Tibet
The Ultimate Adventure!
The Wilds of East Tibet
September 24 – October 10, 2010
17 Days Chengdu to Beijing
Download a copy of the full trip dossier HERE
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Day 1 – Friday, September 24, 2010 – Arrive Chengdu |
Day 2 – Saturday, Sept 25, 2010 – Fly Chengdu to Nyingtri /Bayi
Altitude 3000 mt
It will be an early start to make the most of the clear mountain weather that comes more often than not in the mornings. It will be a two-hour flight over some of the most stunning mountain scenery to reach the Eastern expanses of the Tibetan Plateau.
Arriving by air you’ll probably find the first few breaths exhilarating and possibly exhausting as you disembark. Nyingtri Airport is reknown as 'the world's most difficult airport for planes to reach' due to its location the narrow valley of Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River in the Southeast of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
At an average altitude of 3,000m , Nyingchi is located in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo river bordering India and Burma to the south and Yunnan Province to the east. Here the world highest river wends its way south toward the Indian Ocean after it meets the Himalayas.
Transferring to the small town of Bayi for the night we won’t have a lot planned today. Due to the altitude our first day will be pretty relaxing allowing our bodies time to adjust to the thinner air now and for the coming few days. Depending on how well people adjust to the altitude we may take a small walk in the afternoon to the nearby holy mountain, Mount Pelri which has a sacred kora (pilgrim circuit) surrounding it. For our first day in the mountains we’ll probably drive any steep uphill parts, just until we adjust adequately to the altitude.
Day 3 – Sunday, Sept 26 – Nyingtri/Bayi to Lunang
Altitude 3400 mt, 80 kms
Heading east we’ll leave Bayi and make our way toward the town of Lunang. We’ll catch glimpses of Holy Mount Bonri, which we’ll be trekking around later in the week as the road climbs high into the mountains. Crossing the Serkhym La at an imposing 4582mt we’ll keep walking to a minimum until we’ve been on the plateau for a couple of days at least. On a clear day views of Mount Namche Barwa at 7756mt high appear in the distance.
Descending from our highs of the day we’ll continue through beautiful alpine valleys, stopping for many a photo no doubt. We’ll overnight in the pleasant town of Lunang, a former logging village with its neighbours traditional wooden roofs held in place by stones similar to those found in neighbouring Bhutan.
Day 4 – Monday, Sept 27 – Lunang to Pome
Altitude 2800 mt, 160 kms
Continuing west the road descends to the riverside and circuits numerous hairpin corners en route to Pome. About 56 kms from Lunang at a small village, Pelung, we will be leaving the cars for a 40 minute walk down to the foaming cascades of the Rong-Chu and Parlung Tsangpo rivers, tributaries of the nearby Brahmaputra River, as it makes its way off the Tibetan Plateau toward the Bay of Bengal. It is 40 minutes down and at least double that to return to the cars. This marks the lowest point on the Sichuan-Tibet Highway at around 2000 metres. You’ll be sure to feel the warmth and humidity in the air relative to the aridness of the Tibetan Plateau.
After our walk we’ll continue to the town of Pome surrounded by stupendous scenery. The town of Pome is nothing to write home about but an afternoon wandering the nearby hills may be a great way to spend a few hours if we have it free.
Day 5 – Tuesday, Sept 28 – Pome to Rawu
Altitude 3900 mt, 131 kms
From Pome to Rawu (Rawok) the road winds through pine forests until we emerge in the Sundzom Valley and continues up the Parlung Tsangpo valley. It is only 131kms to Rawu so should take us about 3 – 4 hours driving. Stunning side valleys hold hanging glaciers that border the roadsides on our way to Rawu.
From the road we’ll get our first views of the spectacular blue waters of Rawu-tso. We’ll spend the afternoon by the nearby Rawu Tso (Lake) only 6kms from town and walk amongst the nearby hills. Rawu also marks the eastern most point we will travel to on this journey. |
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Day 7 – Thursday, Sept 30 – Rawu to Tongmei & Lunang
Altitude 3400 mt, 291 kms
Retracing our steps back west we’ll enjoy the scenery once again but this time with a few stops along the way, now that our bodies are acclimatised. Approximately 90 kms from Rawu we’ll visit the small Sundzom Temple, a 15th century monastery that was home to 200 monks before the cultural revolution.
In Pome we’ll attempt to visit the nearby Gompa of Dudel Dorjee although in recent times it has been off limits to foreigners. And a little further on is the 800-year-old Bakhar monastery just 35kms down the road from Pomi.
It will be a long day returning to the village of Lunang late in the afternoon.
Day 8 – Friday, Oct 1 – Bonri Kora Day 1
Altitude 3800 mt
We’ll drive to the start of our two-day trek around the Bon Religion’s most sacred mountain. Mount Bönri (4671m) is the highest of 3 sacred Bön peaks, set on the north bank of the Brahmaputra. It ranks along with Mount Kailash in Tibet’s west as a most sacred pilgrimage peak in the Bön religion - Tibet's ancient and only home-grown religion, which in its last phase adopted much from Tibetan Buddhism, today the two are almost indistinguishable.
The trek will be hard going but we’ll make frequent rest stops along the way. We’ll visit Yungdrungling Monastery to start the day, just a few kms outside of Nyingtri. Later today we’ll also visit another Bon Monastery, Sigyal. Our overnight accommodation will be a basic pilgrim guesthouse on the trail. Be prepared for simple (read few) facilities but the path to enlightenment is paved with challenges.
