Nepaltur 2001Langtang trek

Dagsprogram

OktoberTorsdag den 4.10.Afrejse fra Århus til Kastrupmed DSB og videre til Moskvamed Aeroflot

Med tog fra Århus kl. 4.25 med ankomst Kastrup kl. 7.37.Afgang fra Kastrup Lufthavn kl. 9.45.Ankomst Moskva kl. 14.20. Afg. Moskva kl. 23.55.

Fredag den 5.10.Ankomst Kathmandu Ankomst Kathmandu kl. 13.05.

Veksling af valuta og køb af visum.Indkvartering på Hotel Yeti. Besøg hos Highlander.

Lørdag den 6.10.Kathmandu Diverse indkøb til trekking turen.

Søndag den 7.10.Kathmandu-Dunche (1200m – 1950 m)9-10 timer

Bus fra Gongabu nord for Kathmandu. Ensmuk, men meget anstrengende bjergkørselvia Trisuli Bazaar. En stor del af turen følgervi Trisuli floden. Kort før Ramche (2100 m)begynder Langtang Nationalpark, og man skalvise kvittering for entry permit (650 Rs.)

Overnatning i Dunche.

Lonely Planet, side 264The starting place for Langtang treks is Dhun-che, 117 km from Kathmandu. Buses to Dhun-che leave from the bus terminal north of Kath-mandu. The first bus leaves at 7 am, costs Rs 64and takes all day to reach Dhunche. You canalso take a bus to Trisuli Bazaar and walk toDhunche, but the trail is steep and has nothingto offer except physical exertion. It is better totake a bus all the way to Dhunche and let thebus do all the initial climbing.

It is about a four hour drive from Kath-mandu (six hours by local bus) on a rough, de-teriorating paved highway that twists andclimbs over ridges to the Trisuli valley. PassingBalaju and Nagarjun, the road leaves theKathmandu Valley at Kakani (2145m), where

there are excellent views of Annapuma 11,Manaslu and Ganesh Himal, and descends in-to the broad Trisuli valley. The bus usually ma-kes a tea stop at Ranipauwa, the only large vil-lage on the route, at km 27. This region is theradish capital of Nepal; you can see huge pilesof long, freshly washed radishes (mula in Ne-pali) alongside the road awaiting transport tothe markets of Kathmandu.

After a long descent through terraced fields,the road crosses the Tadi Khola at km 60, thenclimbs onto a plateau and passes fields ofmustard, corn and rice planted in bright redsoil. There is a police checkpost two km beforeTrisuli where the police sometimes examinetrekking permits. The road then passes an ar-my camp and rolls into Trisuli Bazaar at 548m,72 km from Kathmandu.

Trisuli is the site of a dam and hydroelectricproject built by the Indian Technical Mission. Alarge bridge dominates the town; most shopsare before the bridge, and most restaurants areon the opposite side, near the hydroelectricplant. Hotel facilities are spartan and therestaurants are pretty grim, Try the Ranjit Lod-ge for dal bhat. If you must spend the nighthere, take a look at the Pratistha Lodge, nearthe power plant, or the Shakyar Lodge, nearthe beginning of the Betrawati road. Otherwi-

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se, continue eight km to Betrawati for a slightlybetter selection of hotels.

The unpaved road to Betrawati and Dhun-che is a Nepal army project. It took almost 10years to build the 105 km road that goes all theway to Somdang (3322m), at the foot of Ga-nesh Himal, where there are lead and zinc mi-nes.

The Dhunche road starts at a petrol stationin Trisuli Bazaar just before the bridge and fol-lows the east bank of the Trisuli River. Theroad passes two bridges carrying massive pi-pes that feed the hydroelectric project andclimbs slightly to Betrawati at 620m. Betra-wati is at the junction of the Trisuli and thePhalangu Khola, at the foot of a steep ridgethat rises towards Langtang and Gosainkund.It’s 47 km of steep switchbacks on a wild roadto Dhunche; at some points it hangs on to asteep cliff 1000m above the river. The road issubject to continual landslides - especiallywhen it rains - so a bus trip to Dhunche can bean adventure.

At Betrawati the road crosses the PhalanguKhola, then switchbacks at the end of the ridgefor 15 km, through Brahman and Chhetri villa-ges, to Kalikhastan at 1390m. This is the en-trance to Langtang National Park; the policeexamine trekking permits here. The villagesnow become more spread out, and as the ele-vation increases, the intense cultivation of thelowland rice growing country gives way to her-ding, and small fields of corn, millet and vege-tables. The road reaches its high point on theridge at 1980m, then makes a long contour,with a few ups and downs through oak andrhododendron forests, passing above Ramcheat Km 33, and then through Thare at Km 37.The road finally reaches Dhunche, the admi-

nistrative headquarters of the region, at1950m, three to four hours drive from Betra-wati.

Just before Dhunche is the national park he-adquarters, where park personnel collect thepark fee. There is a small visitor center here,and if you ask, a brochure describing the parkmay be available. Keep the receipt for the parkfee safely with your trekking permit sinceeveryone from here on will want to see this do-cument. Drive 50m further to another barrier,where the police record the vehicle informa-tion, and then a few hundred metres more toan army check post - your first chance to showoff your newly purchased national park re-ceipt. Formalities completed, you enter Dhun-che. The bus stop is in upper Dhunche, wherethere are several lodges and a campingground. Dhunche is a picturesque village withnarrow streets lined with stone buildings. Themain part of Dhunche is below the road, butthere are no lodges there; you are better offstaying near the bus stop. There is a large armyinstallation in a compound above the road.

