Upper Dolpo Trek is a remote trekking experience that takes you to the mystic land of Upper Dolpo and lets you admire the natural and cultural splendor it possesses. Upper Dolpo is an ancient land of Buddhist that is popularly known for its unique landscape and stunning beauty. This isolated region is enriched with natural beauty and cultural glory in abundance. The trekking route passes many gigantic mountain ranges like Annapurna, Dhaulagiri, Kanjiroba, etc. The wild remoteness, rugged natural beauty, and the stunning mountain scenery make this trek the first choice of the enthusiastic trekkers.
Dolpo is a high altitude region and a home to around 5000 people who live a traditional but unique life. The people are mostly engaged in agriculture for livelihood and practice Pre Buddhist Bon Po religion which is a unique religion of its own kind. The place has its own myth. As per mythology, Guru Rinpoche created this place. He created Dolpo as a sanctuary by separating it from the rest of the world. The high mountains and snow clad mountains would create a barrier between the sanctuary and the rest of the world making the place a good meditating location for any Buddhist devout.
Upper Dolpo Trek takes you to Shey Gompa, which is popular as the spiritual heart of Upper Dolpo trek. It’s a magical place, situated at the base of Crystal Mountain. The Crystal Mountain is the very auspicious place and is visited by hundreds of pilgrims each year, who come here to perform a kora (circuit) around the mountain.
Upper Dolpo trekking trail follows the ancient Tibetan salt caravan route across the cross three high passes, Nagdalo La of 5350 m, the Shey La of 5000 m and Jeng La of 5110 m. During summer, the flora explodes in its full splendor. You can encounter orchids, edelweiss, campanulas and forget me not plant all along your way. Phoksundo Lake, a lake with deep blue crystal clear water is the major attraction of this trek. Upper Dolpo region is also remarkably known for its wildlife. Blue sheep, Serow and Snow Leopard are the major attractions.
The wilderness in this secluded region is just awe inspiring. This is a strenuous hike that involves long climbs and long descends but the unforgettable landscapes; the views from the passes and the encounter with a very ancient untouched culture makes the hike worth it. Nepal Intrepid Treks organizes the trek to Upper Dolpo for all those aspiring travelers. So, if you are amongst the one, then join Nepal Intrepid Treks for a wonderful trek to Upper Dolpo Region of Nepal.
Nepal Intrepid Treks will be your dedicated travel companion until you return to your home country. Once you arrive at Kathmandu airport, we will be there to pick you up and take you to your hotel. Accommodation for our valued customers includes room and breakfast in a three star hotel in Kathmandu.
Take in the impressions of Nepal as we drive you from the airport to your hotel. We will assist you with the check-in and provide you with further information regarding your Everest Base Camp Trek. You may then have a rest or stroll through the bustling, colorful streets and alleys of Kathmandu.
Prepare for a day of immersion into the Nepalese culture, while visiting the most important landmarks of this fascinating city and its outskirts. Our experienced guide will take you to Kathmandu Durbar Square, a UNESCO heritage site which represents the political and historical values of Nepalese civilization.
We then proceed to Swayambhu Nath Temple, also known as ‘Monkey Temple’ thanks to its adorable colony of monkeys that run free. This temple is the symbol of harmony between Buddhists and Hindus. At the top of the stupa you will have a splendid birds-eye view of Kathmandu Valley and its surroundings.
We continue to the sacred Pashupatinath Temple, a holy place for Hindu devotees. Especially interesting is the holy cremation area where preparations and daily cremation ceremonies take place. From here we return to the hotel.
