Upper Dolpo traverse via Shey Gompa

Kathmandu to Nepalgunj

We fly west to Nepalgunj in the Terai, the hub for flights into Karnali. Your guide, cook and crew leader meet you here. We check permits, weigh duffels for the small plane and go through your kit: a sleeping bag rated to −20 °C, a down jacket, good boots and gaiters. Dinner at the hotel and an early night; the Juphal flight leaves at first light, when the hills are calmest.

Fly to Juphal, walk to Dunai

The flight lands on Juphal's short airstrip at about 2,475 m. While the crew loads mules, we walk down through terraces and walnut groves to the Thuli Bheri river and on to Dunai, the district headquarters, where permits are checked. A short first day to start the body adjusting. The town has a bazaar where the crew buys final supplies. Your guide checks everyone after the flight and keeps the pace easy, since today is about adjusting rather than distance. The first evening on the trail is often the noisiest, with mule bells and the crew settling in.

Dunai to Chhepka

We cross the Thuli Bheri and turn north up the Phoksundo Khola, past Sulighat, into the national park. The trail runs through pine and walnut, with Hindu villages giving way to Buddhist ones as we climb. Chhepka is a small village with fields and a camping ground beside the river, our first night under canvas. The crew sets up the dining tent, and the cook makes the first of many good meals on the trail.

Chhepka to Rechi

A gentle day upriver through forest of birch, pine and bamboo, with frequent bridges. Watch for langurs in the trees and for the first chortens that mark the change to Dolpo-pa country. Rechi is a quiet camping place by the river. The short day is deliberate: we are climbing slowly to give the body time before the high country. In the evening the crew lights a fire if wood is allowed, and the sound of the river fills the valley.

Rechi to Ringmo and Phoksundo

The climb to the lake passes the tall waterfall where the Phoksundo Khola falls from the lake basin. Then, over a ridge, the lake appears: deep turquoise at about 3,610 m, with Ringmo's stone houses at its southern end. We camp near the village. Ringmo's people are Bon followers, and their monastery stands on the lakeshore a short walk away. In the evening, walk to the edge of the water as the light fades and the lake turns from turquoise to deep blue.

The story of Shey Phoksundo →

Rest day at Phoksundo

A rest and acclimatisation day. Visit the Bon monastery on the shore, where monks walk around the shrine anticlockwise, the reverse of Buddhist practice. Walk a short way along the lakeshore for views back to the village, or climb the slope above Ringmo for a high view of the whole lake. The crew washes, repacks and prepares for the wild country ahead. In the evening, check boots and layers: from here on, the nights are much colder and the trail far more remote.

The story of Shey Phoksundo →

West shore trail to Phoksundo Khola

Today follows the famous trail along the west shore of the lake, a ledge built into the cliff with steep drops to the water, described by Matthiessen in The Snow Leopard. Mules cross it carefully, and so do we. At the north end, the trail enters the wide gravel valley of the Phoksundo Khola, where we camp among scrub and boulders. Tonight's camp is quiet and wild, and the stars are bright on clear nights.

The story of Shey Phoksundo →

Up the valley to the Kang La camp

We follow the river upstream, crossing it several times, then climb a side valley toward the pass. The vegetation gives out to grass, stone and snow patches. Camp is high and cold, often well below freezing at night. Your guide checks everyone's oxygen level and how they feel before deciding on tomorrow's crossing. Hot drinks, an early dinner and an early night prepare you for the crossing. The crew checks the weather and the snow on the pass before deciding on the start time.

Over Kang La to Shey Gompa

We start before dawn for the long, steep climb to the Kang La at about 5,360 m, the highest point of the trek. Snow and scree near the top make it slow. The view from the pass reaches across the brown ranges of Upper Dolpo. A long descent leads to a river valley and Shey Gompa, a red monastery beside a wooden bridge and fields of prayer stones, under the Crystal Mountain.

Shey Gompa and the Crystal Mountain

A day at Shey. Dolpo-pa pilgrims walk a kora around the Crystal Mountain to earn merit; we walk part of it. Climb to Tsakang, a hermitage built into the cliff above Shey, which Matthiessen visited. Blue sheep graze the slopes here, the animals Schaller came to study, and snow leopards hunt them, though they are almost never seen. In the afternoon, rest in camp and enjoy one of the quietest places you will ever stay.

Over Saldang La to Namgung

From Shey we climb through bare, rolling country to the Saldang La at about 5,200 m, with views north toward the Tibetan border. The descent leads down to Namgung, a small village with a monastery built against a cliff, its red walls visible from far up the valley. Yak and goat herds come down to the village in the evening. It is a long, hard day, so the crew serves hot soup as soon as you reach camp.

Namgung to Saldang

A shorter day down to Saldang, the largest village in the Nangkhong valley, strung out along a terrace high above the river. Houses are flat-roofed and stacked with firewood and dung for winter. Saldang's families trade with Tibet over the northern passes, and the village is a waypoint for salt and grain caravans. The camp is close to the village, and children are often curious about the tents. Ask before photographing people or homes.

