Upper Dolpa Trekking

The next day, you will fly for 45 minutes to Nepalgunj. Nepalgunj is a sweltering city in the Mid-Western Terai. It lies in the vicinity of Nepal-India border and is a major city in Mid-Western region. Bardia National Park is also pretty close to Nepalgunj.

You can also travel to Nepalgunj from Kathmandu by bus. But, you have to catch a night bus on the second day of your trip to arrive at Nepalgunj in the third day. The long journey through East-West Highway is no less amazing. You pass through some other cities including Narayangarh, Hetauda, Bharatpur, Butwal, and more. You will stay overnight in a hotel. Take an evening walk and explore the city.

In the early morning, you will travel to Juphal Airport from Nepalgunj. You fly over amazing landscapes witnessing Dhaulagiri and Annapurna ranges.

Juphal Airport is the only airport in Dolpa. It was also the only place to depend on for Dolpo locals to connect to other parts of Nepal. Recently, road track to Dhadang is opened. This has given Dolpo people a glimpse of hope that they will have alternative transport options as well.After you land at Juphal, you will trek for 2-3 hours to reach Dunai.

Dunai is the district headquarter of Dolpo based at 2000 meters on the bank of Thuli Bheri River. You will stay in a teahouse in Dunai.

On the next day, the trek starts towards Ankhe. You will cross the new suspension bridge, turn west and follow the trail. You start ascending to reach a ridge and enter into Phoksundo River Valley. The trek then passes through another ridge, then a canyon, then reach Rahagaon.

After that, you will trek through a dense forest to Ankhe. The territory of Shey-Phoksundo National Park begins from Ankhe. You will stay overnight in Ankhe.

You have trekked a long way to Shey Phoksundo Lake. The lake is at an altitude of 3611 meters. So, today is well-earned rest and acclimatization day. You can explore the area around Shey Phoksundo Lake. This amazing turquoise colored lake is a heavenly sight to behold.

You can visit Ringmo village and a Tibetan Buddhist Monastery in its neighborhood. You can delve into culture and tradition of people.

On the tenth day, you walk through a glacial valley heading north and reach to the junction of Phoksundo river and a stream. As you cross the bridge, you walk towards the northeast direction and begin an uphill climb. As you climb to the top of a steep george, you can see Kang-La pass from the top.Over night Shey Gompa

On the eleventh morning, walking through a strenuous trail will take you to Kang-La Pass. Kang-La Pass is at an altitude of 5,360 meters from where you can have an excellent view of deserted valleys, Crystal Mountain and U-shaped canyon towards Shey-Gompa.

You then descend from the pass, cross the same river several times and walk through meadows where yaks and sheep are seen grazing. As you walk through small huts, a red Buddhist shrine welcomes you to Shey Gompa. Overnight

You have walked tirelessly for days on high altitudes. So, you will have a well-earned rest in Shey Gompa to make sure your body acclimatizes with the change in altitude.Walk around the area and explore Shey Gompa. Shey Gompa is the most popular monastery in Upper Dolpo. Hundreds of Buddhist devotees visit Shey Gompa yearly.

To the east of Shey Gompa lies Crystal Mountain( Ribo Drugta). Locals gather and circumambulate this mountain every year before harvesting their crops.

The trek resumes. You trek through a trail that passes amid Juniper forest leading to a rocky canyon. You walk through a meandering trail to reach the top of Saldang-La Pass.

From there, the trail descends for a long time towards north to Namduna Gaun. You can visit Namgung monastery perched on the northern wall of a ridge. Overnight stay in Namduna Gaun.

In the morning, you start your trek by ascending barren hills for hours. After 3-4 hours of walking, you start to see Saldang Village which stretches through a slope above Namga River.

Saldang Village is the largest settlement of Inner Dolpo. This is home to nearly 600 people. Surrounded by terraced fields, Saldang is an agriculturally prosperous settlement of Inner Dolpo.

From Yangze, you have a couple of trails to Sibu. The longer route passes through Nishalgaon and Shimengaon to Sibu. We pick the shorter trail by retracing our path back to Saldang village.

The trail then leads to Namdo village which has around 400 residents and stretches over 5 km. There is Namdo monastery near Nam Khong river.You then trek for two more hours to reach Sibu.Overnight

The day starts climbing to the top of Jeng La Pass(5110) that takes about two hours. From Jeng La Pass, you can witness picturesque views of Dhaulagiri massif.

After that, you descend towards Tarap Valley. As you reach a stream, you follow the stream to Tokyu village.Stay overnight in Tokyu village.

The trail in this region is an easy one. You walk through broad fertile valley visiting several chortens on the way. About 4-5 hours of the trek will take you to Dho Tarap. Overnight stay in Dho Tarap.

We spend the twentieth day resting in Dho Tarap(4080m). You can explore the village, visit the gompas and make friends.

Dho Tarap – one of the highest settlements of the world, is the junction of trails leading to Mustang, Jomsom, and Tibet. It has about 3 dozens of houses. Inhabitants consist of mostly Magars and Tibetans. There are many Buddhist shrines in Dho Tarap. Bon Gompa above Dho Tarap is a famous one.

You trek alongside gorge of Tarap Khola. The gorge sometimes gets so narrow that you can cross the river with a jump. So, the walk alongside the gorge can be exciting. As you reach Khanigaun, you stop your trek there.Overnight stay in Khanigaun.

You start your day trek following a trail to Lalberi village. Then, you pass through a forest, descend to a gorge then trek alongside the river. You then reach to Tarakot after a total of 4-5 hours of walk from Khanigaun.

Tarakot is a small town which once used to be a fortress. It used to be a capital of Tichorung Kingdom and was a popular trading point. Although it has lost the energy it used to share, it still has the charm to attract the travelers.Overnight stay in Tarakot.

After morning breakfast, you follow the Bheri River passing through several gorges, villages, and bridges to reach Dunai. You pass by Lawan village, Byas Gadi, and Lochakhola Gaon to finally reach Dunai.

Dunai is the district headquarter of Dolpo. There are about 2700 residents. You can find schools, campus, bank branches, and other infrastructures of development in Dunai.

The trail following Thuli Bheri continues. You pass through Dhupichaur, Rupgad, Kalagaonda, and Motipur to finally arrive in Juphal. The long and strenuous trek finally ends at Juphal.Overnight stay in Juphal.

You will take the first flight available from Juphal to Nepalgunj. After that, you will board the flight to Kathmandu the same day. Take a rest in your hotel, or if you want, take a walk around the city.

If you are traveling with a travel company, companies usually give you a farewell dinner.Overnight stay in Kathmandu.