Nepal Helicopter Tour with Mt Kailash

Arrive at Kathmandu after a scenic flight over the mountains. Meet the representative of Adventure Mission Nepal Treks & Expedition (AMN) and transfer to Hotel.

Kathmandu Durbar Square - Kathmandu Durbar Square lies in the center of the Kathmandu valley and has some of the most interesting monuments in Nepal. The Kasthamandap, the building from which Kathmandu derived its name, the Kumari Ghar, the House of the Living goddess Kumari, the Taleju temple and the most interesting the Hanuman Dhoka Palace, now a museum are some of the interesting buildings in Kathmandu Durbar Square. Besides that, the program of different kinds and gathering of people from all over Nepal makes it a lively place and the best place to understand Nepal.

Swayambhunath Stupa - Swayambhunath stupa is also referred to as the ‘Monkey temple’ and is one of the 7 UNESCO world heritage sites of Kathmandu. Situated on a hilltop about 4 Km from the city center this stupa is one of the oldest monument in Kathmandu and comes from the Vajrayana sect of Mahayana Buddhism. With a pair of eyes in each direction, this place is a spiritual center for the locals and tourist visiting this area. The hilltop also offers the scenic view of the Kathmandu valley and the Himalayas.

Khokana and Bungmati - These two Newar Villages are located in the outskirts of the Patan District and are proposed as Tentative UNESCO heritage sites by the Nepal government. Khokana has the temple of Rudryaini and is also famous for the Mustard oil production. Bungmati, 20 minutes walk from Khokana through paddy fields is full of old Newari houses and architecture. These twin villages are one of the best places to experience Nepal’s age-old heritages and to observe the daily life of the People. You will feel like walking in the 18th century Europe as you go through these streets.

On this day - You will explore the surrounding areas.

After early breakfast, we fly to Simikot from Nepalgunj. Complete Nepal immigration formalities before continuing our helicopter flight to Hilsa. Drive to Chinese Border from Hilsa and we continue our drive to Purang. On arrival at Purang, check in at Hotel.

After a leisure breakfast, we will go for a short excursion drive to Kejia village. Here situated in the middle of the village is the Kejia monastery. This monastery is also known as the Khojarnath temple.

Khojarnath temple - Chenga Sherab Jungne (1187-1241) bestowed the king of Purang, Jowo Atigman (Jo Bo a tig man), with spiritual teachings and the transmission of Mahamudra. In turn, as a token of appreciation, the king presented the Drikung order with additional territories and with the famous shrine of Khojar (Kho char Lha Khang), known as the shrine of Khojarnath. Up to the present day the impressive building, surrounded by whitewashed stupas and a large wall of mani-stones and yak-skulls inscribed with mantras, is one of the foremost objects of pilgrimage in western Tibet. During the period in which Drikung took control of Khojarnath, in 13th and 14th century, the Drikungpa found also patronage in the Buddhist rulers of the Khas Malla kingdom in Western Nepal.

After breakfast drive to Lake Mansarovar. Here we start our parikrama of the holy lake via Chui Gompa stopping at Trugo Gompa at noon to take a picnic lunch and sthan. The afternoon waters of Mansarovar are relatively warm so that taking our sthan (purification bath). Here we also do our Havan puja, performed by our pundit with both Mansarovar and Kailas in front of us. On completion of our puja and parikrama, we then drive back to our guest house.

Rakshas Tal (Ravan Tal, Langka Tso) is famous for being the lake of the lord Ravan (learned of all gods). In the Jain version of Ramayana, Ravana is one of the Trisastisalaka Purusa (63 illustrious persons) who appears in every time cycle. According to Jain cosmology, time cycle has nine sets of Baladeva (Balabhadra), Vasudeva (Narayana) and Partivasudeva (antiVasudevaa or anti hero). Rama, Lakshmana and Ravana are the eighth Baladeva, Vasudeva, and Partivasudeva. In the Jain epic of Ramayana, it is Lakshmana who ultimately kills Ravana and not Rama as told in the Hindu version. In the end, Rama who lead an upright life renounces his kingdom, becomes a Jain monk and attains moksha. On the other hand, Lakshmana and Ravana go to hell. Howeve,r it is predicted that ultimately they both will be reborn as upright persons and attain liberation in their future births. According to Jain texts, Ravana will be the future Tirthankara (omniscient teacher) of Jainism.