The Hotel Thakali and the Langtang Vieware the up-market establishments, but thereare several less fancy operations nearby. TheLangtang National Park administration hasprepared a fixed menu and price list and re-quires lodges throughout the park to follow it,so choose a hotel based on looks and servicebecause the prices are (or should be) the same.The camping charge is a larcenous Rs 50 pertent and Rs 100 for use of a kitchen shelter. Aroom in a lodge costs only Rs 20, so if you ha-ve a tent, save it for the next day or hike 11/2hours on to Thulo Bharkhu. If you have yourown vehicle, it is preferable to drive the few kmto Thulo Bharkhu and camp there.

Mandag den 8.10.Dunche (1950 m) – Syabru (2200 m),8 km, 6 timer

Lige uden for Dunche grener stien fra vejen ogfølger Trisula Khola, krydser floden og stigerstejlt. Vi forlader nu Gosainkund stien og følgeren højderyg til Bharku (1850 m)

Lidt efter Bharku forlader vi vejen og stigerop til 2300 m gennem fyrreskov. Her kan sesagarner på klipperne. Efter et par timer når vien højderyg med udsigt mod Langtang- bjer-gene. Så dykker vi ned gennem løvskov med

rododendron, Benthamidia og andre træer.En gompa ved navn Brabal passeres. Snartnår vi sherpa- landsbyen Shyabru (2200 m),der ligger smukt langs en bakkekam. Her ermange gode lodges. To stier fører herfra op tilGosainkund, den ene via Dursagang tilSing Gompa, den anden til Chalang Pati.

Lonely Planet, side 268To go to Langtang, stay on the road and cross anew cement bridge over the Trisuli River,which is much smaller here in its upper rea-ches. Take a moment to reflect on the power of

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Himalayan streams as you pass the remnantsof a twisted steel bridge that once spanned thestream. Alongside the first waterfall beyond thebridge is an alternative trail to Sing gompa -straight up an almost vertical cleft in the rockbeside the stream.

The Trisuli flows from Gosainkund, where,according to legend, Shiva released the watersof the holy lakes with his trisul (trident). Thetrail north, up the main valley, was once a ma-jor trade route with Tibet and is still used by afair amount of traffic. The route to Tibet via theborder town of Rasuwa and the Tibetan villageof Kyirong may eventually be opened for trek-king if the present trend of allowingcross-border trekking continues. The upperpart of the river is named Bhote Kosi (”riverfrom Tibet”), as are most of the rivers thatcross the Himalaya into Nepal. When a Nepaliriver joins it, the Bhote Kosi assumes the nameof its smaller tributary. Thus the larger fork ofthe Trisuli bears the name Bhote Kosi aboveDhunche.

The route to Langtang follows the road upto a ridge at 1800m, then continues for a shortdistance to the Tamang village of ThuloBharkhu, at 1860m, which has a few roughbhattis. About 100m from the village, the roadcrosses a small stream with some water-drivenmills. Leave the road and climb steeply to theschoolhouse, then continue up a stone stairca-

se. The walk eventually becomes a delightful -and occasionally level - hike through pine andrhododendron forests to Dau Danda, a singletea shop in the forest at 1980m. At the Ta-mang village of Brabal (2200m) there is a wo-oden bhatti near the trail. Most of the villageand its potato and corn fields are hidden be-hind a ridge.

After a short climb, the trail reaches a ridgecrest at 2300m, where the trek finally entersthe Langtang Valley. There are views north-ward of snow peaks in Tibet, west to GaneshHimal and east to Naya Kangri, the 5846m pe-ak above Ganja La. A short, steep descentthrough bamboo forests leads to Syabru at2100m.

Syabru is a pleasant village of about 70houses, many with elaborately carved woo-den windows, strung out along a ridge. Thereare numerous lodges at the upper end of thevillage where the trail enters it. There is no ne-ed for me to suggest a place to stay here; a be-vy of very aggressive English-speaking Ta-mang women will accost you as you enter thevillage to extol the virtues of their establish-ments. Before you settle in for the night, consi-der the implications of the sign at the camp sitebefore the village that advertises ”no dogshere”. There are good places to camp beforeSyabru and also in corn and millet fields far be-low the village.

Tirsdag den 9.10.Syabru (2200 m) – Lama Hotel (2400 m),10 km, 6-7 timer

Stien mod Langtang går ned gennem terrasse-marker til en lille biflod. På den anden side sti-ger stien først brat, siden går den rundt langsbjergsiden og stejlt nedgennem bambuskrat tilLangtang Khola (1890 m).Efter et par jordskred fin-des to varme kilder påvenstre side. Vi går nu gen-nem dejlig egeskov medpiroler, bulbuler, latter-drosler og andre fugle, oghvor cikaderne larmer isommertiden. I modsæt-ning til den frodige løvskovpå sydsiden af floden ernordsiden solvendt og tør.

