Pilgrimage to Mt.Kailash, Tibet and Nepal
Tour Details
In a hundred ages of the gods I could not tell the of the glories of [the Himalaya]. There is no mountain like [the Himalaya] or in it are Kailash and Manasarovar. From the Hindu epic Ramayana..
No mountain in the world is as sacred as Mt. Kailash in western Tibet. Rising to 22,028 feet north of the main Himalayan range, four religions consider it the center of their universe. Hindus believe it’s the earthly manifestation of their spiritual center, Mt. Meru, and the abode of Lord Shiva; Tibetan Buddhists refer to it as Gang Rimpoche, precious Jewel of Snow, the “navel of the world” rising into the heavens; the pre-Buddhist Bonpo believe it’s where their founder descended from heaven and was the spiritual center of their empire that once extended from Persia to western Tibet; and the Jains believe Mt. Kailash is where their first prophet achieved enlightenment. It’s revered as the source of four of South Asia’s greatest rivers– the Tsangpo (Brahmaputra), Karnali, Sutlej, and Indus. The pilgrimage to Mt. Kailash is taken on by thousands of pilgrims every year and it’s considered one of the most difficult in Asia.
To ease the difficulty factor for us, we will approach Lake Manasarovar and Mt. Kailash by Land Cruisers from Nepal. Still a four-day dusty, bumpy drive across the austere Tibetan Plateau, where peaks of the Himalaya beckon our way to holy Lake Manasarovar at the base of Mt. Kailash, where a drink of its waters relinquishes the sins of one hundred lifetimes. Camping along the way, we will walk the three day, 32 mile kora, or circumambulation, around Mt. Kailash falling in with other pilgrims, some doing the kora with full-body prostrations. We will only have to carry day packs while yaks carry the rest of our gear. Having to cross the 18,500-foot Drolma La, it’s believed that walking one circuit of the mountain absolves the sins of a lifetime, and with 108 circuits you achieve enlightenment.
Once we are sin-free, we drive again to the Nepal border and drive back to Kathmandu where we celebrate last party with out crew members and Nepali staff.
Short Itenary
Day 01: Arrival in Kathmandu
Day 02: Sightseeing in Kathmandu
Day 03: Kathmandu to Nyalam, Tibet
Day 04: Nyalam to Saga, Mayum La
Day 05: Mayum La to Manasarovar via Paryang
Day 06: Mansarovar Exploration – drive to Darchen
Day 07: Darchen – Yamadwar – Drirapuk (Kora starts)
Day 08: Dirapuk to Juthulpuk (Drolma La Pass)
Day 10: Juthulpuk to Saga (Kora Ends)
Day 11: Saga to Nyalam
Day 12: Drive to Kathmandu
Day 13: Rest Day in Kathmandu
Day 14: Departure
Itinerary
Our representatives will receive you at the airport in Kathmandu, and guide you to the hotel in Kathmandu. Later, we will have a small briefing session on the trip, and meet the other members in the group, overnight at the hotel.
Today, we’ll take a tour of a few well-known Hindu temples in the Kathmandu Valley. We will visit the Pashupatinath, Gujeswari Shaktipith, and Jalnarayan Temple. Later, you can get some supplies for the Yatra if necessary. Overnight at hotel in Kathmandu.
We board our private Scorpio car with our staff and gear for an exhilarating ride through the bucolic countryside on the Arniko Highway to the Tibet border. Crossing by foot on the Friendship Bridge into Tibet, we meet our Land Cruisers for the additional 25-mile drive up to Nyalam, 12,350 feet. Overnight in Guesthouse accommodations.
We spend the next two days traveling through a seeing the sights of the austere Tibetan Plateau. Climbing quickly to cross a 16,800-foot road pass, we’ll try to get acclimatized to the 15,000-foot plateau. We’ll be guided by high Himalayan peaks and nights will be spent in guesthouses.
We look forward with anticipation to late morning arrival at the holy lake. One of two vast lakes at the foot of Mt. Kailash, its Tibetan name, Mapham Yumtsho, means the Unconquerable Turquoise Lake. The afternoon is free to explore the trails, monasteries, and other sites around the lake. Either camping or guesthouse accommodations.
We will get into our spiritual selves, and perform some rituals (puja) at the bank of the holy lake mansarovar. Our staffs will provide a bucket of hot holy water for each yatri from the lake Mansarovar for bathing. After our puja and prayers, we will complete the Parikrama of the Mansarovar Lake on a Jeep, and continue to the base camp of Kailash, Darchen. It is a village town right in front of the sacred Mt. Kailash.
We start walking the kora today and hand over our luggage to the yaks. We trek for 6 hours with a light backpack from Darchen to Dhira Phuk (5,080 m). The kora starts near Tarboche where pilgrims raise a prayer pole on the morning of Saga Dawa. Today is a long but relatively easy walking day, between Chiu Monastery and Dhira Puk Monastery you enjoy some of the best scenery of the entire kora. Overnight in guesthouse.
A long ascent up the Drolma-chu Valley brings us today to the 5,630 m high Drolma pass. The pass is marked by thousands of prayer flags and soon you will see pilgrims circumambulating the Drolma Rock pasting money onto the rock with yak butter, other taking a pause with refreshments. When descending, soon the Lake of Compassion comes in view where Hindu pilgrims are supposed to immerse themselves in the lake’s green waters. Before arriving in the guesthouse of Dzutrul Phuk monastery, we encounter footprints of Milarepa and Buddha on our way. Overnight in Guesthouse.
Today we finish the kora with a 4-5 hours trek from Dzutrul Phuk back to Darchen from where our driver brings us to the holy Manasarovar Lake (4,560 m). While hiking we cross several rivers and enter the Gold and Red Cliffs, a narrow canyon with stained purple, cobalt and rust walls. We make a scenic drive to the holy lake of Manasarovar where we spend the night in a guesthouse in Chiu Village.
We take a rest at the beautiful environments of the holy lake of Manasarovar and make in the afternoon a 435 km long drive to Saga. After Paryang we enjoy a photogenic section with sanddunes, lakes and mountains. We pass numerous stupas and monastery ruins on the way. We spend the night in a guesthouse in Saga, the last town situated on the southern route at an altitude of 4,600 m.
We leave Saga and drive in 250 kms to Nyalam, situated at 3,750 m. Overnight in guesthouse.
Short drive to China-Nepal Friendship Bridge and drive back to Kathmandu. Lunch break at Dhulikhel, Himalayan Horizon Resort.
Our representatives will drop you at the airport as per the flight timings.
Trip Format
Included in the Cost
- Hotel/Guest House Accommodation as per program
- Private Transportation by Van
- All necessary Tibet Travel and Trekking permit
- English speaking Tibetan Guide
- All Sightseeing and Entrance fee as per the itinerary
- Tibet Visa fee
- Kathmandu sightseeing and world heritage sites entry fees etc
Not Included in the Cost
- Lunch and Dinner except welcome dinner in Kathmandu International Travel Insurance
- Hiring porter, Yak/ horse Rescue and Evacuation Service Any Additional cost due to Nature calamity and Unforeseen Circumstances and etc.
- any tipping for guide and drivers
Map
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