily restored since a 1934 earthquake severely damaged the city.

Overnight Hotel.

In the early afternoon, fly about an hour to Nepalgunj in the Western plains of Nepal. Nepalgunj is a bustling border town near the Nepal-India border. Expect hot and humid weather. Overnight Hotel Batika or similar.

Early flight to the STOL airport of Juphal in the Dolpo district. After arrival at Juphal, our staff will start loading the trek gear on the mules. Shortly, we begin our trek and descend to our camp at Suligaun. Overnight in tents.

For the next two days we follow the Suligad River which flows down from Phoksumdo Lake through a steep and green valley. The trail undulates, sometimes beside and sometimes high above the tumbling white-water river. There are scattered villages along the route. Many of these villages are only occupied during the winter months when the communities of Upper Dolpo bring their animals down from the high pastures and at the time of our trek they can be almost hidden in an overgrowth of tall grasses.
Overnight in tents.

Leaving Chepka, we cross the Suli Gad river four times, mostly staying close to the river as we hike through flowering, thick woods of bamboo and other indigenous trees including firs, birches and larches (deciduous conifers) turning their autumn hues, and a dramatic, deep-sided gorge, often hiking right by the riverside on flat, stone steps. Eventually the valley opens up a little and the going becomes easier until we reach a bridge leading to several houses which make up the village of Renje (3010m).

Beyond here the valley narrows once more and the trail continues to climb and descend. At the confluence of the Suli Gad and Pungmo Khola we cross to the west bank and make camp at the village. Overnight in tents.

Today we enter the National Park. Nearby is a school at Tapriza for students who subscribe to the Bon Po faith – the pre-Buddhist faith of ancient Tibet. The trail climbs to a ridge which separates the open fields of Ringmo from the narrow valley below. There will be a roar in the distance, and then it appears — a massive 900-foot waterfall, the biggest in Nepal. A steep zigzag path ascends alongside the falls. We camp on the Southern shore of the Phoksumdo Lake, under the birches, near the settlement of Ringmo. Overnight in tents.

The importance of proper acclimatization cannot be stressed enough. Today we will rest and let our bodies get used to the altitude. Overnight in tents.

We leave our campsite, heading north along a dramatic and slightly exposed trail high on the western side of the lake. The trail around the large Lake No longer bears resemblance to the treacherous one described by Matthiessen and Schaller (or as seen in the film “Himalaya”!); it simply undulates along and descends about 1,000 feet above the water, but it is not dangerous. From this vantage point, the view of the lake is unsurpassed. Near the northern end of the lake we make a long, gradual descent through a lovely forest of craggy Himalayan birches to reach our scenic lake-side campsite at Chabluk Phu, a local grazing area, just where the trail hits level ground. We will make camp on the Northern shore.
Overnight in tents.

We have a long climb, often with no trace of any trail as we progress up the steep sided valley, passing occasional grazing areas and crossing several side streams. Soon after the valley fills with an open forest of birches and rose-buds, and then narrows. We turn right up the first small intersecting valley (it’s easy to miss the trail, so stay with the group) which follows a rocky river to our campsite. As we climb, the landscape slowly becomes barren and the beautiful Himalayan birches appear in the distance. Finally, a few tough hours later, we reach our ‘high’ camp, which Mattheissen named Snowfields Camp. Our camp is at the foot of the pass that will lead us to Inner Dolpo. Overnight in tents.

It should take around three hours to reach the summit of the Kangla Pass (17,600 feet). From the pass, admire the views of the snow-peaks Shey Shikhar and Kang Chunne, both just over 6000 meters. It is highly likely there will be snow and part of the trail is on loose scree. Descend steeply to the valley floor and continue to Shey village. Overnight in tents.

Layover at Shey.
The ‘Crystal Mountain’, also known as the Kailash of Dolpo, takes its name from the veins of quartz that traverse its base and is the most sacred peak in Dolpo. Dolpo pilgrims circumambulate each July or August, during the full moon, before the yearly grain harvest. Today we’ll hike a few hours to visit the remote hermitage Tsakang, made famous by Matthiessen in his book ‘The Snow Leopard. It is beautifully built into the cliff face. It is like no other place on earth; makes sense that it is revered by both Bon Po and Buddhists.

Overnight in Tents.

Shey Gompa marks the junction of several trails once used by the old salt trading caravans and today by trekkers. Continue hiking to Sela (or Gela) — another pass found at 16,700 feet which presents a fine panorama of the Dolpo landscape.
From Gela, descend steeply to Namgung (15,088 feet). Namgung is a magical village with a continuous structure of buildings in a triangle of land at the junction of a deep cut canyon with the wider stream valley, but with a spectacular east-west aligned valley setting. Namgung is an especially important settlement as the home to the historic Namgung Monastery — one of upper Dolpo’s oldest Buddhist monasteries. Overnight in tents.

Today is a short but spectacular day along the high trail leading to Saldang. We leave Namgung on an easy trail with a gradual climb to a hilltop and then continue a gentle downhill slope to arrive at Saldang at 12,365 feet. We camp just above ochre Saldang Gompa, gold-gilded and sparkling in the mid-day sun. Overnight in tents.