Den er græsklædt, og der vokser en mængdehøje vortemælkstræer. På klipperne ses bibo-er.

Vi passerer et gammelt jordskred og når enbro over floden. Lidt længere mod nord kom-mer vi til Rimche (2250 m) og Changdang(Chongong eller Lama Hotel) (2400 m).

Heromkring findes finskov med mange af de bi-zarre Arisaema-arter, ogpå stammerne vokserPleione-orkideer. Grålangur-aber spr ingerrundt i træerne, og medheld ser man gulstrubetmår.

Lonely Planet, side 269The trail to Langtang de-scends along the ridge onSyabru’s main street, then

Læg mærke tilde bizarre Arisaema-blomster somhører til Arum- familien. De kendespå et hylsterblad omkring blom-sterne, der er samlet på en kølle.Både hylsterblad og kølle er hosflere arter forlænget i en grotesktråd på op til en meters længde.Om efteråret har de røde bær i enkolbe. De vokser især i 2-3000 m’shøjde.

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drops to the Ghopcha Khola, first through ter-raced fields, then through forests of oak,maple, alder and finally bamboo. The trailcrosses the stream on a stone and cement brid-ge, then begins a climb across a ridge dottedwith a few bhattis. The route descends on a ste-ep, slippery path to the foot of a huge landslideat 1550m, where a trail junction is marked withsigns painted on a rock directing you either toLangtang or back to the road at Syabrubesi.Just beyond the slide, the Landslide Lodgeprovides a chance for a short rest before youclimb back along the southern banks of theLangtang Khola as the trail very quickly gainselevation.

For the rest of this day and the followingmorning, there are few settlements, but theforest abounds with birds. There is also a varie-ty of wildlife in these forests: yellow-throatedmartin, wild boar, langur monkey, red pandaand himalayan black bear. The trail climbs toBamboo Lodge, a jungly lodge at 1850m thatis not quite as exotic as its name implies. Thisregion specializes in the sale of colourful wool-len socks and belts. The ascent continues to a

steel suspension bridge at 2000m; there is asmall bhatti on the south (shady) side and theHotel Bridge Side sits on the opposite bank inthe sun.

The route crosses to the north bank of theLangtang Khola, then climbs alongside seriesof waterfalls. The forest is sparser and drier onthis side of the river, consisting mainly of scruboak, as opposed to the damp forest of large pi-nes on the shady southern bank. Climb steeplyto a landslide and the Langtang View & Lodgeat Rimche, 2250m. The Namaste TibetanLodge is a bit higher at 2330m, and the Tibe-tan Lodge is 10 minutes beyond. There is atrail junction that connects to a high route backto Syarpagaon and Syabrubesi; this was theold trail to Langtang before the bridge wasbuilt across the Langtang Khola. You havenow finished most of the day’s climbing; de-scend gently to Changtang, popularly knownas Lama Hotel, at 2380m. There are at leastfive lodges here, including the Lama Hotel it-self, and a few camping spots. The next ac-commodation is about 1½ hours beyond atRiverside Lodge.

Onsdag den 10.10.Lama Hotel (2400 m) – Langtang (3500 m),10 km, 6 timer

Efter ca. 2 timer når vi til Gihora Tabela (»He-stestalden«) (3000 m). Her kommer man ud ien bred, åben dal med lav skov. Her ligger enmilitærlejr. På klipperne ses ofte Hima-laya-tahr (en bjergged). Senere passeres et parbifloder og en gompa, inden man kommer tilLangtang (3500 m), der er en stor samlingstenhuse. Her findes nationalparkens hoved-kvarter.

Lonely Planet, side 270The day starts with a gentle climb, but it soonbecomes steeper, climbing high above theLangtang Khola. In places it is so steep that thetrail is on logs anchored to the valley wall. Tan-talising glimpses of Langtang Lirung (7246m)appear through the trees. At Gumnachok isthe Riverside Lodge, on the banks of the river;there is another Riverside Lodge in a clearingknown as Chhunama, 15 minutes beyond.The trail crosses a stream on a log bridge, thenclimbs through meadows to Ghora Tabela at3000m. Once a Tibetan resettlement project,

this is now a Nepal army and national parkpost and has no permanent inhabitants.

The national park lodge is operated on con-tract and is now named Lovely Lodge. There isanother police check post where they check,yet again, to be sure that you paid the nationalpark entrance fee. If you somehow slippedpast the station at Dhunche, they will collectthe fee - and possibly a fine - here. The trailascends gradually, as the valley becomes wi-der and wider, past yak pastures, ThangshyapLodge, some mani stones and scattered Ta-mang villages to the Langtang Gompa Hotel.You can see the village gompa just above thehotel; if you want to visit the temple, ask thehotel owner for information and assistance.The trail descends into a valley to cross a stre-am and climbs past several water-driven millsand prayer wheels to the large settlement ofLangtang at 3500m.

This village is the headquarters for Lang-tang National Park; the park buildings are tho-se with green metal roofs below the village.The best lodge is the Village View Lodge at theentrance to the town; most other lodges inLangtang are rooms in private homes, whichare heated and scented by yak-dung fires. The

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park administration allows an increase in pri-ces at Langtang village and above, so everyt-hing suddenly becomes more costly. The hou-ses of Langtang and the neighbouring com-munities have Tibetan- style flat roofs and aresurrounded by stone walls enclosing fields ofbuckwheat, potatoes, wheat, turnips and bar-ley. The villagers keep herds of yaks and cattlehere and in pastures above the village.

