Gosaikunda Helambu Trek

After a satisfactory breakfast in your hotel, you will embark for a guided tour to some of the most historical and spiritual attractions of the city that are listed under the UNESCO world heritage sites. A visit to the highly venerated Hindu temple of Pashupatinath, the high-flying monkey temple at Swayambhunath, Bouddhanath – a Buddhist shrine and one of the largest stupas in the world, and the charismatic Basantapur Durbar Square leaves impressive reminiscences at the back of your head for a considerable period of time. Later in the afternoon, you will visit our office where you will meet your trip manager, other trekkers, and crew members. Your trip leader will brief you shortly about your upcoming trip in the Annapurna region, check your equipment and interact for any unclear thoughts in your head before you go back to your hotel. Overnight in Kathmandu.

After an early breakfast in your Kathmandu hotel, you embark on a rather long drive to reach the starting point of your Langtang trekking trip. The road trip to Syabrubesi traverses you through winding roads along the scenic banks of the river Trishuli amidst beautiful valleys, meadows, small streamlets and mountains. The road, in due course of time, gets on an unpaved track making it a rough and adventurous ride on the dazzling route through high valley ridges and stunning panoramic glimpses of the Himalayan giants including the Annapurna, Manaslu, Ganesh Himal and the peaks of the Langtang range. It may be possible to catch sight of few faunal endangered species of the Himalayan black bears, red pandas, the yellow-throated martens, and oodles of monkeys. The trip culminates at a small village of Syabrubesi in the valley of glaciers, the Langtang Valley. Overnight in Syabrubesi.

The first day of your trek begins with a sumptuous breakfast at your Syabrubesi hotel. Walking along the Langtang River with several ups and downs immersing into slightly thick rhododendron and oak forests, you will pass by several tiny Tamang villages en route. After lunch in one of the small bamboo villages on the hiking trail on the edge of Langtang River, you will keep on walking through the leveled path. You will possibly get to witness a number of bird species and beehives hanging on the cliffs while you proceed to move into the deep forests of bamboo and rhododendron. You will then have to cross a bridge over the Langtang River before steeply climbing up to reach Lama Hotel, which isn’t really a hotel but the name of a tiny town inside the forests of Langtang Valley with small hotels, lodges and pleasant teahouses. Overnight in Lama Hotel.

After breakfast at Lama Hotel, you will begin the day’s hike with more ascents through the forest with sporadic views of Langtang Lirung amidst the trees and plentiful waterfalls. Reaching Ghoda Tabela, (literally the Horse’s Stable in Nepali), magnificent views of the snow-clad mountains on either side of the valley presents itself in its most spectacular outline. The hiking path continues with another gentle ascend and the valley transforms into wider segments crossing few impermanent settlements of herders who come up here to graze their cattle during summertime. The upcoming portion of the trail is a dismal remembrance of the devastating 2015 earthquake, where the village of Langtang once stood; in the present day, it is nothing more than a massive rock turf. Continuing further on the trail is the Mundu village where old houses are just memoirs of what villages once looked like, but now they have been built in a more contemporary fashion. Overnight in Mundu.

You will begin the day’s hike to Kyangjin Gompa after breakfast in Mundu village, with a gentle ascend through tiny hamlets and yak pastures. Crossing few water mills, prayer wheels, and chortens, the valley opens for better views and you will walk across small streams and moraines to reach your final destination of the trek, Kyangjin Gompa. Today, you will also walk past the largest Mani wall in Nepal that is made up of stone with prayer inscriptions on them. Kyangjin village is a serene and a quaint place offering magnificent views of Mt. Ganchhenpo and Langtang Lirung. This village also has a government-operated cheese factory supported by the Swiss government. Since you will arrive at Kyangjin Gompa during lunchtime, you will have ample time to explore the surrounding area or you could even head up the valley towards Langshisha Kharka before calling it a day. Overnight in Kyangjin Gompa.

This day is kept aside for getting acquainted with the high elevations and dedicating yourself to indulge in the natural splendor and tranquility of the environs of the famous monastery at Kyangjin. As a part of acclimatization, you will have your breakfast before exploring the peaceful environment and then ascending up to Tserko Ri past several yak pastures including Langshisha Kharka. If you have stored sufficient energy in your body, you could hike up the moraine to catch sensational views of the ice faces and plummeting glaciers of Langtang Lirung. Another option for acclimatization could be summiting Kyangjin Ri, locally known by the name Brana Chumbo. You will return to Kyangjin Gompa in the late afternoon and enjoy views of the Himalayan peaks, glaciers, species of birds and legendary yaks. Overnight in Kyangjin Gompa.

A day to retrace your steps back to Lama Hotel, you will kick off on the trail that you embarked earlier. Following the Langtang River on your way back through the village of Mundu and eventually Ghoda Tabela, you will stop for lunch en route before proceeding further. The trail is flat and the walk is comparatively easier than your ascent. After lunch at some appropriate stoppage point depending on the pace of your walk, you will continue your downhill ramble until you arrive at Lama Hotel, which is one of the oldest undisturbed valleys in Nepal. The day’s hike involves mostly downhill walk through quaint Tamang villages and picturesque views of the Himalayan fraternity, Overnight in Lama Hotel.

