Upper Dolpo Trekking

"This wild, wild trek may take the wind out of your sails, but its a journey into the kind of remote wilderness that’s so pure in its natural beauty…it may change your life for the better…with the mementos placed on the walls of some of your most favorite places at home…and you will relate the stories to the generations to come…this is Dolpo for you… allow us to tell you why:

Geographically one of the highest plateaus on the planet, and unbelievably inhabited at this altitude, this remote isolated region was closed to the outer world to preserve its natural beauty…till 1989…when the gates opened after this and the Nepalese government decided to share its beauty with the world outside. To trek into this region, special permission is required from the government; and with the new regulations in place, this once unknown area is now open to the world’s veteran trekkers and mountain lovers…and is a major destination for the high and wild today…
 
The Upper Dolpo is situated midway between the Tibetan Plateau and the huge Dhaulagiri Himal range and is a southern extension of Tibet but is physically placed within the borders of Nepal’s Himalayas and is the largest declared National Park and Conservation zone which is home to some of the world’s rare species in flora & fauna.

Possessing within its realms some 30 inhabited villages and quiet monasteries at altitudes of eleven to 15000 ft, Dolpo belongs to Nepal but its people – in tradition, culture and religion are so much like the Tibetan Buddhists who take their roots from the nomadic tribes who set up shop in this area in the 10th century BC. Since it was in peaceful Nepal, the Chinese occupation of Tibet and the subsequent ‘cultural cleansing’’ of Tibet had no repercussions on the ‘Dolpi’ {people of Dolpo} and their religion and culture has survived through the winds of a rough time and is one of the best preserved symbols of the real Tibetan Buddhism anywhere in the world. As a matter of fact, some of the local folks in certain parts of the region practice Bon Po, an animistic religion that pre-dates Buddhism and which, most scholars reckon, is actually an antecedent to Tibetan Buddhism as we see it today… the Lower Dolpo, an area opened to trekkers, is densely forested with conifers and slit by milky white gushing rivers that are sparkling clean. The upper portion of Dolpo seems to be more like an extension of the Tibetan Plateau and is a replica of the wild, windswept, open outlets that have the same traits of Tibet.

The National Park is the only one that encompasses a Trans-Himalayan eco-system that’s unique and rare. The National Park has not only protected the culture but also the precious wildlife of the region. The lower Dolpo is home to the endangered musk deer which you may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of along the trails and to a great range of birds of which some are so beautiful to behold.

Though rarely seen the blue sheep, the Himalayan black bear, snow leopard and the Himalayan wolf are also seen in Dolpo though you may not get them to pose for your camera…but be sure they are watching you from somewhere. Your journey to the land of the Dolpo-pi begins with a lovely flight from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj, followed the next day by another flight to the STOL airstrip at Jumla. It’s from Jumla where our hike begins a south-easterly path through the villages of Gothichaur, Chaurikot and Hurikot. We cross the Kagmara La 16,800 ft/5115m to the villages of Pungmo and the lovely Ringmo where we haul up at the famous Shey Phoksundo Lake; note, trekkers are not allowed to go beyond the lake. Our revert journey brings us south through the villages of Sepka and Ankhe to Dunai for our flight back to Nepalgunj and finally kathmandu and so called civilization…but to the warmness and comfort of a soft bed and fluffy pillow at our hotel…