It is easy to go beyond Langtang, but not agood idea from the point of view of acclimati-

sation. You may not have noticed it becausethe trail has climbed gently, but you haveascended more than 1000m today.

Trekkers have fallen ill, and some have died,in this region because of altitude problems.Don’t go beyond Langtang village if you havecome from Lama Hotel, and descend immedi-ately if you suffer a severe headache or vomi-ting.

Torsdag den 11.10.Langtang (3500 m) - KyanjinGompa (3800 m),6 km, 3-4 timer

Fra Langtang stiger vi op gennem dalen, forbiadskillige rækker mani-sten med lamaistiskeinskriptioner. Der er en storslået udsigt modbjergene. Lammegribbe suser forbi på deressøgen efter knogler. Vi krydser et par bifloder,inden vi kommer til Kyanjin (3800 m). Herfindes en gompa og et osteri. Mælken kommerfra talrige yakokser, som græsser her. For nyliger opført en militærlejr. Soldaterne bl.a. skalbeskytte moskushjortene mod krybskytter.

Lonely Planet, side 271The trail winds through the village and climbsonto a ridge dominated by a large, squarechorten and a long row of mani walls. It then

climbs gradually past the small village of Munato Singdum, where there is a small lodge. Con-tinuing through yak pastures as the valley be-comes broader, the path crosses a woodencantilever bridge, then climbs a moraine whereyou can finally see Kyanjin gompa. It is a shortdescent to lodges, a cheese factory and an al-most defunct gompa. The Swiss Associationfor Technical Assistance started the cheese fac-tory in 1955. It now produces about 7000 kg ofcheese annually, all of it hauled by porters tothe dairy in Kathmandu. It is easy to reachKyanjin gompa, elevation 3800m, beforelunch, allowing time to acclimatise and explorethe surroundings. The best place in town is theHotel Yala Peak. The National Park Lodge,with its fancy solar heating, has been leased bya local person and has gone to seed - probablybecause of the park’s price controls.

Fredag den 12.10.Hviledag i Kyangjin Gompa

l den øvre Langtang-dal kan man foretage for-skellige vandringer. Nord for gompaen går ensidedal op mod Langtang Lirung (7245 m) ogKimshung (6745 m), hvorfra store gletschereglider ned. I disse bjerge kan man være heldigat se sneleopard.

Fortsætter man fra Kyangjin mod øst, pas-serer man store morænetunger bestående afstørre og mindre sten. Her holder pibeharer til.Ved floden kan den store vadefugl ibisnæbses. Den findes kun i højalpine vandløb i Cen-tralasien. Ligger der sne, ser man måske sporaf kravebjørn. Flere stejle stier fører op til Tser-go Ri (4984 m) med en storslået udsigt. I bun-den af dalen ligger Langshisa (4100 m) ikkelangt fra den store Langtang- gletscher Man er

LangtangdalensopdagelseLæg mærke til en stor sten med rødepletter ved Langshisa. Det betyder»den døde tyr«. Legenden fortæller omdalens opdagelse, at en mand ville slagteen tyr (lang). Den lugtede lunten og stakaf med en ko. Ejeren forfulgte dyrene,men mistede koen. Tyren fortsatte over ien anden dal, som var meget frodig.(Langtang betyder »fuld tyr« - altså afgræs). Så døde tyren pludselig (»shisa«).Manden tog dens skind af og spredte detud over en sten for at tørre det. Da hanfjernede huden, var stenen plettet afblod, og det er den stadig.

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her kun få kilometer fra den tibetanske græn-se.

Lonely Planet, side 271: Langtang ValleySpend the first day hiking up the morainenorth of Kyanjin gompa to an elevation of4300m or more. From the moraine, there is aspectacular view of Langtang Lirung and thefoot of one of its major glaciers.

There are two good viewpoints in the areathat you can climb. The peak to the north ofKyanjin gompa is Kyanjin Ri (4773m) about atwo hour climb. Do not head directly up theridge behind the gompa; follow the indistincttrail that starts on the opposite side of a streambeyond the national park lodge. The views aresuperb.

A longer excursion is to Tsergo Ri (”Tserko”on the German map), at 4984m, a four hourclimb from Kyanjin gompa. Both of these peaks

are visible from Kyanjin gompa and prayerflags mark their tops.

There are also two possible climbing pro-jects: 5500m Yala Peak (not to be confusedwith Yala Kharka on Tsergo Ri), and 5749mTsergo Peak (which is different from TsergoRi). Both are two-day expeditions that involveglacier climbing and a high camp on a saddleabove the trail near Nubama Dhang.

It’s also worthwhile taking an extra day ortwo to continue further up the Langtang Valleyto Langshisha Kharka for views of Lang-shisha Ri (6310m), Gang Chhenpo (6388m),Urkeinmang (6151m), and Penthang KarpoRi (6830m). There are no facilities beyondKyanjin gompa, but you can make a day tripand return to Kyanjin gompa for the night. Ifyou have a tent and food, you can camp atLangshisha Kharka at 4080m or another ofthe summer pastures high in the valley.

