Lower Dolpo Trek

Lower Dolpo Trek explores the Himalayan desert of Nepal and visits the majestic Phoksundo Lake in the lower parts of Dolpo. It is unarguably one of the best Off The Beaten Trail trek in the Himalayas of Nepal. Lower Dolpo Trek is an amalgam of pristine landscape and culture in one of the remote and wild areas of Nepal. Views of Labyrinthine valleys and the vividly turquoise Phoksundo Lake are the main highlights of this unique trek. 

This Off The Beaten Trail Trek also visits some ancient settlements and century-old Bon Religion Monasteries. The religion itself is on the verge of extinction and this trek provides a unique opportunity to experience Bon Religion. Numa La and Baga La offer slightly different but equally stunning panoramic views for trekkers who are used to seeing abundant Himalayan vistas of Nepal.

Lower Dolpo Trek –Highlight

  • Phoksundo Lake - Alpine freshwater oligotrophic Lake.
  • Warm-hearted with enthralling culture and traditions.
  • Remarkable and breathtaking trekking experience.
  • Lower Dolpo – Land of Natural Hidden Wonders.


Trekking to Lower Dolpa
offers you the remarkable and breathtaking experience of a lifetime. The notable features seen here are snowy peaks, ancient and remote villages, rich wildlife, lovely Buddhist monasteries, and wonderful lakes. The people of this area are simple and warm-hearted with an enthralling culture and traditions. The cultural traditions of this area are basically linked with the Tibetan culture. Shey Phoksundo Lake” is another famous feature of this region. The lake is totally free of aquatic life, which the crystal waters clearly demonstrate. Surrounded by rocks, forests, and snow-capped peaks, the area has been described as one of the world's “Natural Hidden Wonders”.


The Dolpa trekking starts at Juphal and follows the track to Dunai, then continues to Tarakot, way up to Bang la Camp, the uppermost point of Dolpa trekking. After passing through Sanu Bheri village, we then descend to the good-looking Phoksundo Lake, which is a piece of the Shey Phoksundo National Park.


How difficult is Shey Phoksundo Trek?

Shey Phoksundo Lake is the deepest lake located in Shey Phoksundo National Park in the Dolpo district. Shey Phoksundo Trek is known for the lower Dolpo trek which is a moderate grade trek. Lower Dolpo trek is combined with Shey Phoksundo Lake. Normally each day 4 to 6 hours and 6 to 9 kilometers will be a typical trekking day. We will touch above 5000 meters during our Shey Phoksundo Lake trek, crossing the Numala Pass at 5309 meters and Bagala Pass at 5169 meters. For a couple of nights, we will stay above 4000 meters during the journey.  

Necessary trekking permits for Upper Dolpo.
Trekking in Lower Dolpo
required a Special permit. Lower Dolpo restricted area entry permits issued by the Department of Immigration of Nepal through the government authorizes company. Other than Dolpo restricted area entry permits we will need Shey Phoksundo National Park entry permits as well. Trekking with Visit Himalaya Treks, we take care of all necessary permits and paperwork. 

Upper Dolpo Trek Photos, Videos, Reviews, and Blogs.
We, Visit Himalaya Treks organize Dolpo treks each season, we have hands of fresh experience trek over Dolpo. We have been sharing our recent trip photos and videos through our social sites like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube channel, please follow our social sites for fresh photos and videos. Before booking trips, you may like to read trip feedback and reviews from other travelers. Please go through the link given here to read our client's trip reviews. For more trip detail Dhorpatan to Dolpo – Lower Dolpo - Upper Dolpo had written by our clients Dr. Howard and Sue Dengate. Please follow the link. http://fedup.com.au/information/nepal/nepal-dolpo-tracknotes


