Humla & Kailash Saga with Western Tibet - 32 Days

A representative from Himalayan Trekkers will drop you at the airport 3 hours before your flight schedule to your onward destination. Hope to see you again in the next holidays!!

Upon your arrival at the Tribhuwan International Airport in Kathmandu, a representative from Himalayan Trekkers will greet you and assist you to your hotel.

After checking-in at your accommodation, free on your own. In the evening, you can roam around the streets of the tourist hub, Thamel. 

After breakfast at the hotel, your tour guide will take you to the historical and cultural places of Kathmandu. The Kathmandu city presents a fabulous mix of Hinduism, Tibetan Buddhism, and western influence in the valley.

Your half-day guided tour begins from the famous and important Hindu shrine namely Pashupatinath, the largest Buddhist stupa in Boudhanath, Kathmandu Durbar Square, and Swayambhunath.

Rest of the time, you can consult with your guide and can do the last moment shopping required for the upcoming trek.

We take a morning flight from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj, the largest city in western Terai across the lush lands and hillsides. Then, our drive to the hotel is followed by a unique mix of Nepalese culture reflecting the modern and ancient world.

Overnight. 

Today, we take a flight to Simikot, the headquarter of Humla. Along with the flight, we gaze upon the Karnali River and majestic snow mountains. While we descend to land, we witness the beautiful fields of cultivated lands of farming.

If all goes well, we will land on time just before lunch, where we expect to meet our crew to embark on the journey of Simikot.  The cultural fusion of locals and Tibetans here is incredible. 

Overnight. 

Soon after breakfast, we set along for Simikot and northern regions, which meet up in Tibet. Traveling from the crop fields, we keep moving forward to the forest lands, encountering many small villages along the way. We come across Tuling, also known as Maigaon village that resided by the Rajasthani tribesman, who migrated in the early century and settled here. 

After 45 minutes, we come across Yakba Khola, known for its walnut and apricot trees. Passing the land, we head on to the check post for Dharapuri, where we set a camp for the night.

Leaving Dharapuri, we view the river and along the shore is the last Thakuri village, Khanglagaon. Marching our way to the deep territories of Humla, we pass through the Karnali River and some of the local shepherds. Then comes the majestic waterfalls at Chachera, technically a shepherd’s camp. The trail moves over the waterfall to the teahouses of Dhara Kermi, which is pretty close to the hot springs.

Once we had our fill with the breakfast, we move forward to Sale Khola, which passes through the lush valley and patches across the pine forest encountering more locals and herds. This brings us to the base camp for Nyalu La. Then we approach to the campsite at Tsongas Khola and witness the variety of land transition in a rockier region.

The following day, we resume our journey by climbing the Nyalu La pass, at 5000 meters. We might catch a glimpse of the sacred Mount Kailash and snow-covered Gurla Mandata from a distance. Once again we will have to descend the same distance as we ascended to reach our campsite at the Talung valley.

Today we pass through the old trade routes of Tibet. Our endpoint is Chekjur or Jang village, which is famous for its hot springs. This can be a good place to soak our body and relax from the past few days of trekking. 

Near to the campsites, are the villages of Til, Halji, and Jang, which reflects the strong commodity living a healthy and independent life, free from all the worries of the world. The houses are more of a marvel and represent a much more ancient form of living.

We follow the same routine of relaxing ourselves by having a healthy breakfast and some exploring to the villages. Then again, one more round of hot springs.

From the way to our next destination, Halji village is not far, we will take our time and do more sightseeing before reaching the campsite. The village holds Tibetan Buddhist Gompa, believed to be one of the oldest in Nepal. 

The next trip is again a short follow up, where we will do a bit of climbing to reach Tilchu, setting for the camp. Tilchu sits exactly at the top of the Karnali River.

Now the path gets more adventurous as we follow the trails of narrow cliff mountains just alongside the river. Speaking of the view, it takes a more personal touch to explain the beauty of the place. We thoroughly enjoy the trekking until we reach our campsite at Mane Peme. The campsite resided near ancient mane stones.

It was the one last pass before heading to Tibet. Once we clear the pass, we descend to Ranipauwa, walking sideways to the canyon to the Humla Karnali (at 3720 m), to reach Hilsa. We reach to the famous suspension bridge which represents the Nepal-Tibet Border.

Once we crossed the border, we meet our Tibetan representative (English Speaking Guide). We move to Taklakot in about half an hour drive. The drive passes through the Humla Karnali and Moto Gompa, an old Sakya Gompa at Khojarnath ( at 4000 m) pass, and through small villages before reaching to Taklakot. 

The next day is the 100 km drive from Taklakot to Darchen and Tarboche. If the weather blesses us, we will have the chance to see the sacred Mount Kailash, past the Gurla La. The road follows through the Rakshas Tal and Lake Manasarovar. Tibetans and Hindus, both revere this lake at a spiritual level. We pass through the Barka plain to Darchen to make camp at Tarboche.

Once we complete our breakfast, our guide will escort us through the kora. From Tarboche and Chuku Gompa, we move ahead to the Lha Chu river bypassing the peaceful and isolated valley, jumping from small streams, to finally witness the west side of towering Mount Kailash. The ‘Kora’ can be pretty tricky to perform since you must pass along the 13 koras to gain access to Inner Kora, a secret pathway, only visible after completing another kora.