Heading down past Saldang Gompa along the route to Dho we continue along the Nagon Khola through Sugugaon, a bustling, white-washed village and past long mani walls, painted chortens and old gompas perched high up along the mountainsides. Cross Khoma La (4565 meters), from where we contour gradually down to reach the beautiful village of Khomagaon (Khoma) where we camp in the middle of town on a large, and flat plateau. Just before we reach camp we pass directly through Khoma Gompa and school. Overnight in tents.

Visit Yangjer Gompa, one of the most important religious sites of the area. Ascend and contour for another hour to a small pass, the Shimen La (4270 meters). From here it’s a short but steep and sandy hike down to the intersection of the northern trail from Saldang. Snellgrove, who visited Dolpo in the 1960s, wrote ‘Shimen is the most pleasant of Dolpo’s villages just because of its many trees’ and you’ll notice the difference between Shimen and Khoma! Overnight in tents.

Optional rest day. Overnight in Tents.

Heading south along the Panjyan (Panzang) Khola, staying on the eastern bank, we pass two trails other side of the river. On our trail today, pass several ancient meditation caves, chortens and manis adorned with fluttering Tibetan prayer flags to Tinje Gaon (13,480 feet). Overnight in tents.

On the trek today, we will likely pass villagers from Chharka heading to or from Tibet with their yak caravans. We reach the intersection where the Panzang Khola becomes the Sulun Khola after about three scenic hours, and continue along the smaller, intersecting river from here. Soon we pass through narrowing, windy canyons, but after another few hours the valley widens and after crossing a small stream feeding from a large glacial valley we climb and descend to the wide plateau of Rapka. The camp has expansive views and makes a good stopping points for the night. Overnight in tents.

Today is a LONG day so start early. After an easy hour-long amble along the wide valley, wade the wide, icy but shallow river to get to the valley before crossing the Chharka La (Mola Bhanjyang). Crocs or Teva’s are useful for the river crossings. Climb a bit on the right side of the river, drop back down and then at the chortens start climbing again. The pass has two summits. We have another hour or so to go before reaching the Chharka La (5030m). At the pass, look to the right for a breath-taking view of Dhaulagiri, which we’ll have views of for a few days.

We have another two or three hours of contouring, sometimes steeply up or down, to reach Chharka and will probably pass villager en route collecting the evening’s firewood.
Overnight in Tents.

Once we depart on the trail from Chharka, we pass through no villages for another two days crossing several passes and kharkas (pastures). The first night’s camp is at Nulungsumde Kharka (16,400 feet), before ascending the twin passes of Niewar and Juben (the goal for tomorrow). Overnight in tent.

Double pass day! Ascend to the Niwar Pass (5130 meters). The second pass, the Sangda (Bhanjyang) La is perhaps half an hour away, and a 150-meter climb. Don’t underestimate this double pass; it can be extremely windy and cold. It’s a long, tough pass crossing but affording fantastic views from the top. The Sangda La marks the border of Dolpo and the Annapurna’s, so we’ve now entered the Annapurna region.
We descend along a steep, gravel trail, quite difficult, and follow the Bheri Khola to the intersection with the Kyalunpa Khola, Sangda Phedi (Sangda Gunsa), and the winter grazing settlement of the Sangda villagers. Camp above the village. Overnight in tents.

Soon after leaving camp, at the chorten to our left, we’ll have to cross the Bheri Khola on a small bridge and then hike along the right-hand bank for a bit. We leave the river and descend slowly to Jhyanse where we must ford the chilly river. Soon we reach the village of Sangda, a remote outpost of Gurung Tibetans. Overnight in tents.

From Sangda, start climbing and spend most of the morning making a high traverse, crossing many ridges until we finally reach the ‘pass’ at about 4500 meters. From the crest, we have a magnificent vista, looking out to snow-capped peaks and down to Mustang’s patch-work of trails and villages far below. Kagbeni, Jharkot, Muktinath, Thorung Peak, the Thorung La, Niligiri, Dhaulagiri and the Kali Gandaki are all visible, an awe-inspiring site! From here, we descend quite steeply into the Kali Gandaki valley. Descend steeply from the small Tiri Pass (3710m) eventually reaching the fortress-like entrances to the small villages of Phalyak. Phalyak is an interesting Mustangi village which holds an annual archery festival as most of the Mustangi and Managi villages do. Overnight in tents.

Niligiri and Dhaulagiri loom in the distance. Climb to a ridge 400 meters above Phalyak, and then head directly south down a steep, sandy trail towards Jomsom, the district headquarters of Mustang, on the Annapurna Circuit. We reach the long, cobbled path that connects upper and lower Jomsom. At the Trekker’s Lodge in the lower section of Jomsom, near the airport, cold beers and hot showers wait. Stay overnight in a lodge.

A short 15-minute flight through the Kali Gandaki valley (the deepest gorge in the world) and over the Ghorepani ridge into Pokhara. Today is a free day in Pokhara. Overnight Big Pillow Inn or similar.

Morning flight to Kathmandu. Free until farewell dinner. Overnight Hotel Tibet or similar.

Transfer to airport for final departure.