A camping trek through the restricted Lower Dolpo region: up the Tarap gorge to the Buddhist villages of Dho Tarap, over Numa La (5,190 m) and Baga La (5,169 m), and down to the turquoise Phoksundo Lake. Thirteen days on trail from the Juphal airstrip.
A camping trek through the restricted Lower Dolpo region: up the Tarap gorge to the Buddhist villages of Dho Tarap, over Numa La (5,190 m) and Baga La (5,169 m), and down to the turquoise Phoksundo Lake. Thirteen days on trail from the Juphal airstrip.
Dolpo is the culturally Tibetan high country of western Nepal, cut off by the Dhaulagiri and Kanjiroba ranges and still visited by relatively few trekkers. This circuit takes in the best of Lower Dolpo: the Tarap valley with its gompas and stone villages, two high passes, and Phoksundo Lake in Shey Phoksundo National Park, the country's largest national park.
We fly from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj and on to Juphal, then walk up the Thuli Bheri to the old fortified village of Tarakot. From there the route climbs the narrow gorge of the Tarap Khola through Laini and Nawarpani to Dho Tarap at 4,090 m, where Buddhist and Bön communities farm barley and graze yaks.
After an acclimatisation day at Dho we cross Numa La at 5,190 m, camp at Pelung Tang and cross Baga La at 5,169 m. Both passes give wide views over Dolpo and towards Dhaulagiri and Kanjiroba. The descent leads down through forest to Ringmo, which stands on the natural dam at the southern end of Phoksundo Lake.
A rest day at the lake gives time to walk the shore and visit the Bön monastery before we head down the Suli Gad past the Phoksundo waterfall to Chhepka and Juphal. Days are five to eight hours on most trekking days. Beyond Tarakot this is mainly a camping trek with our own crew, kitchen and tents, with simple lodges at Dunai, Ringmo, Chhepka and Juphal.
This trek is for fit walkers with some multi-day hiking experience, ideally including time above 4,000 m. You will walk five to eight hours on most days, sleep five nights above 4,000 m and cross two passes above 5,100 m with long ascents and steep, loose descents. No climbing skills are needed, though snow on the passes is possible early and late in the season. Train for at least three months: long hill walks with a 6 to 8 kg pack, stair or step sessions and some running or cycling for cardiovascular fitness, with several back-to-back long days in the final month. Camping in a remote area means cold nights and simple food, so mental resilience matters as much as fitness.
We meet you at Tribhuvan International Airport and take you to your hotel. In the evening your guide runs through the route, checks your kit and collects the passport details needed for the restricted area permit.
We lodge your Lower Dolpo restricted area permit through the Department of Immigration and buy the national park permit, which needs your original passport for a few hours. While that is processed you have time for last purchases or a visit to Boudhanath or Pashupatinath.
An hour's flight west takes us to Nepalgunj on the Terai, near the Indian border. Flights to Juphal leave early, so we spend the night here and repack to the small-aircraft baggage limit.
A 35-minute mountain flight brings us to the airstrip at Juphal, perched above the Thuli Bheri valley. After meeting the porters and crew we walk down through terraced fields and along the river to Dunai, the district headquarters of Dolpa.
We follow the Thuli Bheri upstream on a broad trail through pine and walnut, passing small villages and suspension bridges. Tarakot is an old fortified village on a spur above the river; its name comes from the fort that once guarded the valley.
We leave the Bheri and turn north up the gorge of the Tarap Khola, crossing the river several times on wooden and suspension bridges. The valley narrows and the forest thins as we gain height to the camp at Laini.
The trail continues through the Tarap gorge, in places cut into the cliff above the river, and climbs past juniper and birch to the open camp at Nawarpani. The landscape starts to change from forest to the dry, high country of Dolpo.
A long, steady climb out of the gorge brings us into the wide Tarap valley. Chortens, mani walls and the first stone villages of Dolpo appear as we approach Dho Tarap, home to Buddhist and Bön communities and one of the highest permanent settlements on the route.
We stay a second night at 4,090 m before the high passes. Your guide takes you to the Ribo Bhumpa gompa and to the Crystal Mountain School, and a short walk up the hillside behind Dho helps your body adjust.
We walk up the Tarap valley past Tokyu and its monastery, then follow a side valley towards Numa La. The camp sits in open yak pasture at about 4,440 m, ready for an early start.
We start before dawn and climb steadily to Numa La at 5,190 m, the highest point of the trek, with views across Dolpo to Dhaulagiri and the peaks along the Tibetan border. A long descent leads into the Pelung Tang valley, where we camp between the two passes.
A second high crossing: we climb to Baga La at 5,169 m for views of Kanjiroba Himal, then descend steeply through pasture and juniper to the camp at Dajok Tang.
An easier morning down through birch and pine forest to Ringmo. The village sits on the natural dam that holds back Phoksundo Lake, and the first view of the turquoise water against bare cliffs is one of the finest moments in Dolpo.
A free day at Phoksundo, a turquoise lake about 5 km² in area held back by an ancient landslide dam. Walk along the shore, visit the Bön monastery near Ringmo and watch village life in one of the oldest settlements of the region. Your guide can also take you a short way along the cliff path on the western shore for the view back over the lake.
We climb briefly to the ridge above the outflow for a last look at the lake and the 167 m Phoksundo waterfall, then descend through birch and blue pine along the Suli Gad past Rechi and the Amchi hospital to Chhepka.