Søndag den 14.10.Lama Hotel (2400 m) - Syabru (2200 m),10 km, 7 timer

Samme strækning som tirsdag den 9.,men i modsat retning.

Lørdag den 13.10.Kyangjin Gompa (3800 m) - Lama Hotel(2400 m), 16 km, 7-8 timer

Samme vej tilbage til Lama Hotel, men dennegang nedad, så derfor springer vi Langtangover.

Mandag den 15.10.Syabru (2200 m) - Shin Gomba (3350m),10 km, 5-6 timer

I dag begynder vi vores vandring mod Gosain-kund søerne. Syd for Syabru vælger vi denvestlige sti over Dursagang til Shin Gompa(Chandan Bari). (Den østlige går til ChalangPati). I Shin Gompa findes en gompa og etosteri. Mælken fås fra yakokser, der om som-meren græsser her. Der er startet et træplant-ningsprogram for at få skoven tilbage.

Lonely Planet, side 280There are at least three routes from Syabru toGosainkund. Two of these bypass Sing gom-

pa and head directly to two tea shops at Cha-lang Pati. The route described here is a morecircuitous trail via Sing gompa. This trail is easi-er to follow and breaks the climb into more ma-nageable segments.

The direct route from Chalang Pati to Sya-bru is a good choice if you are coming downfrom Gosainkund because the trail is easy tosee from above, but it’s a bad choice if you areheaded uphill because it’s not an obvious rou-te. A guide who knows the way will be veryhelpful, perhaps essential, if you plan to climb

Vidste du,hvorfor vandbøflen har så lidt hår? Igamle dage var vandbøflen og yakoksengode venner. De holdt begge meget afsalt, som fandtes ret sparsomt. Yakoksentilbød at gå op i Tibet for at lede efter salt,men først spurgte den vandbøflen, omden ikke kunne låne noget af dens pels,så den kunne holde varmen oppe i Ti-bets kulde. Det gik vandbøflen villigtmed til. Yakoksen forsvandt, men er dendag i dag ikke vendt tilbage. Derfor hol-der vandbøflen hovedet højt og kiggerop mod bjergene for at se, hvornår densven vender tilbage med saltet og denlånte pels.

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up this route, otherwise you will probably fol-low a lot of useless yak trails.

Once you evade the pushy Syabru hoteliers,climb past the gompa, school and army post,and switchback up the steep hill above the vil-lage. There are a few houses and potato fields,but always take the upper, steep trail and youwill eventually find yourself at two pleasant teashops in Dursagang at 2550m. The trail con-tinues less steeply, now mostly in forests, pastan old chorten to the top of the ridge and twoshoddy tea shops at 3000m.

This is also a trail junction; the right-handtrail leads downhill to Brabal and the Dhuncheroad, and the left trail is a short cut to ChalangPati. The Sing gompa trail climbs, then cuts

across the ridge top, staying fairly level inforests as it crosses the head of a valley. Takethe uphill trail at each junction and cross anot-her forested ridge. There is a view of Dhunchefar below in the valley. The trail continuesacross the head of a second valley, then rea-ches a final ridge at 3260m. Sing gompa isabout 100m along the trail to the left.

Sing gompa is the main attraction at Chan-dan Bari, elevation 3250m, which also has se-veral lodges and a small cheese factory. Thegompa, which houses a statue of the GreenTara, is not well cared for; the caretaker will un-lock it for you for a small fee. The hillside nearChandan Bari is bare and scorched through acombination of logging, fire and wind storms.

Tirsdag den 16.10.Shin Gomba (3350m) – Lauribina (3900 m),5 km, 3-4 timer

For at komme til Gosainkund går vi mod østlangs højderyggens sydside gennem rododen-dronskov og over højderyggen til ChalangPati (3650 m). Her går en sti nordpå til Shya-bru. På nordsiden fortsætter vi til Lauribina(3900 m). Vandposter findes med mellemrumlangs ruten, der har en flot udsigt mod nord.Man passerer en chautara (hvileplads), og efternogen tid krydses over til sydsiden af højderyg-gen.

Lonely Planet, side 281The trail climbs steeply up the ridge, at severalpoints on top of the ridge itself. The ridge is atransition zone between rich, moist mountainforests on the northern slopes and dry scrubvegetation on the slopes that face south. The

trail crosses behind the ridge and stays in deepforests for a while, then emerges onto a saddleatChalang Pati (3380m), where the ChalangPati Hotel offers a welcome cup of tea. Whenyou start walking again, you will see a sign inNepali. It says that you are now entering theGosainkund protected area, where the killingof animals, lighting of wood fires and grazing ofgoats are prohibited.

As the trail ascends, there are outstandingviews across Langtang Valley to LangtangLirung. There are a few goths along the way tothe tea shops at Laurebina, elevation 3930m,known locally as Laurebina Yak. There arethree lodges here; one advertises ”astoundingmountain views” as you eat ”breakfast on topof the world”. The views are truly magnificent -you can see the Annapumas, Manaslu(8156m), Ganesh Himal (7406m), some un-named peaks in Tibet and finally LangtangLirung.

