Langtang Gosainkunda Lake Trekking

Our trek starts with a drive from Kathmandu to Syabrubesi. Syabrubesi is a small village located on the outskirts of the Langtang National Park. It lies in the north of Kathmandu. We will take a bus/jeep which will travel along the banks of the Trishuli River. The river is one of the deepest rivers in Nepal. The banks of the river are marked by tall green hills of the Mahabharata Range. We will see many typical Nepali villages on the way.

We will reach halfway through the town of Battar. Battar is the administrative head of the Nuwakot district. We will rest for a while in the town. The road ahead of Battar goes through the beautiful Nepali countryside. We will see agricultural farmlands of rice, millet, barley, fruits, and vegetables on our way. We will reach Syabrubesi in the latter half of the day. We will rest at a guest house in Syabrubesi for the night.

We will start the walking part of our trek today. We will begin our trek after breakfast. We will meet the Bhote Koshi River after walking for a while from Syabrubesi. We will cross the river via a suspension bridge. The Bhote Koshi River is one of the wildest rivers of Nepal. It is a tributary of the Sapta Koshi river, which is the largest river in the country. The Bhote Koshi River thunders below the suspension bridge.

After crossing the river, we will enter the Langtang National Park. The forest is primarily dominated by Rhododendron and Bamboo. If we are lucky we can also get a glimpse of the endangered Red Panda. The forest is full of other endangered varieties of wild animals and birds. If we are traveling during spring, then we can see the entire forest turn red by the blooming Rhododendron. We will reach the Lama hotel after walking for about six hours from Syabrubesi. Lama hotel is a small teahouse located between the forest and serves as our abode for the night.

We will take a detour today. We will go northwards towards the Langtang Village today. The village was badly destroyed by the 2015 earthquake that hit Nepal. Now the village has come back to life after rebuilding efforts by the locals. Saluting the efforts of the locals, the New York Times also placed the village and the national park among the list of 52 places you must visit in 2017.

The path towards Langtang Village goes through the scenic forest of Rhododendron. We will also see an occasional waterfall here and there in the forests. These waterfalls meet with streams at the base of the hills. As we approach Langtang village, we will see a wide valley that opens in front of us. This valley is the home to the Langtang village. We will take an evening tour of the Langtang village. We will get a glimpse into the life and culture of the local Tamang people. We will also enjoy local cuisine and music in the evening.

We will begin one of the hardest parts of our trek as we will move to the northern rim of the Langtang Valley. The region is home to one of the most beautiful monasteries of the region – the Kyanjin Gompa. The Kyanjin Gompa is also one of the largest monasteries in the region. Gompa means monastery in Nepali and Tibetan languages. There is a famous local Himalayan yak cheese factory near Kyanjin Gompa. We will not spend time at Kyanjin Gompa during our ascent and go past it towards Tserko Ri.

Tserko Ri is the highest altitude point on our trek. The path takes us via spectacular grasslands like the Langshisha Kharka. Beautiful glacial lakes also lie on our way. We will reach Tserko Ri during the second part of the day. The mountain slopes look spectacular on the feeble afternoon light. We will also get a panoramic view of mountains like Langshisha, Lakpa Dorje, Langtang Lirung and Ganesh Hamal from Tserko Ri. We will get back to Kyanjin Gompa after staying for a bit at Tserko Ri hill.

We will get back to the Lama hotel today. Today we will complete the first part of the trek before beginning the second part of the journey the next day. The trek down is easy because we will go downhill for most of the trek. We will rest at the Langtang village during mid-day. After catching our breath in Langtang, we will again walk through the beautiful forests of rhododendron and bamboo.

We will reach the Lama hotel in the evening. If we are on time, we can visit the nearby cliffs which are famous for wild honey. We will see locals extracting honey in edgy cliffs with traditional gear. We can taste wild honey with the locals and also carry some as gifts if we are interested. Wild honey is believed to be a natural remedy for a number of health ailments. We will spend the night at the Lama hotel.

We will enter the second valley of our journey today – the Gosaikunda Valley. The Gosaikunda Valley is home to the Gosaikunda lake. The path between Lama Hotel and Thulo Syabru first goes down towards the river. Once we cross the river we will walk steadily up among forests of pine, oak, and Hemlock. The vegetation changes swiftly from the one in Langtang Valley as we move towards the heart of the Gosaikunda Valley.

The section between Thulo Syabru and Lama hotel has a number of apple orchards of the villagers. We will also meet many gompas, monasteries, and shrines on our way. The section of the road provides a wonderful view of Langtang and Ganesh mountain.  We will stay at the beautiful Thulo Syabru village today.

We will head closer to the Gosaikunda lake today as our road will take us to Cholagpati. The beautiful Shin Gompa lies on our way. Shin Gompa is a majestic monastery that is famous for meditation. We will travel across beautiful villages like Garda Ghyang, Chandanbari, and Phulung Ghyang before reaching Shin Gompa. The trek up to Shin Gompa takes about five hours for us.

Once we cross Shin Gompa, we will see many monks practicing meditation at nearby hills. The path from Shin Gompa goes further uphill as we approach the last hard climb before reaching Gosaikunda. We will not climb the whole stretch of this hill and rest at Cholangpati for the night. Cholangpati is a beautiful village of the local Tamang people.  The view of the sunset from Cholagpati is spectacular.

We will visit Gosaikunda Lake today. This picturesque lake has special religious significance among Hindus and Buddhists. Hindus believe that this lake was created when Lord Shiva opened the ground with a trident. It is said that he did so to quench his thirst after consuming the celestial poison named Kalkut. Buddhists also believe this lake to be the abode of many past Mahasiddhas and Bodhisattvas. Every year, during August on the day of Janai Purnima, thousands of Hindus and Buddhists head towards the lake as the day is considered sacred.

We will first take an almost vertical ascent towards the top of Lauribinayak hill after walking from Cholangpati. The top of Lauribinayak reveals the beautiful view of mountains like Langtang and Ganesh in the north. We will descent down towards the Gosaikunda lake from the top. The view of the lake just before reaching it is spectacular. You can also take a dip at the holy lake if you are interested. Once we explore the lake we go further ahead towards the Laurebina Pass. The pass provides a grand view of the Hyolmo Valley up ahead. We will then return back the same way towards Cholangpati.

We will get back to Dhunche today. Dhunche is another beautiful town on the outskirts of the Langtang National Park. We will go mostly downhill today so we will have it easy on the road. We will follow the same road we took on our way up. The bamboo and Rhododendron forest start to get more prominent as we approach the Bhote Koshi river.

We will meet many small villages as we approach Dhunche. These villages provide a glimpse of the ancient life of the local Tamang people. We did not get to spend much time in these villages as we went uphill. However, during the downhill trek, we get to spend ample time at these villages. We will reach Dhunche at around sunset. We can buy souvenirs and mementos at Dhunche. We will rest at a guest house in Dhunche for the night.

We will drive back to Kathmandu today. The road once again takes us along the banks of the Trishuli River. We will reach Kathmandu following a drive of five and a half hours. You will take you back to your hotel. The trip ends after you check back into your hotel.