When you arrive at Kathmandu Airport, you will be warmly welcomed by our office representative and transferred to your hotel. The rest of the day is at your leisure. You can explore the city, visit temples, or relax at the hotel. You will be staying overnight at your hotel in Kathmandu.

You wake up to the smell of fresh-baked bread. After breakfast, you’re picked up by our team and taken to our office for a trek briefing and preparation.

In the afternoon, our staff gives you a brief overview of the program. You visit some of the cultural heritage sites in Kathmandu, including the famous UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Swayambhunath and Kathmandu Durbar Square. You also have the opportunity to visit many other popular temples in Kathmandu, which is known as the “Temple City” for its many religious and rich places.

At the end of the day, you’re dropped off at your hotel in Kathmandu for an overnight stay.

As per the flight schedule for Nepalgunj, we will transfer to the domestic airport for one and a half hours before our flight to Nepalgung.

At Nepalgunj, we will have time in the late afternoon or evening to have a look around the town, which is situated on the southern Nepal border with India. It is quite hot and tropical in character.

After you stay overnight in Nepalgunj, you will departure to Juphal for 45 minutes. You will see the Annapurna and Dhaulagiri peaks from the plane.

Your trekking staff will meet you in Juphal after you have trekked there from Nepalgunj with your camping gear and food supply. You will trek for 2-3 hours from the airport to Dunai village.

You will start your journey by walking downhill for an hour through the settlement below the airfield. Then, you will hike through the terraced fields for 2-3 hours to the Bheri River and the tight valley to camp at Dunai.

Dunai is a large village or small township with a new hospital. It is the administrative headquarters of the Dolpo region. You will have time to walk around the village.

You will start your trek by crossing a suspension bridge and turning west. You will follow the trail past the hospital and climb up the side of the Thulo Bheri valley. You will crest a ridge and enter the Phoksundo River valley. You will reach another ridge at 2,499 m (8,197 ft). You will see a great view of Kagmara Peak up the valley. You will walk through a large side canyon and descend to a stream at 2,810 m (9,217 ft). You will reach Dhera, a winter settlement where people from higher villages keep herds of cows and goats.

If you choose to take the upper trail, you will climb to Rahagaon, a Thakuri village at 2,900 m (9,512 ft). There is a gompa dedicated to the local god, Mastha, who is the guardian of this village. You will pass through the lower part of Rahagaon and descend to the village water supply at the Phoksundo khola. You will pass through another canyon and head downhill through deep, dark forests to a large stream. You will finally emerge at the entrance to the Shey Phoksundo National Park at Ankhe (2,896 m/9,499 ft). You will stay here for the overnight camp.

You will walk along a forested riverbed, up and down a few times. There are streams along the way where you can cool off.

The trail will leave the forest and go up a grassy slope. It will then descend steeply into a forest and reach a cliff. You will have to walk down a wobbly stone staircase to the river bank. The trail will become a collection of rocks and sticks along the river bank. It is hard to imagine how the local people bring their yaks and cows along this trail.

You will continue upstream to a bridge near Ryajik village for the overnight camp at 3,500m.

You will continue along the valley floor to a place where the Phoksundo and Pungmo Kholas meet. You will cross the Phoksundo Khola on a wooden bridge and follow the west bank of the Pungmo Khola to Phoksundo Lake.

Along the way, you will pass through a cedar forest and come to Palam, a winter settlement. The houses here are almost buried in the sand. From Palam, you will climb to an open area where you can see Phoksundo Lake and a waterfall.

After taking in the views, you will descend through birch forests to Ringmo, a village with mud-plastered chortens and mani walls. From Ringmo, it is a short walk to the shores of Phoksundo Lake for your overnight stay.

A well deserved rest day free from packing at Phoksundo. We can go for a short hike to the village of Ringmo and its Tibetan Buddhist Monastery is well worth a visit.

From Phoksundo Lake, you will continue along the shore. The trail is narrow and made of wood, and it is suspended over a rocky ledge. This shows how remote the area is.

The trail leads through a meadow and then to the flood plain of the Phoksundo Khola. You will cross the river and avoid some marshy areas. You will then reach the overnight camp on the bank of the river.

On this day, the first hour’s walk leads along the level path through a glacial valley that now heads due north. At the confluence of the Phoksundo Khola and another mountain stream, there is an old wooden bridge. here, taking the barely distinct path to the north-east of the valley.