Onsdag den 17.10.Lauribina (3900 m) – Gosain Kunda (4400 m),5 km, 4-5 timer

Stien bliver nu meget vanskelig, og om foråretmå man ofte vende om pga. sne. Vi er nu nærGosainkundsøerne (4400 m). Her er et lilleShiva-ternpel og adskillige hoteller. I monsun-tiden er dette område én stor blomstereng. Detregner meget og kan være miserabelt, menindimellem dukker bjergene frem mellem sky-erne, og fuglene synger.

Lonely Planet, side 281The trail ascends, now in alpine country, upthe ridge to a pair of small stone pillars that say”Welcome to Gosainkund” - but you still havea lot more climbing to do. Continue to the ridgeat 4100m and climb further for a view of thefirst of the lakes, Saraswati Kund, in a valleyseveral hundred metres below. The trail leavesthe ridge and follows a trail high above the Tri-suli valley. This is not a trail for acrophobics;fortunately it is on the sunny side of the bill, sothe snow melts quickly. The trail is spooky and

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dangerous i f i t i ssnow-covered. Indeed,if there has been a lot ofsnow, it may not be pos-sible to cross into Go-sainkund. People haveperished floundering inthe deep snow in this re-gion, so return to Dhun-che if conditions are notgood.

After the trail crossesa spur, the second lakein the chain, BhairayKund, comes into vi-ew. The trail climbsgently but continuouslyto a ridge and dropsabout 20m to the thirdand largest lake, Go-sainkund, at an eleva-tion of 4380m. Thereare two small tea shops,a shrine and severalsmall stone shelters forpi lgr ims on thenorth-western side ofthe lake. Hundreds ofpeople come here toworship and bathe in

the lake during thefull-moon festival eachAugust.

Gosainkund lake hasa black rock in themiddle, said to be thehead of Shiva. There isalso a legend about awhite rock under thewater that is the rem-nant of an ancient shri-ne of Shiva. Accordingto legend, Shiva him-sel f created thishigh-altitude lake whenhe pierced a glacierwith his trident to ob-tain water to quenchhis thirst after consu-ming some poison. It isalso said that the waterfrom this lake disappe-ars underground via asubterranean channeland surfaces in Kum-beshwar pool, next tothe five-storey ShivaTemple in Patan, morethan 60 km away.

Shivas tørstGosainkund-søerne er hellige for hindu-erne, og hver fuldmåne i juli-august dra-ger tusinder af pilgrimme op for at et ritu-elt bad i søerne. En legende fortæller omsøernes opståen: lavere guder ville findeudødelighedens vand, og da de rodedehavets vande op, steg en gift, kalkut, tiloverfladen. Shiva drak det forgiftedevand, for at det ikke skulle skade de an-dre guder. Det gav ham feber og tørst, oghans hals blev blåfarvet. Han drog der-for op i sneen i bjergene og slyngede sintrefork mod klippen. Hvor den ramte,sprang kilder frem og skabte Gosain-kund-søerne. Shiva lagde sig ved bred-den og drak.

Nede i søen findes en oval klippe. Pil-grimmene ser den som Shiva, der hvilerpå et leje af slanger. En mindre sten påden store sten er hans fingam. Treforkhedder trisul på hindi, og floden, som lø-ber ned fra søerne og videre mod syd,kaldes Trisuli Khola.

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Torsdag den 18.10.Gosain Kunda (4400 m) - Lauribina La(4609 m)- Ghopte (3450 m), 10 km, 8 timer

Fra søerne går stien over et pas Laribina La(4609 m) og videre mod sydøst langs nordsi-den af en dal. Ved foden af passet ligger Phedi(3700 m). Vi stiger op til nogle gothæ (stenhyt-ter) i 4000 m’s højde og derpå ned ad en bak-kekam med et vandfald på venstre side. Det ersvært terræn med skred og vandløb, der skalkrydses.EfternogentidnårviGhopte (3450m).

Lonely Planet, side 281The trail passes the northern side of Gosain-kund lake and climbs further through ruggedcountry towards Laurebina Pass. The trail isrough and crosses moraines, but it is well mar-ked with rock cairns. Passing three more smalllakes, the trail finally reaches the pass at4610m. A small hillock above the trail offersgood views in both directions.

From the pass, the trail descends alongside astream through alpine country to a single hutat 4100m. Here, at Bhera Goth, there is achoice of trails. The upper trail is a new directroute to Tharepati. It is very dangerous whenthere is any snow at all on the trail, and there isno accommodation or food between here andTharepati. Get advice from other trekkers or

from the man who lives at Bhera Goth beforeyou take this trail. The lower, safer trail de-scends along the middle of the valley to Phedi(3500m), which comprises two funky teashops (the Taj Mel is one) by a stream and awooden bridge.

Across the valley, you can see a ridge with asteep trail across its face at an angle of almost45º. Yes, this is where you are going. The routecontinues across the head of the valley on anextremely rough trail, across moraines andpast two goths that have minimal hotel faciliti-es - just tea and Pepsi - to the bottom of the160m climb to the ridge. The ascent is just assteep as it looks, but it is not as exposed (andtherefore not as frightening) as it looked fromacross the valley; see the boxed aside.