We take a flight to Nepalgunj from the domestic terminal at Kathmandu airport. After an hour flight above the clouds with scenic landscape beneath, we arrive at the airport in Nepalgunj. You will be transferred to a hotel for check in. Being a border city with India, Nepalgunj is a crowded busy city and is the hottest place in Nepal. We stay at a hotel in Nepalgunj for the night. (Breakfast included)
We start our day with a flight to Juphal. A flight from Nepalgunj to Juphal is of 35 minutes and you will be pleased with the journey as you can get beautiful views of snow caped mountains from your set inside. Upon arrival, you will be glad to see the drastic change in climate, atmosphere and landscape in just 35 minutes. From a hot plain land you will find yourself amidst the mountainous villages with cool air. We initiate our trekking journey from Juphal with a walk down the fields to Thuli Bheri river. We cross a long suspension bridge over Dhim Bridge and enter Shey Phoksundo National Park (SPNP). We pass Suligad and follow Suli Khola River. In the way, we can get a glimpse of Dhaulagiri Range. We further pass villages like Kageni and Sangta. We pass through forest of wild flowers, pine tree, spruce, fir, juniper and small bamboo forests. We cross other side of river and climb up high rocky slope and continue until we reach Chhepka. We set our tents at a small beautiful village in Chhepka for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
We continue walking through lush pine forests with some bushes and birches. Our trail follows a river for most of the time and the path goes easy and flat. Some ups and downs may be encountered in between. As we move ahead, valley gets narrower at some point with rocky towering walls on both sides. We may encounter dzokpas hauled up with goods and traders on the way. We walk for around four hours to Rechi village from where our trail continue to other side of river to Chunuwar. We visit Amchi hospital on the way where Tibetan medicines and local herds are prescribed to patients. The popular Tibetan acupuncture treatment is provided here and many local rely on the treatment of this hospital. We set up our tent near the hospital for overnight stay. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Today we take a long and steep climb up to Rigmo and then to Phoksundo lake. It takes around two hours to reach there. We will encounter a stunning waterfall before reaching the Phoksundo lake. It is the highest waterfall in Nepal and is also popularly known as Phoksundo Waterfall or Suligad Waterfall. As we cross the pass, we will get a glimpse of beautiful Phoksundo Lake. As we continue along our trail, we reach Ringmo. Rigmo is a beautiful village where we will find traditional people who practice Bonpo religion and preserve their culture that goes thousands of year back. The religion holds a history marked 18000 years back and was founded by Buddha Tonpa Shenrab Miwo. In ancient time, Dolpo being a Bon kingdom, there were people who practiced this religion. Today we stay at a tented camp in Ringmo for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
As we move higher, we need to adapt ourselves with the rising elevation. Therefore, today, we spend our day in Ringmo for acclimatization. We spend our day wandering around the azure high altitude Phoksundo lake in the backdrop of beautiful mountains. After that, we explore the Ringmo village, interact with the locals and get some insights on unique Bon religion practiced in this area. We spend another day at Ringo in our camps. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Leaving the Phoksundo lake and Ringmo village, we continue our trail towards a restricted area in Dolpo. Our journey for the day is exciting as we move in the popular demon trail i.e. the same trail that was flimed in the movie Caravan. This beautiful yet challenging trail goes all the way above the lake. As we climb up a ridge, we can get some fabulous views of the Phoksundo lake and Ringmo village. The beautiful and lush yet wild pine forests beneath the ridge looks fascinating. The beautiful peak of Norbung Kang to the south adds to the mind blowing views that we can get from the top of the ridge. From here, we descend down to the north side of the lake. Our trail further climbs up through a wide valley from where we can get some splendid view of Kanjirowa Himal. Finally, we arrive at an alpine area full of junipers which would be our halting spot for night. We set up our tents at Chunemba. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included).
As we move ahead, the valley gets narrower will high rocky walls on both sides. We cross few streams on the way and walk for around half an hour when we leave the valley behind and enter into a narrow gorge. We climb up the gorge which is quite long and steep until we reach our campsite i.e. Snowfields Camp. We stay at the camp for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Today’s walk is quite long and hectic. We initiate our journey with strenuous climb for about two and half hours and continue walking through dusty path till we reach Kang La that lies at an elevation of 5350 metres. As we reach the pass, we can see colourful prayer flags and cairns that mark the pass. From here, we descend down steep for around 45 minutes and then descend gradually for around three hours until we reach Shey Gompa. As we reach near the village, we can see the village adorned with colourful chortens and mani walls. Shey Gompa is a beautiful village with few houses and a monastery. Here, we visit a popular gompas that holds a history of 11th century. The gompa is mystical and lies beneath the Crystal Peak on a small grassy plain at the confluence of two rivers. As per a Buddhist myth, a Tibetan Buddhist came to this place flying on a snow lion and built the gompa. It is a highly auspicious place and many pilgrims visit this place every year for performing kora. We stay at a tented camp in Shey gompa for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