There is no trail as such, so it is necessary to clamber over the rocks and boulders and ford a stream that rushes down the steep valley. A long climb brings us to a sheep meadow, where the trail veers up a steep ravine. A hard climb to the top brings one to yet another valley where one can see the Kang-La, the pass that will lead towards Shey Gompa.

Overnight camp will be just before the pass in a place that Peter Matthiessen christened ‘Snowfields Camp.

In the morning, you will climb a steep pass. The climb is strenuous, especially on the loose slate.

From the top of the pass, you will have excellent views of a large valley with a gushing river. You will descend steeply to the valley floor. The trail will meander along the river, crossing it several times. You will pass through meadows where yaks, sheep, and mountain goats are grazing. You will also see mud caves and nomadic huts.

A red chorten marks your arrival at Shey Gompa. A quaint wooden bridge will lead you to your overnight camp.

You will have a rest day in Shey, a village with a famous monastery known as the Crystal Mountain. The monastery is built in the 11th century and belongs to the Chaiba community. It is famous for its ancient Bon Po culture.

You can visit the Tsakang Gompa, a red hermitage north of Shey. It is a meditation center for many famous lamas from Tibet. You can also visit the Crystal Mountain, a strange mountain with contorted cliffs laced with quartz and embedded with marine fossils.

Each year, people from all over the Dolpo region travel to Shey to attend the festival and complete the circuit of Crystal Mountain. This is an amazing trip that only a few Westerners have ever ventured on.

Today, you will follow a trail through juniper trees into a canyon. The trail will then zigzag over rocks and soil until you reach Saldang-la pass. The descent to Namduna Gaun is long and tiring, but you will see yaks, sheep, and nomadic tents along the way.

Namduna Gaun is a small village with a red stone monastery. The monastery is built against a cliff and is the only color in the stark landscape. The village has terraced fields and the economy is based on agriculture, animal husbandry, and trading.

Recently, the main cliff temple collapsed and the villagers have built a new monastery in the village.

After leaving Namduna Gaun, you will climb a scree slope and then traverse along some dusty, barren mountains. After a hard 3–4-hour climb, you will reach the picturesque village of Saldang.

Saldang is the largest village in the inner Dolpo area. It is situated at an altitude of 3,620 meters (11,874 feet) and is located on a plateau high above the Nam Khongmala. Saldang is a very different village from Ringmo. Ringmo is a Himalayan village situated below the tree line, while Saldang belongs to the arid zone of the Trans-Himalayan Tibetan plateau. Saldang is a prosperous village, not only agriculturally but also because of its strategic location on a trade route to Tibet.

After the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1959, trade with Tibet was virtually stopped. However, it has been restored to some extent through the barter system. Tibetan salt reaches mid-Nepal through this barter system. The Drokpa people from the western plains of Tibet collect salt from the dried lakes north of Tsangpo.

You will continue your journey north to a remote area that is rarely visited by foreigners or commercial trekking companies. The trail follows the Nang Chu River through wild, barren, and windswept terrain.

The trail starts off gradually, with a few ups and downs. You will pass through the small settlements of Tiling and Lurigaon. Your overnight camp will be at Yangze, just before Lurigaon.

At Yangze, you will cross the Panzang River. A short walk from here will bring you to an unexplored region of the Yangze at an altitude of 4,960 meters (16,267 feet). Here, you will find an old Bon-Po Monastery. You will have time to explore the monastery and the surrounding villages.

From Yangze, there are two trails that lead to Sibu. The longer trail heads west, passing through the remote villages of Nishalgaon and Shimengaon.

To save time and energy, we will retrace our steps back to Saldang village. This is the shorter and easier route. From Saldang, the trail follows the riverbed, passing through terraced fields, stupas, chortens, mani stones, and a Chaiba monastery.

We will then pass through the village of Namdo, which is also prosperous. It has about 60 houses and nearly 400 inhabitants. The Namdo monastery is located near the riverbed. We will continue our journey down the river for another 2 hours to camp near the small settlement of Sibu.

The trail follows the Nam Khong Khola for a while on the morning walk, coming across a caravan of laden yaks that are on their way towards the Tibet border.

After days of following the same river, finally we turn east till we arrive at the confluence of two small tributaries. From here, our walk leads to a steep climb to the bottom of Jeng La (4,900 m/16,072 ft), where we stay for the night on a nice meadow.

The morning trek leads to a two-hour climb towards the top of Jeng La (5,090 m/16,695 ft). An excellent view of snowy ranges emerges to the south. The north face of the Dhaulagiri massif shines in the morning light. After a wonderful moment here at the pass, our walk leads us to descend on the rough path towards Tarap Valley.