A pleasant walk down the Suli Gad gorge, through walnut groves and villages, to the national park checkpoint at Sulighat. From there we climb back up through fields to Juphal for a final evening with the crew.
We take the morning flight to Nepalgunj and connect to a flight to Kathmandu, arriving in time for an afternoon at leisure.
This day is held back in case weather delays the Juphal flight. If the trip has run to schedule, it is free for sightseeing in Kathmandu before we take you to the airport.
Permits we arrange: lower_dolpo_rap, shey_phoksundo_np
Lower Dolpo is a restricted area. The permit is issued by the Department of Immigration only through a registered trekking agency, for trekkers walking with a licensed guide; since March 2026 a single trekker can get it. You also need the Shey Phoksundo National Park permit, which costs NPR 3,000 for foreign nationals and NPR 1,500 for SAARC nationals. We need your original passport with a valid Nepal visa in Kathmandu on day 2 to process the permits; a TIMS card is not required with a restricted area permit.
Juphal is served by small aircraft from Nepalgunj, a flight of about 35 minutes that only runs in the morning in clear weather. Delays of a day or more happen, especially in spring winds and the monsoon. The baggage allowance is usually 10 to 15 kg including hand luggage. We hold a spare day at the end; if delays run longer, a helicopter charter is the fallback, so make sure your insurance covers it.
You sleep five nights above 4,000 m and cross Numa La at 5,190 m and Baga La at 5,169 m on consecutive days. The slow climb up the Tarap gorge and the rest day at Dho Tarap are there for acclimatisation. Your guide checks your oxygen saturation each evening; if symptoms of altitude sickness develop, the only treatment is descent, and the route back down the Tarap valley is the escape line before the passes.
There are no ATMs beyond Nepalgunj in practice, so bring all the Nepali rupees you need from Kathmandu. Power on the trek is solar only and very limited at camps, so carry a large power bank. Mobile signal is available around Dunai and Juphal and sporadically elsewhere; your guide keeps in contact with our office whenever there is signal and knows where the nearest working phones are.
Dolpo lies in the rain shadow of Dhaulagiri, so it stays drier than most of Nepal and the trek is possible from April to November. Spring and autumn give the most reliable flights and clear skies, while June brings warm days and flowering pastures. Nights on the passes fall well below freezing in October and November, and snow can close Numa La and Baga La from December to March.
Walk clockwise around chortens and mani walls, ask before entering a gompa or photographing people, and dress modestly in villages. Fuel wood is scarce in Dolpo, so our kitchen cooks on kerosene or gas, and we carry all non-burnable rubbish back out to Juphal.
Everything is yours to bring, except items marked “We provide” or “Rent locally”.
Thermal base layers, top and bottom, two sets
Trekking shirts, two or three
Warm fleece or synthetic mid layer
Down jacketWe provide
On loan; essential for the passes and camp evenings
Waterproof and windproof jacket and trousers
Trekking trousers, two pairs
Warm hat, sun hat and buff
Liner gloves and insulated gloves or mittens
Waterproof trekking boots with ankle support, broken in
Camp shoes
Wool trekking socks, five pairs
Gaiters
Useful in snow on the passes
Four-season sleeping bag rated to -15°CWe provide
On loan
Sleeping bag liner
Daypack, 30 to 35 litres
Trekking polesRent locally
Strongly recommended for the descents
Microspikes
For snow or ice on Numa La and Baga La early or late in the season
Headtorch and spare batteries
Insulated water bottles, two litres total
Power bank, 20,000 mAh or more
Only limited solar charging on trek
Category 3 or 4 sunglasses
Sunscreen SPF 50 and lip balm
Water purification tablets or filter
Personal first-aid kit, blister plasters and any prescribed medicines
Discuss acetazolamide with your doctor
Passport with at least six months' validity and Nepal visa
Original needed for the restricted area permit
Travel insurance policy with evacuation cover
Nepali rupees in cash
No ATMs on the trek
No. Lower Dolpo is a restricted area. The permit is issued only through a registered agency to trekkers with a licensed guide; since March 2026 a single trekker can get it. If you are travelling alone, ask us about joining a departure with other trekkers.
A Lower Dolpo restricted area permit and a Shey Phoksundo National Park entry permit. We arrange both in Kathmandu on day 2; you need your original passport and visa.
Only partly. Dunai, Tarakot, Ringmo, Chhepka and Juphal have simple lodges or guesthouses, but between Tarakot and Ringmo there are few or none, so we run a full camping service with tents, a dining tent and our own cook.
Numa La is 5,190 m and Baga La 5,169 m, crossed on consecutive days. Neither is technical, but both involve long climbs at altitude and can hold snow early in spring and late in autumn.
April to June and September to November. Dolpo is in a rain shadow, so even June is fairly dry, though flights become less reliable as the monsoon builds. Avoid December to March, when the passes are usually snowed over.
Flights only run in good morning weather. We keep a spare day at the end of the trip; if delays run longer we rebook or arrange a helicopter, which is charged extra and should be covered by your insurance.
You should be comfortable walking six to eight hours a day for several days in a row, with ascents of 600 m or more. Previous trekking above 4,000 m is a real advantage.
No. Shey Gompa lies north of Phoksundo in Upper Dolpo, which needs a separate and much more expensive permit. Our Upper Dolpo Trek goes there over Kang La.
Lower Dolpo and Phoksundo Lake Trek
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