Lower Dolpo Trek Itinerary,

Day 01: Arrive in Kathmandu. (1350 meters)
Day 02: Sightseeing and Trek Preparation
Day 03: Fly to Nepalgunj. (130 meters)
Day 04: Fly to Juphal (2490 meters) and trek to Lingdo (2391 meters)
Day 05: Trek to Laina Odar (3370 meters)
Day 06: Trek to Sim Odar (Ghyamgar 3755 meters)
Day 07: Trek to Dho Tarap (3944 meters)
Day 08: Acclimatization day at Dho Tarap (3944 meters)
Day 09: Trek to Numala Base Camp (4440 meters)
Day 10: Cross Numala La Pass (5309 meters) and trek to Danigar (4512 meters)
Day 11: Cross Bagala La  Pass (5169 meters)  and trek to Yak Kharka (3860 meters)
Day 12: Trek to Rigmo (Phoksundo Lake) (3641 meters)
Day 13: Rest day at Ringmo (Phoksundo Lake (3641 meters)
Day 14: Trek to Chepka (2838 meters)
Day 15: Trek to Juphal (2475 meters)
Day 16: Fly to Nepalgunj and an afternoon flight to Kathmandu
Day 17: Free day in Kathmandu
Day 18: Departure

Necessary Gears for Upper Dolpo Trek.
Lower Dolpo trek is a moderate-grade trek, Couple of days we will spend over 4000 meters. Also, we are crossing two high passes above 5000 meters. So, we will need warm gear for trekking to Lower Dolpo. Please visit the given link for gear list details for lower Dolpo Trek. 


When is the best time to trek Lower Dolpo?

The best time to do trekking in Nepal is March, April, and May in the spring season and October, November, and December in the Autumn season. But Every trekking destination is not the same aspect, Dolpo district lies north of the Himalayas and is a rain shadow destination. So the best time to trek lower Dolpo trek April to June and September to mid-November.

Lower Dolpo Trek Detail Itinerary

DAY
  • 1

    A representative from Visit Himalaya Treks Pvt. Ltd. trekking with the company’s display board will greet you outside the arrival terminal and transfer you to your Hotel. 

    Altitude 1335 m
    Meals Breakfast
    Accommodation Hotel
  • 2

    A Full day guided tour to several of historical and spiritual attractions enlisted under the World Heritage Sites. The trek leader will meet the group for a meeting and provide a detailed briefing on the trek. All the required information regarding the trek would be provided. 

    Altitude 1335 m
    Meals Breakfast
    Accommodation Hotel
  • 3

    The mornings can be used to carry out some last minute re-checks as we have an half an hour afternoon flight to Nepalgunj stay overnight at Nepalganj. 

    Altitude 130 m
    Meals Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Hotel
  • 4

    An early morning 45 minutes flight lands us on Juphal and after a brief sorting and introduction of our crew, the trek finally starts. The trek heads toward Dunai, administrative headquarter of Dolpo, and then continues to follow the Bheri river all the way to Lingdo. (7 hours) 

    Altitude 2475 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 5

    The trail is the newly built road and stays on it all the way to Laisicap. The first two hours of the day is a comfortable trek and after that the trail starts to climb steeply snaking the ridge. After 30 minutes trek, trail briefly drops to Laisicap. The trail now crosses the river and then stays gentle for next 20 minutes. Now, trail gets away from the road and climbs steeply, briefly getting back on the road. The climb lasts for an hour and a chorten marks its end. A brief gentle flat walk of 10-15 minutes is again followed by a steep climb for the next hour. The treks is now in a narrow valley and undulates for most of times with more climbs than downhill. It takes around 2 hours from the chorten to Laini. There are couple of tents by a waterfall just steps before the next days short steep climb.

    Altitude 3370 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 6

    A steep continuous climb lasts for a little more than an hour. Then  the trail continuously undulates with small sections of descends and ascennds. Tghe valley is very narrow for most parts of the whole day. Finally after 3 hours, Chyuggar can be seen from a ridge and a small brief descent finally leads to Chyuggar. It is a small resting place with some small teashops by the river. A comfortable hour with again small ups and downs takes to Nawarpani (another small rest stop like all other places with couple of tents) and a similar half an hour leads to Sim Odar. Sim Odar is a flat place at the river banks with couple of Odars (a shelter beneath an overhang)

    Altitude 3755 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 7

    The trail undulates for the most part in the morning and arrives at Toltol after an hour. The valley is quite narrow and trails keep undulating following the river. After around 3 hours the trail crosses the river and a steep 10 minute climb leads to Kesi La. After Kesi La, a drop is briefly leads to a bridge and again continues to follow the valley which is starts to be a little more wider. Another bridge follows (lots of tiny caves by the river) and a gentle climb leads to another set of prayer flags. This second prayer flag is an hour away from Kesi La. A wider valley appears after the prayer flags and a long comfortable walk of around 5 hours by the stream ends at Dho tarap.