Day 9 – Saturday, Oct 2 – Bonri Kora day 2, Overnight in Bayi
Altitude 3000 mt
Day two of our walk will culminate in the crossing of the 4500mt high Bonri La with its multitude of prayer flags fluttering in the breeze you will feel like salvation is well deserved as you gasp for breath in the mountain air. Finishing the trek we’ll transfer to the relative comforts of Bayi town for the night.
Day 10 – Sunday, Oct 3 – Bayi to Miling via Buchu and Lamaling
Altitude 3000 mt
Heading further west we begin to forge new territory driving to the pleasant town of Miling on the road to the Yarlung Valley and Lhasa. It is a short drive to Miling which will allow us plenty of time to en route to visit two important monasteries in the region. Originally dating from the 7th century Buchu Monastery, 28kms south of Bayi will be our first stop. We’ll have time to explore the monastery and walk the kora surrounding this timeless location.
A little way down the road we’ll also make a stop at the stunning Lamaling Temple and once again we’ll explore the temple and take a walk amongst the surrounding hillsides before continuing on to our overnight stop in Miling.
Day 11 – Monday, Oct 4 – Miling to Gyatsa
Altitude 3500 mt, Approx 160kms
From Miling we’ll follow the winding Yarlung Tsangpo river upstream towards the town of Gyatsa. There is the possibility we may drive a little further on this day to the monastery of Chokorgye in the hills near Lhama Lhatso. Our final destination may not be known until much closer to the time and will be determined by local policy at the time and where as visitors we will be allowed to stay.
Day 12 – Tuesday, Oct 5 – Gyatsa - Excursion to Lhamo Lha Tso
Altitude 3500 mt
Lhamo Lhatso is one of Tibet’s most important pilgrimage destinations although it is not visited by hoards of international visitors. The lake has traditionally been a pilgrimage site of successive Dalai Lhamas who seek visions in this ‘oracle’ lake The lake is considered the home of The Dalai Lama’s protectress, Palden Lhamo.
We’ll plan to drive up to the near the pass from where we can view this spiritual centre and for those with a sense of adventure and the energy we can make the 1½ hour descent to the shores of the lake itself and the 1 hour kora path around the lake. Don’t forget you’ll have to walk back up too!
We’ll stay overnight where we did the pervious night which maybe Gyatsa or Chokorgye Monastery.
Day 13 – Wednesday, Oct 6 – Gyatsa to Tsetang
Altitude 3500 mt
After a long day trip to Lhamo Lhatso it will be a leisurely drive to Tsetang, Tibet’s fourth largest city. After the remoteness of the east it could come as quite a culture shock! Depending on our arrival time we may visit the towns two monasteries or for the more energetically challenged there is the nearby Gangpo Ri towering 600mts over the town.
Tsetang will be our base for a day of exploring the nearby Yarlung Valley.
Day 14 – Thursday, Oct 7 – Tsetang – Visit Yumbulugang and Chongye Valleys
Altitude 3500 mt
The Valleys of Yarlung and Chongye, are steeped in ancient history. Legend claims the first Tibetans originated on the slopes of Gongpo Ri to the east of Tsetang, and that the Yarlung Valley was where the first king of Tibet descended from the heavens to earth upon a sky-cord. This king then fathered the first royal dynasty, many members of which are buried in the nearby Chongye Valley. The Yarlung Valley was also where, in the fourth century, the first Buddhist scriptures fell from the sky upon the first king's palace at Yumbulakhang.
We’ll have a full day mostly on foot exploring some of the major sites of this area including Tibet’s first building, Yumbulagang, nearby Tandruk Monastery and Chingye Town.
Day 15 – Friday, October 8 – Lhasa via Samye
Altitude 3600 mt
As Tibet’s first monastery, Samye receives a fair share of visitors so leaving Tsetang and the Yarlung Valleys early we’ll stop to enjoy Samye and its beautiful surroundings.
From Samye it is only a couple of hours drive to the capital of Tibet and ancient seat of the Dalai Lama, Lhasa.
Lhasa, is one of the world’s highest capitals. The Potala, Jokhang and Barkhor comprise the physical and spiritual heart of the city and of Tibet. We stay in our Tibetan run guesthouse situated in the Barkhor area, which gives us close access to many of the temples and monasteries in and around Lhasa, including the Jokhang, one of the most revered religious structures in Tibet. The Barkhor is one of the few areas of Lhasa that still offers an original Tibetan feel as the city has changed dramatically in the past few decades. A large number of Han Chinese have been offered favourable conditions to move into Tibet and the Han influence in Lhasa is therefore quite strong.
Day 16 – Saturday, Oct 9 – Lhasa
Altitude 3530 mt
We’ll have the day to enjoy the sights of Lhasa which may include joining the pilgrims for endless circuits of the Barkhor Kora circumambulating the Jokhang, Tibet’s most sacred temple or taking a bike to Sera to watching the monks debating in the afternoon sun. We’ll organise a trip to the Potala Palace, former seat of His Holiness the Dalai Lama which stands like a monument to times past. However you spend your time here it will be memorable and a fitting end to an amazing journey in this sacred land.
Day 17 – Sunday, Oct 10 – Fly Lhasa to Beijing
Altitude 20 mt
We’ll transfer to Gongkar airport for our flight to Beijing and the first leg home at the conclusion of our journey.