Climbing up to Rimche village after breakfast at Lama Hotel, this pleasant morning walk leads through a new walking trail on an undulating path through forests. Then, it is a short descend till you reach the banks of the Langtang Khola from where you will continue on an easy trail to Bamboo which is a place with few small lodges. There are two trails after crossing a bridge over the river, and you will follow the one that passes the Pahare hotel which will lead you to Upper Syabru, better known as Thulo Syabru. Upper Syabru is a nice village situated on the lap of Gosaikunda with traditional built Tamang style houses having beautiful carved windows and doors. The village also houses a very old monastery above the village. Overnight in Thulo Syabru.

Today after breakfast, you will climb uphill through lovely forests of rhododendron, hemlock, pine and oak accompanied by magnificent views of Langtang peak and Ganesh Himal. After hiking for a short while, you will pass a chorten as well as a checkpoint. Moving southwards and passing the village of Garta and Phulung monastery with summer pasturelands and pleasant winding trails, you will reach Shin Gompa. Also known as Chandanbari village, this small settlement has the popular yak cheese factory and one of the oldest monasteries above the village. Overnight at a teahouse in Shin Gompa.

Your day begins with a climb through pine and rhododendron forests following a ridge for the most part of the day. Walking amidst dramatic views of the Himalayan giants such as the Annapurna massifs, Hiunchuli, Ganesh Himal, Langtang Lirung, and Manaslu, you will pass a few huts in the high pastures of Lauribinayak. Crossing a small ridge, you will catch the first glimpses of the holy lakes at Gosaikunda. There are 108 lakes in the Gosaikunda basin amongst which the three main lakes are Saraswatikunda, Bhairabkunda, and Gosaikunda. Mythology has in its records that Gosaikunda was created by Lord Shiva after he drank the waters of the lake to quench his thirst on drinking poison on some account. Overnight in Gosaikunda.

Walking towards the northern side of Gosaikunda Lake and crossing a moraine, you will begin ascending towards Lauribinayak La Pass at 4610 meters which is the beginning point of the Helambu region and also the highest point on this trek. From here the trail descends to the Melamchi valley through a national park post at Bheda Goth and to Phedi. From here, the route drops and passes through Suryakunda before finally arriving at Ghopte, a small settlement situated in the middle of a forest. Today’s trek involves spectacular views of Manaslu, Ganesh Himal, and Langtang Lirung. Overnight in Ghopte.

After breakfast today, you will ramble on undulating paths through dense bamboo and rhododendron forest until you arrive at Tharepati village. Climbing further over the ridge above the village offers marvelous views of the Jugal area including the Gosaikunda mountain range and Helambu valley. The trail descends from here dipping through forests of pine and rhododendron with several waterfalls on the way. Crossing two suspension bridges followed by another gentle climb will bring you to the beautiful village of Melamchigaon. Situated on the lap of the Himalayas, this village is nice and houses an old monastery. Overnight in Melamchigaon.

The day’s hike begins after breakfast where you will drop down to the Melamchi River and cross a suspension bridge. The walk then continues on an uphill path to the other side of the valley. Stunning views of Mt. Shishapangma and the Langtang ranges greet you during your trip today in their spectacular forms. During the considerable climb, you will witness grazing yaks in the small bushes before finally arriving at the picturesque village of Tarkeghyang. Entering the cultural destination of the Helambu region, you can enjoy the rich Sherpa culture, time-honored villages and medieval monasteries on the trails built of broken stones. Although Tarkeghyang is not the largest village of this region, trekkers prefer to stop by here to call it a day amidst the stone houses lying close together with narrow alleyways separating them. Overnight in Tarkeghyang.

You will start walking after breakfast on a relatively easier flatland passing through beautiful lush forests and views of the charming villages, chortens, monasteries and Mani walls of the Helambu region. The trail drops from the edge of a ridge before continuing at almost the same altitude along the valley leaving behind a number of streams, waterfalls and landslide areas. You will finally reach Sermathang, a quaint Sherpa village with spectacular vistas of Jugal Himal, Langtang Lirung, Gosaikunda, Rolwaling, Ganesh Himal and even Mt. Everest quite in the distance. People of the village of Sermathang practice Drukpa Kagyu Buddhism, which is also practiced in Bhutan. Overnight in Sermathang.

Today is officially the last day of your trekking, so after breakfast, you will walk downhill all the way through meadows, cultivated fields and beautiful old villages like Kakani. With spectacular views of Jugal Himal, Gaurishanker, Paanch Pokhari, and Gosaikunda peaks, you get opportunities to interact with friendly local people on the trail leading towards Melamchi Bazaar. After lunch at Melamchi, you will drive back to Kathmandu by road, which is just a few hours drive. On arrival at Kathmandu, you will be transferred to your hotel room. In the evening, you are free to catch up on some last minute shopping or simply stroll around the bustling streets of Thamel or sit down in an upbeat pub enjoying every sip of your favorite Nepali beer and live musical bands performing your favorite songs. Overnight in Kathmandu.

You will be dropped off at the airport well ahead of your scheduled flight time by one of our representatives. If you have an evening flight, you may wish to visit certain heritage sites of Kathmandu on your own. However, if you wish to extend your holidays in Nepal, then Royal Holidays are ever ready to create another wonderful trip in the Himalayas.