A day in Saldang

A rest day among people. Visit the village monastery and the chortens at either end of the village, and watch the work of the season: harvesting barley, threshing on flat roofs, spinning wool. If invited into a home, you will be offered butter tea and tsampa. Our guide translates and helps you ask the questions you have been storing up since Shey. The day ends with dinner in the mess tent, as the crew prepares for the next section of the route.

Saldang to Sibu via Namdo

We walk down the valley to Namdo, a long village on the hillside with a monastery above it, and continue to Sibu, a small settlement with fields and a camping place by the river. The valley is wide and the walking easy. In autumn, caravans of yaks may pass carrying grain north and salt south, as they have for centuries. The afternoon is free for rest and laundry in the sun.

Sibu to Jeng La base

We follow the river upstream, then turn south toward the Jeng La. The trail is gentle until the last climb to camp, a grassy flat at the foot of the pass used by herders. A cold, clear night, with the Milky Way bright overhead. The crew serves an early dinner so we can start before sunrise. Your guide checks oxygen levels and weather before confirming the crossing. Sleep early and keep water bottles inside your sleeping bag so they do not freeze.

Over Jeng La to Tokyu

We climb about two hours to the Jeng La at 5,090 m. From the top, on a clear morning, the Dhaulagiri massif appears to the south. The descent leads into the upper Tarap valley and along it to Tokyu, a village with a monastery, the first settlement of the Tarap valley. The country here is gentler, with wide pastures and fields. After the pass, the walk down the valley feels easy, and Tokyu's fields and chortens are a welcome sight in the afternoon.

Tokyu to Dho Tarap

An easy walk down the wide Tarap valley, past chortens, mani walls and both Bon and Buddhist monasteries, to Dho Tarap, the main village of the valley. After two weeks in the remote north, Dho feels busy, with a school, a few shops and a lodge or two. Afternoon free to wash and rest. For the first time in many days, you may meet other trekkers, coming up from Lower Dolpo.

The story of Dho Tarap →

Rest day in Dho Tarap

Time to rest and explore. Visit a Bon monastery and a Buddhist gompa in the valley, and walk the fields where barley and buckwheat grow at over 4,000 m. This is the last day at real altitude, so enjoy the light and the quiet before the long descent through the gorge. The crew enjoys the rest day too, and some will visit friends and relatives in the village. Dho Tarap's lodges may offer a hot shower.

The story of Dho Tarap →

Dho Tarap to Nawarpani

We leave the open valley and enter the Tarap Khola gorge. The trail follows the river closely, crossing it on wooden bridges, with cliffs rising hundreds of metres on both sides. Shrubs and then trees return. Nawarpani is a camping place where the gorge widens briefly. The air feels thick and warm after the weeks above 4,000 m, and sleep comes easily. Watch for blue sheep on the cliffs above the river in the evening light.

Nawarpani to Laini

Down the narrowest part of the gorge, where sections of the trail are built from flat stones laid across ledges above the water, repaired by villagers every year. Watch for blue sheep on the cliffs and for herders' caves. Laini is a small clearing by the river among birch and pine. The crew prepares a good dinner to mark the end of the high country. Laini is our last night in the gorge before the valley opens out.

Laini to Tarakot

The gorge opens at last into the valley of the Thuli Bheri. Fields of maize and millet, Hindu shrines and the sound of Nepali rather than Tibetan tell you you have crossed back into the middle hills. Tarakot sits on a ridge above the river among terraced fields. Enjoy a warm evening with the sound of the river below and a full moon, if your dates are lucky. The crew may buy fresh vegetables in the village for dinner.

Tarakot to Dunai

A warm walk down the Thuli Bheri to Dunai, where the circle closes. Hot showers are possible in a lodge here for the first time in weeks. The crew organises a farewell dinner, and it is a good evening to thank the muleteers, who will head home from here. The muleteers usually return north from here with their animals. Dunai's bazaar has small shops and tea stalls, a good place to buy a souvenir or simply sit and watch the town go by.

Dunai to Juphal

A short climb back to the airstrip at Juphal through terraces and walnut trees. Your guide confirms tomorrow's flight. The afternoon is free to rest, sort gear and settle tips. Juphal flights are weather-dependent, and this itinerary keeps a buffer in Kathmandu for that reason. The evening is a good time to look back over three weeks and thank each member of the crew. Your guide will also check the luggage weight for the small plane.

Fly to Nepalgunj and Kathmandu

An early flight drops you into the heat of Nepalgunj, and we connect to Kathmandu in the afternoon. Check into your hotel and enjoy a long shower and a meal you did not eat in a tent. If the Juphal flight is delayed, today's Kathmandu night becomes our buffer. Use the evening to rest, eat well and enjoy your first night in a proper bed in more than three weeks.

The story of Kathmandu →

Trip ends in Kathmandu

The trip ends after breakfast. If you have time, Patan or Bhaktapur make a gentle return to the world of cities. We can arrange extra nights, sightseeing and transfers to the airport for your departure. If you are flying home today, allow time for the airport, which can be busy in October. If you have more time, we can arrange a day of sightseeing or a quiet stay outside the city.

The story of Kathmandu →