We spend our day in Shey gompa by visiting Tsakang Gompa. It is popular monastery from the Buddhist Kagyupa sect. The glory of this gompa is filmed in the documentary- Himalaya too. Placed at a spectacular located on the top of red rocky slope, Tsakang Gompa follows the same trail used by the pilgrims to perform Kora of the Crystal Peak. If lucky, we can see flocks of blue sheep or snow leopard in this area. We stay at our camps in Shey gompa for the nght. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Today we have to cross a pass called Shey La/ Geu La at an elevation of 5000 metres. At first, we ascend up and pass a narrow valley to the pass. We can get some fascinating views of Tibetan plateau from the pass that stretches endlessly. The whole landscape looks quaint and wild. We can also see the beautiful Mustang to the east. After beholding the beautiful glory of mountainous region, we descend down to the pastures of Namgung where we set up our camp for overnight stay. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Our trail goes above Namgug khola and descends down to Saldang which is probably the largest settlement area in inner Dolpo. The traditional villages have traditionally built houses with crop fields. The barley, potatoes and buckwheat are the crops generally grown here. People live a simple life and are engaged in farming for livelihood. People also rear yaks and sheep for cheese, wool and meat. Saldang is somewhat close to the Tibetan border and we can see Tibetan traders trading salt across Saldang. We stay at a guesthouse in Saldang for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
We walk through an easy trail to Sibu today. We follow the Nagung khola to south and pass small villages like Namdo on our way. We also pass the fields in the villages followed by mani walls, chotens and gompas. The prayer flags, gompas and chortens that we pass depicts the influence of Buddhism in Dolpo. We continue walking along our trial until we reach Sibu. We stay inside our tented camps in Sibu for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
We start our journey with an easy walk along the river to the last village in Dolpo i.e. Raka. We leave the village and enter a large valley which is popular for sight of blue sheep or snow leopard. We walk for around two hours after which our path continues away from the river and climbs steeply up to a meadow. The meadow is generally used by the yaks for grazing. This meadow acts as a base camp for climbing Jeng La and is known as Lagmo Che. We set up our tents here for overnight stay. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Our trial for today climbs up steep for around two hours to Jang La at an elevation of 5110 metres. From here, we will be blessed with the splendour of Mt. Dhaulagiri and other neighbouring snow-capped mountains. We cross the pass and descend down to Tarap valley. As we enter Tarap valley, we come across Tokyu village which would be the first settlement area after Raka village. There is a beautiful gompa in Tokyu with a statue of Maitreya -the Future Buddha which is worth visiting. We stay at tented camps in Tokyu for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Our destination for the day is Dho Tarap. We pass the Cristal Mountain School on the way which provides education for children from Dho and is sponsored by a French NGO. We visit this sbhool which has an alluring entrance gate i.e. Chorten. Dho are the descendants of Tibetans and practice similar religion, culture and tradition. We can see people dressed in typical dark dresses with colourful aprons. We can see Dho women wearing bracelets of big shells with beautiful silver and turquoise coloured headgear. Men generally have long hair with a red ribbon in their hair that resembles the style of Tibetan Khampas. They also wear a long coat with one sleeve is hanging down. We can interact with friendly Dho people at the school. Dho is a traditional village that resembles other villages in the region. It has stone built traditional houses, fields of buckwheat, barley and potatoes and people and engaged in farming and yak rearing for livelihood. Today, we set our camps at Dho Tarap for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