    Altitude 3944 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 8

    The day is used to do some acclimatization hikes around Dho as the trek enters into higher elevation in the next few days. There are several monasteries around Dho. A Bon Monastery in nearby village is one of the highlights of this acclimatization day.

    Altitude 3944 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 9

    There is a big wide main trail that passes through Crystal Mountain School followed by Taksi village. It takes an hour to pass through Taksi from Dho. Another hour on the same trail takes through another small village of Tokyo. The trail starts to turn into a gentle climb and also leaves the main trail and the valley behind. After one more hour, a small stream and a wide valley appears on the left side of the main valley coming from Dho. (Some groups considers it Base Camp and camp by the river.) The trail crosses the stream and a steep climb on a ridge follows. The trail passes through several piles of small mane stone plates. The steep ascents lasts all the way to Numala Base Camp. It is just an clearing only large enough for a small party but offers a great view of Dolpo's labyrinthine valley. It is a little more than 2 hours climb from the stream to High Camp.

    Altitude 4440 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 10

    The steep climb continues on the ridge and after 30 minutes, a brief traverse starts. Another ridge and another steep ascend follows for the next hour. The climb ends at Numala Pass (5309 meters). Numala  offers views of Dhaulagiri Range to the East and Kagmara Range in the West. A steep descend into the main valley leads to a small stream in the bottom of the valley. The trail briefly stays with stream until it reaches a fork. Here, the trail crosses the river heads towards the left valley. A small gentle uphill traverse ends at Danigar. Danigar is a pasture at the end of the valley surrounded by towering ridges. Norbung Kang is a prominent peak among these ridges that surround Danigar.

    Altitude 5309 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 11

    The day starts with a steep climb on the ridge seen directly from Danigar. Steep climbing continues for around 2 hours and reaches a spot with some mane stones. After the spot, the steepness decreases (yet still difficult) and a traverse towards the top of Bagala La starts. It takes around 40 minutes to reach Bagala La from the spot with mane stones. The descend after Bagala La is a bit rough and goes through boulders and scree. After an hour, a valley opens up and the trail starts to follow a stream. The stream snakes through the valley and after less than an hour, the trail moves away from the stream and starts to drop very steeply to Phedi. The descend continues farther than Phedi and then changes into a comfortable and gentle trek towards the end of the day. Yak Kharka is an hour away from Phedi. It is a wide seasonal pasture for the locals also has a couple of houses. 

    Altitude 5169 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 12

    After leaving Yak Kharka, the trail comfortably traverses for half an hour. Then slowly, a steep climb starts and lasts for almost more than an hour until it reaches a stop with a prayer flag. Now, the climb eases and a huge waterfall appears on the opposite valley. Juniper trees and some fields appears near the trail and soon Rigmo village is seen. A bridge to cross the Phoksundo river flowing out of the Phoksundo lake marks the entry to Rigmo village. The campsite lies just outside of Rigmo village and right next to the Phoksundo Lake.

    Altitude 3641 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 13

    The day can be enjoyed by the side of the majestic lake. There are also few monasteries in the village for day visits.

    Altitude 3641 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 14

    The trek now starts to go through the valley carved by Phoksundo River. Around 2 hours of descent leads to Jharana Hotel. Now the trail stays with or near Phoksundo river until the end of the trek. A comfortable trek with small ascends and descends takes through a small settlement of Rechi. The whole day after Jharana Hotel is in a narrow valley. After Rechi it takes around 3 hours to reach Chepka. Chepka is a bigger and wider place compared to Rechi.