Rakshas Tal
Ravana at first went to meet Shiva. Nandi the vehicle of Shiva, refused to let Ravana in. He got annoyed and started teasing Nandi. To show Nandi his love for Shiva, Ravana attempted to uproot and move the mountain on a whim. Shiva, annoyed by Ravana's arrogance, pressed his littlest Toe on Kailash, pinning him firmly and painfully under it. His ganas informed Ravana of whom he had crossed, upon which Ravana became penitent. He plucked his nerves and used them as strings to compose music and sang songs praising Shiva, and is said to have done so for years until Shiva released him from his bondage. Pleased with his resilience and devotion, Shiva gave to him the divine sword Chandrahas (Chandra-Moon, Has-laugh, literally 'the laughter of the moon' but referring to the shape formed by a crescent moon which resembles a smile). It was during this incident that he acquired the name 'Ravana', meaning "(He) of the terrifying roar", given to him by Shiva - the earth is said to have quaked at Ravana's cry of pain when the mountain was pinned on him. Ravana in turn became a lifelong devotee of Lord Shiva and is said to have composed the hymn known as Shiva Tandava Stotra. After Ravana had been given the Celestial juice of Immortality by Brahma, he went on to please Shiva. He cut his head & put it as a sacrifice for pleasing Shiva, but Shiva replaced his head with a new one. This was repeated Nine times, on which Shiva was happy & pleased with Ravana's resilience & devotion. Thus he also got name Dasa-sheesha. In Buddhist philosophy it is believed that centuries ago two gold fish of Mansarovar dug a channel through Lake Mansarovar to Lake Ravan Tal bringing the purified waters of Manas to Rakshas Tal thereby purifying the lake – this channel is still visible and is known as the Ganga Chu.

About 30 km north of Lake Manasarovar is Darchen, the main gateway to Mt. Kailash. Here we organize yaks or ponies for the Kailash circuit trek. The last portion of the drive takes us approximately one hour directly towards the Kailash face. Roads are a little rough but worth it to see the close-up view of the south face of the holy mountain. It is via this route also that the inner Parikarma is performed.

Drive 08 km to Tarboche / Shersong (Yamdwar) perform puja near big prayer flag and start Parikarma 10 km to Diraphuk. This Kailash circuit covers 53 km & can be done in 3 days. We head west in a clockwise direction & after a few kilometers, the trail climbs up to a cairn at 4730 m from where the northern face of Mt. Kailash comes to view. En route visit Tarboche where annual flagpole raising ceremony takes place during Saga Dawa.

Yamdwar 4500 m
Literally means the gateway to death – or rebirth. In Tibetan, it is known as the Changyi chorten and the gateway to Mt. Kailash. For Hindus, it is known as Yamdwar or the way to salvation through death. It is commonly believed that Kailash – the ultimate Parikarma is taking a new birth.

Shersong
At the foot of the Kailash has a story behind it that once centuries ago a pious Tibetan pilgrim carried all his money in gold and traveled a long distance to make this most hazardous and difficult of all pilgrimages. He finally reached this spot where his money also ran out and from that this place was named as Shersong (Pot of Gold).

Today we cross Drolma Ia pass (5630 M) and Gauri Kund Lake (5608 m) where Hindus worship and immerse themselves in the icy waters of the lake.

The final end of the Parikarma is an easy 2-3 hrs walk down to where the river emerges on to the Barga plain. We complete the 3-day circuit trek of Mt. Kailash to be greeted by our vehicles and drivers awaiting us at Lamchu valley and from here drive to Darchen for lunch. After lunch drive to Astapad if this is not done previously or continue directly to Tirthapuri. From here we then continue onwards to Purang. Here we will take a short excursion tour to Tirthapuri (Dadapuri) Hot Springs. It is a short drive of approximately 1 hour. Tirthapuri is famous for being the source of Tibetan herbal medication. It is here that Milarepa and Dorjee Phagmo meditated. Dorjee Phagmo is the only female goddess in the Tibetan pantheon of Gods and the consort of Demchog the lord of Mt. Kailash.

Tirthapuri (Dadapuri)
Located northwest of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, the Tirthapuri Hot Springs are closely associated with Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche). Pilgrims bathe in pools fed by the springs, visit the monastery containing the guru's footprint and dig for healing stones along a one-hour pilgrimage route. The Tirthapuri Hot Springs is located about 80km northwest of Mount Kailash, 65km west of Darchen, and 9km south of Moincer (Mensi). Tirthapuri is accessible by road but there is no public transportation.

After breakfast, drive to Hilsa to catch our helicopter and fly back to Simikot and board connecting flight on a schedule Plane to Nepalgunj. Transfer to your nearest border or another destination after lunch.

You may take some rest or explore surrounding areas.

Time to say goodbye with hope to see ya all again.