In the morning, we explore around the village and move along the chortens and mani walls to Tarap Khola. As we mone ahead, we can feel the change in landscape. From barren land, we can find ourselves traversing into a lush environment. On the way, we climb us a small pass from where the valley gets narrower. We finally make a short descend to Sisaul where we will set our tents for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Today, we leave Sisaul and climb up a pass with beautiful chorten. As we cross the pass, we will be able to see lush trees again. We will walk in the river valley with high rock walls towering on both sides. We walk through an easy path for around three to four hours to Nawarpani. From here our trail descends down until we reach a three sided tunnel. We further walk through an easy path with more lush in the environment until we reach Laina Odar. We set up our camps here for overnight stay. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Our trail further descends down to Laisicap. At first, we walk through forests until you find yourselves surrounded by steep cliffs full of pine,spruce, fir, juniper and Cyprus trees.We can see a river far below from here. We walk for around 3 hours to Laisicap where we cross a suspension bridge over Thuli Bheri river. We further descend down steep for around 45 minutes along an easy path until we open up into a lush ad impressive landscape. Moving ahead, we continue walking towards Lingdo in the backdrop of beautiful snow-capped peak of Kang Tokal. We continue our journey until we reach Lingdo where we set up our camp for overnight stay. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Leaving Lingdo, we initiateour journey with a walk along rough landscape. We walk through a challenging path for two and half hours until we reach a village of bazaar. From here, our trail goes up slightly and then again comes down. We follow the Thuli Bheri river and pass few houses along the trail. We further walk until we reach Dunai which is the headquarter of Dolpa district. It is a large village in Dolpo with 2500 people living amongst whom more than half are Buddhist and remaining are Hindu. At a top of a hill near Dunai lies a monastery called the Dolpa Kendriya Gompa. We visit the gompa in Dunai and set up our camp at Dunai for overnight stay. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Leaving Dunai, we take a short walk to Juphal. We walk around forty five minutes and reach a stupa gate which marks the entrance gate of Dunai VDC. Thebeautiful Buddhist painting i.e. mandala is a beautiful craftwork found here. We pass a big iron suspension bridge and walk for around three hours to reach Juphal. Taking about our journey, at first we walk through wide path and pass village of Kalagaonda. From here, we leave the main road and take a small path that goes through crop fields. We further climb up steep until we reach Juphales. It’s a pretty steep climb to reach Juphal. We set our camps at Juphal where we stay for the night. (Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Today we take an early flight from Juphal to Nepalgunj. This thirty five minutes flight over the clouds is full of wonderful views of Himalayas including Mt. Annapurna and Mt. Dhaulagiri to the north. Upon arrival, we take another flight to Kathmandu as per the availability of tickets and flight schedules. In the evening, we will find ourselves in our hotel in Kathmandu. We stay at our hotel in Kathmandu for the night. (Breakfast included)
Spend this day at your leisure in or around Kathmandu. You can take one of our optional day trips, relax or roam around Kathmandu city. Perhaps go for a massage – you deserve it – or do some last-minute shopping. Take a leisurely lunch in one of the many tea gardens or dine on one of the rooftop terraces. Overnight stay at the hotel (breakfast included).
After this wonderful adventure, it’s finally time to bid you a farewell. We will pick you up from the hotel and escort you to the airport for your journey home! We hope with all our hearts that we served you well and look forward to seeing you or your friends again someday.
We have you covered! We will email you as items in your order ship, or if there are updates on the status of your order. Can’t find the email?Click here to check the status of your order.
We have you covered! We will email you as items in your order ship, or if there are updates on the status of your order. Can’t find the email?Click here to check the status of your order.
We have you covered! We will email you as items in your order ship, or if there are updates on the status of your order. Can’t find the email?Click here to check the status of your order.
We have you covered! We will email you as items in your order ship, or if there are updates on the status of your order. Can’t find the email?Click here to check the status of your order.
We have you covered! We will email you as items in your order ship, or if there are updates on the status of your order. Can’t find the email?Click here to check the status of your order.
