Lower Dolpo Trek

This trek, to Nepals remote and seldom seen Wild West, is possibly one of the best long treks in the Himalaya. This follows the route taken by Peter Matthiessen and immortalized in his famous book The Snow Leopard. The Dolpo area was also the area where Rodney Jackson, a naturalist, conducted his study on the elusive snow leopards which became the subject of a National Geographic article and a book - Vanishing Tracks. This trek offers one of the remotest terrain, natural grandeur and Buddhist villages few westerners have yet visited. Starting by following the tropical Mayagdi Valley the trail crosses several high passes before getting to Tichurong and the Buddhist enclave of Dho and then to the famous Phoksumdo Lake (near where Matthiessen spotted his snow leopard) before swinging back to Dunai and ending with the flight out of Juphal to Nepalgunj and Kathmandu.

Facts Of The Trek

Trekking Destination : Shey-Phoksundo Lake

Group Size : Min - 1

Minimum altitude : 3358m.

Maximum altitude : 5360m.

Grade : Moderate to Hard

Season : Spring & Autumn

Accommodation :--------

Duration : 26 Days

Entry : Juphal

Exit : Juphal

Itinerary In Detail

Days 01 : Katmandu. Airport - hotel transfer.

Days 02 : Katmandu. Day at leisure.

Days 03 : Katmandu - Nepalganj by plane.

Days 04 : Nepalganj - Juphal (2250 m) by plane. During the flight, we can enjoy a superb panorama on the Annapurnas, the Dhaulagiris and the Manaslu. We start our trek with a 3-hour walk towards Dunai (2150 m).

Days 05 : Dunai - Tharakot (2700 m) in 5 h. The trail goes along the Thulo Bheri river towards Tharakot. This village was an ancient fortress and a caravan stop.

Days 06 : Tharakot - Lahini ( 3200 m) in 5 h. Steady ascent by steep trails through fir and juniper forests.

Days 07 : Lahini - Naure Odar (3100 m) in 6 h. The narrow trail goes through the Tarap Khola gorges.

Days 08 : Naure Odar - Dho (4000 m) in 6 h. We come out onto the Tibetan plateau. A tough walk through a vegetation thinning out, towards Dho, the main village of the valley

Days 09 : Acclimatization day at Dho. We will visit the three main villages of the Tarap valley and the Ri Bhumpa Gompa and Bon-Po Gompa monasteries.

Days 10 : Dho - Camp at 4100 m (before the pass) in 5 h. In this region, men trim their hair with red threads and wear them in a chignon as the Khampas from Tibet. Women wear heavy silver headgears.

Days 11 : Camp at 4100 m - Nun La Pass (5360 m) - Camp at 4200 m in 6 h. From the Nun La, literraly " salt pass ", views of the Annapurnas, the Dhaulagiri and the Nilgiri are superb. We then descend the other side of the mountain and establish the campsite at 4200 m.

Days 12 : Bivouac - Bagla La Pass (5090 m) - Roman (3800 m) in 5 h.. The emerald waters of the Phoksondo lake and the picturesque village of Ringmo form one of the most beautiful himalayan landscape.

Days 13 : Roman - Ringmo (3510 m) in 2 h . Gentle walk around the lake and visit of the Tesu monastery. The monastery leads the whole life of Ringmo, inhabited by " Bothias ", an ethnic originally from Tibet.

Days 14 : Ringmo - Pungmo (3500 m) in 5 h. The trails follows the Phoksondo banks and later the Pungmo Khola river.

Days 15 : Pungmo - Lasa (4100 m) in 5 h. The path pleasantly goes through blue fir tree forests and later through birches and junipers.

Days 16 : Lasa - Kagmara La (5115 m) - Kagmara Phedi (4000 m) in 6 h.

Days 17 : Kagmara Phedi - Toijem ( 2920 m) in 4 h. Descent on a moraine and then along the Garpung Khola river.

Days 18: Toijem - Kaigaon (2650 m) in 5 h.

Days 19 : Kaigaon - Chaurikot (3060 m)

Days 20 :Chaurikot - Mauri Lagna Pass ( 3820 m) - Chatra (3380 m) in 6 h. Mauri Lagna means " Honey Pass ". During spring, the trail lined with blue lilies, azaleas and blossoming rhododendrons. Magnificent panorama of snowy summits: Gutumba (5608 m), Mata Tumba (5767 m), Bhahul Himal (5460 m).

Days 21 :Chatra - Gotichaur (2650 m). Corn, potatoes, barley and buckwheat fields alternate with meadows and forests.

Days 22 : Gotichaur - Jumla (2300 m) in 5 h. Peaceful verdant areas strewn with shining irrigation canals and rivers. In summer, the flora brightly blossom: orchids, forget-me-nots, geraniums, mints, buttercups, gentians

Days 23 : Jumla - Nepalganj by plane.

Days 24 : Nepalganj - Katmandu by plane.

Days 25 :Katmandu. Day at leisure. Safety day for your international flight.

Days 26 : Katmandu. Hotel - airport transfer.

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