    Altitude 2838 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 15

    1 hour to Sangta. 1:30 hour to Kageni. 1:30 hour to sulighat. 3 hour to Juphal
    The trek follows the same pattern as of the previous day and continues in the same valley. The trail goes through small settlements of Sangta and Kageni en route to Sulighta. Finally the valley widens up after Sulighat and the trek head towards Dunai by the bank of Bheri river. The trail follows Bheri river and there is a final climb of around an hour to reach Juphal, the ending point of the trek.

    Altitude 2475 m
    Meals Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
    Accommodation Camp
  • 16

    A morning flight to Nepalgunj is followed by an evening flight to Kathmandu.

    Altitude 1335 m
    Meals Breakfast & Lunch
    Accommodation Hotel
  • 17

    Also an extra day in case of delays or cancellation of flights.

    Altitude 1335 m
    Meals Breakfast
    Accommodation Hotel
  • 18

    A representative from Visit Himalaya Treks Pvt. Ltd. will check your flight tickets and transfer you to the airport before two hours from your flight with a hope of seeing you again in the future. 

    Altitude 1335 m
    Meals Breakfast
    Accommodation No

Cost Includes

    • Arrivals and departure transport by car (We will collect you from the Kathmandu international airport) and transfer to Hotel.
    • Full-day sightseeing in Kathmandu (Boudhanath and Pashupatinath) with a city guide and necessary transport.
    • 4 nights accommodation (2 persons per room) in Kathmandu and Nepalgunj in a 3* standard Hotel with breakfast.
    • Nepalgunj - Kathmandu airfare including airport taxes. 
    • A porter or mules to carry your luggage on treks (Per person 15-kilogram luggage).
    • Lower Dolpo Special permits and National Park entry fee
    • Group First Aid Kit.
    • All meals and hot drinks during the trek.
    • Salary, insurance, food, and accommodation for guides and porters.

Cost Excludes

    • Nepal entry Visa Fee.
    • Personal Travel Insurance (Compulsory).
    • Lunch and dinner in Kathmandu and Nepalgunj.
    • Personal expenses like beverages (mineral water, alcohol, soft drinks), telephone bills, laundry, bar bills, personal tips, etc.

Cost & Date

Start Dates are your arrival date in Nepal and End Dates are the returning date from Nepal.

The set departure dates listed are specially quoted and specified for group joining option. Let us know if the set departure dates are not suitable for you- another dates which are suitable for you can certainly be added by us.

Upcoming Trip Departure

  • Guaranteed - Trip is Guaranteed to run
  • Available - Trip is available to run if minimum group size is filled
  • Limited - Only few space available
  • Booking Closed - Maximum group size is filled

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Reviews ( 4 Reviews For This Package )

Mike Timo, From - USA

Another Wonderful Trek With Visit Himalaya Treks!!!

Just finished a very long (32 day) trek through Dhorpatan and Lower Dolpo. This was my fourth trek with Visit Himalaya Treks, and as with all of my previous treks, this one went perfectly.

The staff was absolutely excellent -- and the whole trek was wonderful. Himal was a pleasure to work with. I cannot recommend this company highly enough!! April -26 to May 27 – 2022.

Manuela Muller, From - Switzerland

Lower and Upper Dolpo Camping trek with Visit Himalaya Treks

What an experience and just amazing time we spent on our trek in lower and upper Dolpo! It is not just the impressive landscape and the inspiring culture we discovered in this remote area, but also the good spirit of our crew that made our trekking unforgettable! And we don't like to call it our crew because we became a family in those 26 days we spent together. Everything was very well organised by Visit Himalaya Treks even though the airport at the starting point was closed due to construction. The rearrangements gave us the possibility to do the trekking the other way round. This made it more challenging as the first two passes over 5000 meters came quickly. But our caretaking and open-hearted crew supported us in this challenge and celebrated with us the top of the pass of 5550 meters with cheerings and heartily embracements. These special moments, the awesome encounters with the local people of Dolpo, as well as the fascinating nature made this trip to be a unique experience with many great memories to take back home! Many thanks to all who were on the trek with us and special thanks to Himal and Visit Himalaya Treks! Manuela Muller From Switzerland 15th Oct, 2017.

Barbara Sophie, From - Zermatt, Switzerland

Lower and Dolpo Trek !!! Great Experience with Visit Himalaya treks.