From the top of this infamous ridge, the traildescends through forests, climbing in and outof ravines across the head of the valley. Giantcliffs tower far above, forming the top of theThare Danda. On one of the ridges there aresome prayer flags; just beyond these flags isGhopte at 3430m. There are two tea shopsand a cave that offers some shelter. This is along and rough day of trekking. The lodges ofTharepati are visible on the far ridge; at nightyou can see the lights of Trisuli Bazaar far be-low and the glow of Kathmandu to thesouth-west.

Fredag den 19.10.Ghopte (3450 m) – Melamchi Gaon (2530m), 8 km, 6 timer

Der er nu skovklædt igen. Vi krydser et lillevandløb og begynder opstigningen modTharepati (3500 m). Her deler stien sig, ogman kan vælge at gå østpå mod MelamchiGaon (Melamchi Ghyang) eller sydpå til GulBhanjyang. Vi går mod øst. Stien går stejltned gennem smuk skov af eg, løn, ædelgran ogskarntydegran, indtil vi når en lysning med got-hæ. Vi går mod højre ned til et vandløb og overen bro. Kort efter kommer vi op til MelamchiGaon (2530 m), den nordligste beboelse idenne dal. Også her bor sherpaer, og der fin-desen stor gompa.Landsbyenharelektricitet.

Lonely Planet, side 282 og 276Descending from the ridge at Ghopte, the trailcontinues up ravines and across the bouldersof old moraines below the wreckage of a plane

that crashed in 1992, then makes a final ascentto Tharepati, on the ridge at 3490m. Thereare several lodges below the ridge, and twomore on the ridge itself. Take a moment toclimb the hill to the east of the ridge for views ofDorje Lakpa, Shisha Pangma and peaks all theway to Khumbu. Here, the trail joins the He-lambu circuit You can travel for two hoursdownhill to Malemchigaon and on to TarkeGyang, or go directly down the ridge to Kath-mandu via Pati Bhanjyang.

Tharepati consists of a few goths and ho-tels at 3490m. The very prettily situated Hima-laya Lodge is on the Kluaturnsang side of thepass. The Sumche Lodge is just below the passwhile the Top Lodge is right at the top. It canget very chilly here at night.

Turn east from the northern end of the sett-lement and descend steeply down a ravine.The vegetation changes to large firs, then tooaks and rhododendrons, as you rapidly loseall the altitude you gained during the last two

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days. Crossing a stream on a suspension brid-ge, the trail makes a short final climb to reachthe prosperous Sherpa village of Malemchi-gaon at 2530m.

The Sherpas of Helambu are very differentfrom their cousins in Solu Kbumbu. Instead ofthe Tibetan-style black dress and colourfulapron, the Sherpa women of Helambu wear adress of red printed cotton. Their language isalso quite distinct from the Sherpa language ofSolu Khumbu. There are grammatical dif-ferences and, in addition, Helambu Sherpasspeak much more rapidly than other Sherpas.Helambu women have a reputation for beingvery beautiful, and many Helambu Sherpagirls were once employed in aristocratic Ranahouseholds in Kathmandu during the Rana re-

gime. Many of their benefactors gave gifts ofland to these girls, so many Helambu familiesnow own large tracts of farmland in the rivervalley far below.

Malemchigaon has a very glossy gompawith a line of prayer flags at the front andbrightly painted walls and statues. If it’s lockedup, enquire at one of the nearby lodges aboutthe key. You can stay at the Tashi Dhalek Lod-ge right by the gompa, the Sun Lodge or theGreen View Lodge on the Tharepati side of thevillage, or the comfortable-looking YangrimaLodge overlooking the village from the topend. Electricity supply lines snake down thehill from Malemchigaon, connecting it withTarke Gyang up the other side of the valley.

Lørdag den 20.10.Melamchi Gaon (2530 m) – Tarke Ghyang(2600 m), 5 km, 4 timer

Stien fortsætter mod sydøst. Vi passerer enchorten, og efter en times tid gennem en delvisfældet skov krydser vi Melamchi Khola (1890m) ad en stor bro. Her vokser skov af nepale-sisk el, og på klipper i nærheden kan ses storevilde biboer.

Stejl opstigning mod Tarke Ghyang (2600m) gennem agerland. Navnet betyder »De 100Hestes Tempel«. Det skyldes, at grundlæg-geren af det første tempel her stoppede en pe-stepiderni i Kathmandudalen. Han blev førstbelønnet af kongen med 100 heste, men bytte-de dem siden for området her. Beboerne erogså sherpaer. De sælger mange ting, bl.a.»antikviteter«, som ser gamle ud, fordi de ersværtet over bål!

Lonely Planet, side 276From Malemchigaon, the trail continues to de-scend to the River Side Lodge and the Malem-chi Khola, which is crossed on a sturdy suspen-sion bridge at 1890m. Once across the river,the trail immediately begins the ascent towardsTarke Gyang. Sometimes hoteliers from TarkeGyang come all the way down to the river to tryto induce you to patronise their establish-ments. It is a long climb to this picturesque villa-ge on a shelf high above the river at 2600m.

Tarke Gyang is the largest village in He-lambu and the destination for most trekkers in

this region. The stone houses are close toget-her with narrow alleyways separating them.Inside, the homes are large, clean and oftenelaborately furnished with elegant brasswareand traditional Tibetan carpets on highly po-lished wooden floors. The gompa has a hugebrass prayer wheel.