By afternoon, we come to the green valley, which leads us on a pleasant track down towards Tarap Chu. Tarap is a fascinating valley with vast plains and high mountains. It extends 20 kilometers along the river. Tarap Chu has ten villages with cultivated fields and many gompas and chortens of both sects. We stop for the night at Tokyu Monastery (4,200 m/13,776 ft). This monastery also belongs to the Chaiba sect.

Today, you will follow the Tarap Chu River downhill. The valley is different from other parts of inner Dolpo, with lush grass on both sides of the river. You will also see a marsh, which is common in the desert mountains of Tibet and the Ladakh Himalaya.

In this valley, the Bon Po and Chaiba sects live together in harmony. After a short trek, you will arrive at Dho Tarap (4,040 m/13,251 ft) for the night. You can visit the village, which is surrounded by an irregular stone wall.

Dho Tarap has about 40 houses, divided into three clusters. The houses are inhabited by a few Tibetans and mostly the Magars hill tribe of Nepal, who have lived here for many generations.

Today, you have a full day to rest or explore the local area. You can meet the people of Dolpo, who wear home-spun clothing and boots with upturned toes. They often wear religious amulets and strings of coral and turquoise. The villagers are both Bon Po and Buddhists of the Nyingmapa sect. The Buddhist gompa is the closest one to the campsite, and the Bon gompa is a 40-minute walk away.

Today, you can choose to take a long or moderate walk. You will descend from the bare country around Tarap and walk through a wide valley that narrows into a gorge. You will see juniper bushes and wild roses, which are common in the dry inner Himalayan valleys. You might also see herds of blue sheep.

In the afternoon, you will reach the confluence of the Tarap Chu and the Lang Khola, where you will make camp on a nice meadow. This place is also known as Kamakharka (3,800 m/12,464 ft). Your porters will likely take shelter in a nearby, spacious cave.

This morning, you will continue down the gorge of the Tarap River. You might see people from Dolpo taking their herds to lower pastures for the winter. There are many possible campsites by the river.

Today will be one of the most exciting days of your trip. The valley will become so narrow that, in some places, you can jump from one side to the other. Sometimes there will be no path, and you will have to walk across stone slabs fitted on logs in between the walls, which act as bridges. The gorge will also provide unexpected adventure and thrills.

At some places, the bridges may be damaged or washed away, and you may have to cross the icy torrent on foot. Finally, you will reach the camping spot beside the Tarap khola at Khanigaon (3,150 m/10,332 ft), where you will stop for an overnight stay.

Today, you will follow an indistinct trail to the village of Lalberi. Then, you will pass through an area of impressive forest before descending into another gorge. You will continue following the river downstream to reach Tarakot, where you will see colorful terraced fields.

Tarakot (2,537 m/8,321 ft) is an old fortress town known by the local people as Dzong, meaning ‘fort’. It was the capital before the Gorkha dynasty. The famous Sandul gompa is about 8 km east of Tarakot, at the junction of Barbung Khola and Tarap Chu. It stands on a knoll to the south of the Bheri River and once collected tolls for trading caravans.

You can camp by the river about 150 meters below Tarakot, near the police post, or you can climb a steep hill for over an hour to the small village on a spur on the other side of a valley opposite Tarakot. There are chortens and a gompa here on the edge of a grassy plateau, with an interesting solitary tree.

You will walk along the Bheri River, through a deep gorge with pine trees. The path is built high above the river, about 7 meters. When you reach Dunai, you can celebrate your accomplishment with a beer. Bottled beers are available, or you can try the local brew.

You will retrace your steps back to Jhuphal. It is a short walk along the Bheri River to the small airstrip. You will spend the last night of your adventure camping here.

In the morning, you will take a short flight to Nepalgunj. You will see amazing views of the Himalayas, including Annapurna and Dhaulagiri.

After you arrive in Nepalgunj, you will have a few hours to relax at the Hotel Batika.

In the afternoon, you will fly back to Kathmandu. You will have the rest of the day to relax at the hotel or explore the Thamel district.

It’s time to say goodbye to the mountains. Your journey in Nepal is over today. We hope you enjoyed your tour with us and that you will come back to explore the Himalayas again soon.

A representative from Touch The Himalayan will pick you up and take you to the airport 3 hours before your flight. On the way, you can start planning your next adventure in this wonderful country.