If you plan a trek off or on the beaten track. You found a competent partner in Visit Himalaya. Great thanks to the office specially Rajan for his help organising my Dolpo trek. His generosity and expertise made it possible.
Also to my wonderful guide Dukpa Sherpa. His kindness, care and excellent judgment made the trip smooth running in difficult situation. Your respect and love for your people, culture and land is inspiring. Also a big t4hank you to Ishwar and his team for the generous sharing of knowledge and assistance in Nepalgundji and Jumla. Visit Himalaya is a competent and trustworthy company with excellent staff. Dukpa Sherpa you want have as trekking partner.
Anytime again. September / october - 2018.

Jennifer Ebling, From - Switzerland

Lower and Upper Dolpo  Camptrekking

Off the beaten trek into the remote area of Dolpo...because of the closed airport in Juphal Visit Himalaya Treks adapted our initerary and we did the trek the other way round. This is more challenging, but we made it also thanks to the great staff we had with us! Our trekking was once more an unforgetable experience: an amazing time in a remote area with a beautiful landscape, with a fascinating culture and inspiring people and we just had a well organized trek with an icredible friendly and care taking nepali team that became our family! Visit Himalay Treks fulfills your individual needs, takes care of the challenges and risks, and meets their clients as well as their staff with respect and fairness! Jennifer Ebling from Switzerland.

FAQs

We always try to be flexible to design the trip itinerary for our client’s needs. However, if you are not convinced as our suggested itinerary then off-course you are always welcome to customize or change the trip itinerary.

Holiday should never be about making it to the final point quickly. Along your trek, we can add days at your request with additional costs to cover guides, porters, accommodation, and food.

An average physical fitness should be maintained prior to booking a trek. Any sort of illness or recent medical problems should be mentioned while booking a trip. Most of our itineraries are prepared to give you maximum time to acclimatize and pace-setting on the treks would be done according to your convenience. If you are having regular medication then tell us before the trip started which would be better for us to give you the physical feedback.

Our main concern is your safety. We never compromised on your safety during the Trekking and all our guides are properly trained and well equipped to take care of our client's safety even in remote areas as well.

There would be always back support in case of an emergency situation like severe high-altitude sickness or accident (which is least expected), you will be sent to the nearest hospital, if possible, otherwise rescued by a helicopter and sent you to the hospital as soon as possible. Since you are entirely liable for all the expenses incurred for the use of such emergency services, please make sure that your travel insurance covers both- medical and emergency evacuation costs.

It is not a problem at all because in this trek we will supply most of the foods from nearest store and remaining foods we buy from Locals that mean most of the time we served vegetarian food as well and our camping cook and guide will take care as well.

We use standard quality of (Camping Gears) like Clients tents (3 men tents for couple and two men tent for single), dining tents,  Shower Tent, Toilet Tent, staff tend thick mattress, etc.  Also, we care for our staff and provide them with proper equipment for the camping trek. You will also be requested to have the proper gear for your personal use which will be suggested while confirming the trip.

While during the camping trek it is really difficult to find the place to charge gadget somehow we will manage to charge if we stay close by village otherwise we have to take the portable solar panel to carry with us and charge our gadgets.

Now a day’s most of the areas has been covered by cell phone network connection. However, in this trek, we always send satellite phones along with our guide so you can easily be in touch with your family.

Yes, either you can store at the same hotel as you stayed or we can store your goods with us safely in our office free of cost.

This is a difficult thing to gauge. We have seen everything from USD 25 to USD 900 per person for guides and porters. Tipping is not required, but a small gesture of thanks to your guides and local porters. The level of the tip should reflect the level of satisfaction from and personal involvement with your guide. However, we recommend you to spend a minimum of 10% of your total trip cost for tipping the entire local staff.

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$ 2800 / Person
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18 Days Nepal
TRIP OVERVIEW
Lower Dolpo Trek
Altitude 5309 m
Lower Dolpo Trek
Region Dolpo Region
Lower Dolpo Trek
Difficulty Demanding
Lower Dolpo Trek
Group size 2+ Peoples
Lower Dolpo Trek
Best Season August -October and April - May-June

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