VerifiedJulia C2024-03-04I'm back in Nepal again... I'm back in Nepal again... This time I climbed the Mardi Himal hiking route. 1,770 M to 4,200 M climb Fishtail Peak still appeared in the thick clouds which was very impressive.VerifiedAeris L2024-03-02Unforgettable hiking trip in Nepal The Nepali tour leader is very considerate and will pay attention to every move of the group members and provide assistance at any time. I had a great time on this trip, and I would like to thank the staff for their assistance and care along the way.VerifiedManish Pradhan2024-02-24Mardi Trip - best value, quality support & guide, worthwhile trip I took a 4 day hike to Mardi Himal while on a family trip to Nepal. I wasn’t sure of the route at first. It turned out to be best decision. The upclose view of Annapurna South, Hiunchuli and Fishtail was unbelievable, & out of this world. We stayed at Badal Danda for couple of nights which provided the 360 view of the mountains on the north and pokhara valley, poonhill area on the south. You could do the hike 2-3 days but if you really want to soak in the views and get mesmerized by it, you might take the full 4-5 days route. Intrepid guide Suman Gurung was a real professional. He really understood the route and had great connections with the locals which made the trek extra special. Suman bhai brought a calm demeanor, encouraging & supportive attitude when I was struggling a bit during few uphill hike. Overall, I really enjoyed the hike and doing it with Suman bhai made this trip a memorable one. I would recommend Intrepid team and this route to any beginner looking to explore what Himalayas has to offer.VerifiedPinfan L2023-12-18Beautiful E B C The 18-day journey was truly unforgettable! Not only are the scenery of Nepal’s mountains and villages breathtaking, but the kindness and enthusiasm of the people are even more touching! In particular, the mountain guides and porters who led us gave us great help. Many of our teammates who were not used to the high mountain temperatures became ill, but everyone still went to E B C safely and excitedly! Very unforgettable tripVerified悦 高2023-12-17Extremely Amazing EBC Trekking Experience great experience Everest base camp trekking with this company, our guide Bheg and Shiva, also porter. We had a great time enjoyed the experience with them. And arrived back safely! Definitely recommend this company, guide and porter!VerifiedS B2023-11-09EBC trek I completed the EBC trek solo with my guide Hem and porter Ram. It was an amazing experience though the trip had a few challenges: our flights to Lukla were cancelled due to poor weather and I developed a chest infection part way up the ascent. What was impressive was how the team (largely Hem and Santa) managed to quickly problem solve and find alternatives (e.g., hired a jeep to drive us to an alternate route to the trail) and connected me with stellar medical care. Despite these setbacks, we still managed to reach base camp! The flexibility of this team is quite noteworthy and it was clear they are experienced in handling these kinds of issues. The tea houses I stayed in were great and they served delicious food. I was never cold at night due to the really warm sleeping bag they rented to me. I was always encouraged to hike at my own pace, and to make sure I was eating and drinking enough. Communication with the team was excellent throughout and I felt well supported. The team was very punctual, responsive, and reliable. Hem is a fun, upbeat, thoughtful and friendly guide who was so helpful on this trek. He added personal touches to the trip like booking my favourite tea house in Namche on our descent. He and Ram have incredible work ethics which should be highlighted. They were always available, and when I was sick, Hem (and later Santa) accompanied me to the doctor and sat with me, saying all the right things to make me feel better. Hem is a good photographer as well, and took some beautiful pictures of us along the way. Because of my illness, I ended up having to cancel my ABC trek which was supposed to happen afterward. Again, the team (Santa and Hem) were able to pivot quickly and developed a sightseeing tour of Pokhara that was really fun, and salvaged my vacation. Overall, this was a great experience and I’m already thinking of coming back for more!Verifiedkokohsu2023-10-25Such a good one! It’s a nice experience, and they have good guide and take care us so much. The view is really amazing !!VerifiedMEI MEI2023-05-08這是一段充滿著驚喜驚艷之高山健走行!! 最美的風景,果真是「人」。 從接機的開始到送機的結束,12天的旅程,一路備受尊榮般的禮遇和照顧。感謝Nepal Intrepid Treks and Expedition派出專業大嚮導Kamal Gurung,處理事情明快果決,真的是年輕有為,著實不易呢! 為我們服務的團隊人數真不少,都是和善勤快的尼泊爾帥哥。謝謝料理專家美食團隊,讓點餐成了我們的樂趣,特別想念麻油雞高麗菜湯,加上熱騰騰的開水可暖胃驅寒,好窩心;還要謝謝服務的揹夫Hom和小書僮Suman,一路的跟隨陪伴,完成海拔4220公尺的高度! 有此機緣在這條美麗的山徑同行,刻劃下的印記永遠難忘。 MBC的O型大環繞,沿途空氣清新林相多樣貌,時時傳來鳥兒清脆響亮的叫聲。最喜歡正在盛開的尼泊爾國花_高山杜鵑,樹形高大花朵排列很特別,鮮紅色澤如人的熱情性格,花落臺階依然扣人心弦!更開心與那皚皚白雪的安娜普納南峰及魚尾峰相遇。 圓夢_需要一股傻勁兒和勇氣;也需要身邊的重要他人協助。真心感謝台灣野樵旅行社和臺灣宜蘭噶瑪蘭登山協會的行程安排,圓了多年來的夢_走一回尼泊爾的高山路線。 這是第二次來到尼泊爾,也許還會有第三次⋯⋯期待!Verifiedpao-chung c2023-04-29Amazing and memorable ABC hiking I participated in the Nepal ABC hiking activity organized by Taiwan WILDMAN Travel Agency on 2023/03/31~04/11. The local Kamal gurung guide led their team to serve our itinerary. The board and lodging arranged was very satisfactory and the service was considerate and thoughtful. They led us safely through this beautiful itinerary and left a very good impression! The most touching thing is... Kamal gurung arrived at the destination very patiently and hand in hand with teammates who were lagging behind, without any complaints! So next time I have the opportunity to visit Nepal again, I would like to travel with Kamal gurung again! I would like to express my gratitude for this article! Thanks! Namaste! Amazing and memorable ABC hiking!
+977-9849009919 (Lal Gurung)
+977-9851002409 (Santa Grg)
+977-1-4385290 (Office)
intrepidtreks@gmail.com
Nepal Intrepid Treks © 2024. All Rights Reserved.
Designed By: DMAN