As we move towards the Northern face of Kailash, we come across the ancient 13th-century monastery at Dirapuk. The campsite can be directed from two routes, where one leads to the passage of a small mossy bridge, followed by the path of Gompa and the other to continue along the main trail. We will set a camp opposite of the Gompa near the river, which displays the majestic North face of Kailash.

We leave the Lha Chu valley as soon as the sun rises to make way for the Drolma Chu Valley, to reach Drolma La (at 5,630 m). The trail is a site for many sacred sites; butter, coin, and flag wrapped rocks, rocks with footprints of the saints, rock to climb over, and many other significant sites. Before descending into the East Valley, we make a stop to have our lunch. Just below us, lies the lake of Compassion, traditionally known as Thukpe Dzingbu, also one of the highest lakes in the world. Our campsite is located at Mani, facing the eastern side of Mount Kailash.

Once again we resume our journey with early morning trekking to the rock steady rivers, bringing us to Zuthulpuk Gompa (at 4,790 m). It is a walk in the park for trekking along some impressive gorges, Mani wall back to Barka plains and dusty Darchen, to finally reach our jeeps.

We will pack our camp and begin driving, again passing along Lake Manasarovar to reach the important site of our pilgrimage at the ancient Tirthapuri Gompa, located near Sutlej River. One can encounter the footprints of Guru Rimpoche and Yeshe Tsogyel carved in the granite slab in the gompa. Small calcium balls, believed to have medicinal powers can be found along the plateau. The place itself is adorned with the magical infuse of rainbows to account it as a magical spot. Nearby is a hot spring, where you can wash off and relax before resting.

Leaving Tirthapuri, we move westwards to Bon-Po Guru yam Gompa, located near the Sutlej River. It is now used by the resident Rimpoche Lamas and also serves as the important Bongo monasteries in western Tibet. 

Further east, we will reach Kyunglung villages and walk across the ruins of the old village of Kyunglung. This is a living example of Tibet’s earliest cities resided by its inhabitants in ancient times. The Dzong on top is called Ngulkhar, which simply reiterates as ‘Silver Castle of the Kings’. Some of the old paths lead to the cave homes followed by tunnels and old stone walls to mark it as a perfect place for exploration.

Once we hop in the jeep, we start heading west. Then we reach Nanda Devi in Uttaranchal, India, heading to Guge Kingdom. The view of western Tibet is simply marvelous. Continuing through the historic Dongpo, Dawa, and Mangang, we finally reach the village of Tzada, near Tsaparang and Toling Gompa, and we set up the camp at the location.

We have a full day to visit the 11th-century Toling Gompa, the most important monastery in western Tibet, and also visit the Tsaprang, the ancient capital of Guge Kingdom. Both of the sites are completely secluded from the modern world, which is filled with caves and pathways to mineral deposits used in ancient times

Leaving Guge, we follow up a different route, heading northeast to the village of Mansarover through a large pass which usually cuts of Guge from the rest of Tibet in winter due to excessive snow. 

The drive from Lake Manasarovar to Paryang is a 300 km drive following through the wild countryside. We pass through the Mayum-Tso Lake and climb to Mayum La, to face the magnificent mountain scenery. It can be accounted for as one of the most beautiful moments of our journey.

We leave for Paryang and drive for another 255 km east, passing through some of the marked prayer flags and other landmarks. The view is simply mesmerizing to watch, huge mountains bordering Nepal on one side while lakes, rivers, and Tibetan villages on the other side. Moving across the beauty, we finally march to the gentle desert dunes of Saga. That’s where we decide to make camp.

We pass through the high plains of majestic and alluring Tibet. We traverse across the famous Brahmaputra River, before arriving in Lhatse. From Lhatse, we take a drive to Shigatse, moving through many lonely Tibetan villages.

Shigatse is the second largest city in Tibet, known for its best-preserved monastery, the Tashilhunpo Gompa, the home to the Panchen Lama, also accounts for one of the largest functioning monasteries in Tibet.

Before driving to the final destination of Lhasa, we will have a small amount of time to visit Barkhor Square. It is a resemblance of complete spiritual world at dusk when all the pilgrims perform their kora at the square and Jokhang Temple.

Following two days, we visit some of the most appealing places near Lhasa. One can always opt for witnessing the local scenery and bazaars of the market. You will explore the top attractions including Jokhang Temple, Drepung Monastery, Sera Monastery, Norbulingka, Potala Palace, and Barkhor Street.  You can also try out the Ganden Monastery or Tsurphu Monastery by paying some extra money.

You will depart Lhasa and fly to Kathmandu. Depending on your arrival time, we can arrange a sightseeing program in the city. 

In the evening, farewell dinner with the team of Himalayan Trekkers. 

Today is the free day. You can visit some of the cultural heritage sites of Kathmandu or you can stroll at Thamel and can do the shopping for a souvenir for friends, families, and relatives.

(If you want to be occupied, we can arrange short/day hikes to one of the hillstations in the Valley. )