The people of Helambu do a lot of trading inIndia during the winter. Many of the people arequite well-to-do, and own cultivated fields inthe lower Malemchi Khola valley. A specialracket among the people of Helambu is the sa-le of antiques, usually manufactured in Kath-mandu and aged over smoky fires in the ho-mes of Tarke Gyang. Beware of any such bar-gain here. It is illegal to export any item over100 years old from Nepal, so you would dobetter to purchase well-made handicrafts inKathmandu or Patan, rather than try to beatthe system by purchasing a fake antique in thehills.

The Mount View Hotel is on the Malemchi-gaon edge of the village. Right by the village’slarge gompa is the Lama Lodge, while the TaraLodge and the Helambu Lodge are furtherback in the village. At the far side of the villagethe trail crosses a stream past a water-drivenprayer wheel and then a long mani wall besidethe entrance to the rambling Tarkegyang Gu-est House. Trekking groups often camp in thegarden here.

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Søndag den 21.10.Hviledag i Tarke Ghyang

Lonely Planet, side 276Tarke Gyang is a good place to take a rest day,and there’s the option of making a half dayclimb to the peak (3771 m) directly north of the

village. From the chorten on the summit thereare superb views of the mountains to the north.This ascent is the first part of the route to theGanja La pass.

From Tarke Gyang, there is a choice of trailsback to Kathmandu.

Mandag den 22.10.Tarke Ghyang (2600 m) – Shermatang(2600 m), 8 km, 3-4 timer

Fra Tarke Ghyang er der flere muligheder for atkomme sydpå. Vi går forbi en gompa og fort-sætter langs en højderyg til Ghyangyul (2500m) og Shermatang (2600 m).

Lonely Planet, side 278From Tarke Gyang the trail leaves the villagenear the big guesthouse and follows the electri-city supply line around the hillside to Parachin.The trailmakesa sweeparound the widevalleyend between Parachin and the pretty village ofGangjwal at around 2500m. At the end of thevillage the Dolma Lodge sells cold beer andsoft drinks and from its position on the edge ofthe ridgehasviews right across toSermathang.

The trail drops down from the edge of theridge but then continues at around the samealtitude along the side of the ridge, crossing anumber of streams and waterfalls and pickingits way over the debris from a huge landslide.Finally it passes a gompa at the edge of the lar-ge village of Sermathang (2620m). There is aLangtang National Park office in the villagewhere you must pay the park entrance fee ifyou are coming from the opposite direction.

Sermathang has a number of places to stay,including the Mountain View Lodge, the TaraLodge and the very comfortable looking Yan-gri Lodge and Hotel Snowfall. If you arestaying at lodges you might want to make ashort day of it and stop here as there are not somany accommodation possibilities furtherdown the ridge before Malemchi.

Tirsdag den 23.10.Shermatang (2600 m) – Melamchi Pul (890)– Kathmandu (bus), 9 km, 5-6 timers trek +5 timers buskørsel

Vi fortsætter videre ned i dalen til Kakani ogMelamchi Pul Bazaar (850 m). Her er detværd at besøge The Himalayan Resque DogSquad, hvis indehaver har redningshunde.Han giver gerne oplysninger om området, oghvis man starter sin vandring her, kan man bli-ve registreret hos ham med oplysning om re-turdato etc. Man kan aftale, at hvis man ikkekommer tilbage til tiden, sættes en eftersøg-ning i gang. Der går bus herfra til Kathmanduvia Banepa.

Lonely Planet, side 279From Sermathang the trail follows the ridge allthe way down to Malemchi Pul Bazaar, makinga drop of 1790m. After passing a large gompaat the southern end of the village the trail undu-lates along the west side of the ridge, passingchorten after chorten before dropping down to

Kakani at around 1900m. Don’t confuse thisKakani with the one, just south of TarkeGyang.

A chorten marks the saddle at the northernend of Kakani and there is a gompa at the topof the hill overlooking the village, but at thispoint you are in the transition zone from theBuddhist regions to the Hindu lowlands. Thefairly primitive-looking View Lodge and acouple of tea shops can be found near thechorten.

From Kakani the trail drops steeply past asmall village and down to the attractive largervillage of Dubhachaur at 1500m. A very Au-stralian-looking eucalyptus tree makes a shadylunch stop in the village. The trail descendseven more steeply right down the ridge to thejunction of the Larke Khola and the MalemchiKhola, where they form the Indrawati River. Asuspension bridge takes you over the LarkeKhola, just before the junction, and after ashort walk along the river bank a larger andgrander suspension bridge crosses the Indra-wati into Malemchi Pul Bazaar at 830m. A

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plaque on the bridge proclaims that it was ma-de by John Henderson & Co Ltd, Engineers ofAberdeen, Scotland. The village has a collec-tion of shops and teahouses and numerouslodges including the Indrawati, Helambu,Shanti and the quite luxurious-looking LamaLodge.

Transport (including buses) runs reasonablyfrequently along the road (known as the He-lambu Highway) from Malemchi via Bahune-pati and Sipa Ghat to Panchkal on the Kodariroad.