A 20-day camping expedition through the restricted Upper Dolpo region: Phoksundo Lake, Kang La (5,360 m), the 11th-century Shey Gompa, Saldang and the Tarap valley. One of the most remote and culturally intact treks in Nepal.
A 20-day camping expedition through the restricted Upper Dolpo region: Phoksundo Lake, Kang La (5,360 m), the 11th-century Shey Gompa, Saldang and the Tarap valley. One of the most remote and culturally intact treks in Nepal.
Upper Dolpo is a high, dry Tibetan plateau tucked behind the Kanjiroba and Dhaulagiri ranges, with stone villages, Buddhist and Bön monasteries and yak caravans that have changed little in centuries. It was made famous by Peter Matthiessen's The Snow Leopard and Eric Valli's film Himalaya, and access is still limited by an expensive restricted area permit, so very few trekkers come here.
We fly from Kathmandu via Nepalgunj to Juphal and walk up the Suli Gad into Shey Phoksundo National Park, reaching the turquoise Phoksundo Lake at Ringmo after four days. After a rest day the route follows the dramatic cliff path along the lake's western shore and climbs over Kang La at 5,360 m to Shey Gompa, the Crystal Monastery, founded in the 11th century below the sacred Crystal Mountain.
From Shey we cross Sela La (5,095 m) to the cliff monastery at Namgung and continue to Saldang, one of the largest villages of Upper Dolpo, and north to the old gompa at Yangtser. The return crosses Jeng La (5,090 m) into the Tarap valley, where we pass Tokyu and Dho Tarap before descending the Tarap Khola gorge to Tarakot, Dunai and Juphal.
This is a full camping trek with our own cook, kitchen crew and pack animals; lodges exist only at Dunai, Chhepka, Ringmo and Juphal. Walking days are typically five to seven hours at altitudes between 3,500 m and 4,500 m, with three passes above 5,000 m. Rest days at Phoksundo and Shey help acclimatisation, and a spare day at the end covers flight delays.
Upper Dolpo is a long, remote expedition and suits experienced trekkers who have already walked at 4,000 to 5,000 m and are comfortable camping for two to three weeks. Expect five to eight hours on foot most days, seven nights above 4,000 m and three passes between 5,090 m and 5,360 m, with steep, loose descents. There is no technical climbing, but snow on the passes is possible in May and November. Train for at least four months with long hill days carrying 7 to 8 kg, regular stair or step sessions and endurance cardio, and include several weekends of back-to-back long walks. Help is days away in places, so good health, a steady pace and a patient attitude are essential.
We meet you at the airport and take you to your hotel. In the evening your guide goes through the route and your kit and collects the passport details for the restricted area permits.
We lodge your Upper and Lower Dolpo restricted area permits with the Department of Immigration and buy the Shey Phoksundo National Park permit. Your passport is needed for a few hours; the rest of the day is free for final shopping.
An hour's flight takes us west to Nepalgunj on the plains near the Indian border. Juphal flights leave early in the morning, so we spend the night here.
A 35-minute flight over the Dhaulagiri foothills lands us at Juphal. We meet the crew and walk down through fields and along the Thuli Bheri to Dunai, the headquarters of Dolpa district.
We cross the Bheri and turn north up the Suli Gad, entering Shey Phoksundo National Park at Sulighat. The trail follows the river through walnut groves and small villages such as Kageni and Shyanta to Chhepka.
The valley narrows into a gorge of blue pine and birch. We pass Rechi and climb steadily to the area around the Amchi hospital near Sumduwa, where traditional Tibetan medicine is still practised.
A short, steep climb brings us to a ridge at about 3,875 m with the first view of the 167 m Phoksundo waterfall and the lake beyond. We descend to Ringmo, a Bön village built on the natural dam at the southern end of the lake.
We rest at Ringmo to adjust before heading into Upper Dolpo. Walk along the shore, visit the Bön monastery near the village, and climb a little way up the hillside for views across the lake.
The trail follows the western shore of the lake on a narrow path cut into the cliff, climbing high above the water, then drops to the flat valley of the Phoksundo Khola north of the lake. Peter Matthiessen walked this path on his way to Shey in 1973, the journey he described in The Snow Leopard.
We walk up the glacial valley, cross the river on an old wooden bridge and climb into a side valley below Kang La. The camp at about 4,400 m is cold and exposed, and we turn in early for the pass.
An early start for the steep climb to Kang La at 5,360 m, the highest point of the trek, with views back over the Phoksundo valley and ahead into the bare hills of Upper Dolpo. A long descent leads down the valley to Shey Gompa, the Crystal Monastery, founded in the 11th century and the spiritual centre of Upper Dolpo.
A day to recover and explore. Visit the red-painted gompa and walk up to the Tsakang hermitage on the cliffs above, looking across to Crystal Mountain, which pilgrims circle every twelve years during the Shey festival.
We climb through a juniper-scattered valley to Sela La at 5,095 m, with views north towards Tibet, then descend through a barren canyon to the Namgung monastery, built into the cliff above the river.
A shorter day up and over a ridge and down to Saldang, one of the largest villages in Upper Dolpo. Its flat-roofed stone houses are spread along a terrace above the Nankhang valley, surrounded by barley fields.
We walk north down the valley to Yangtser, one of the oldest monasteries in Dolpo, and spend the afternoon exploring the gompa and the surrounding villages.
We return up the valley past chortens, mani walls and small monasteries, then turn west to the village of Sibu on the Nankhang Khola.
An easy start along the river, then a steady climb into a side valley to a rocky meadow below Jeng La, where yak herders graze their animals in summer.
About two hours of climbing brings us to Jeng La at 5,090 m, our last high pass, with a view south to the Dhaulagiri massif. The descent into the Tarap valley ends at Tokyu and its monastery.
An easy walk down the broad Tarap valley, past fields, chortens and gompas, to Dho Tarap, where Buddhist and Bön communities live side by side.
We leave the open valley and drop into the gorge of the Tarap Khola, the trail cut into the cliffs above the river in places, to the camp at Nawarpani.
A long descent through the gorge past Laini, crossing the river several times on bridges as forest returns, to the village of Khanigaon near the junction with the Bheri valley.
We pass the old fortified village of Tarakot and follow the Thuli Bheri downstream through pine and walnut back to Dunai, completing the circuit.
A short final walk along the river and up through terraced fields to Juphal, with an evening to thank the crew.
We fly out on the morning flight to Nepalgunj and connect to Kathmandu the same day.
This day is held back for weather delays on the Juphal flight. If it is not needed, enjoy Kathmandu before we take you to the airport.
Permits we arrange: Upper Dolpo Restricted Area Permit, lower_dolpo_rap, shey_phoksundo_np
Upper Dolpo is a restricted area. The Upper Dolpo permit costs USD 500 per person for the first 10 days and USD 50 per person for each additional day inside the restricted zone. You also need the Lower Dolpo permit for the Tarap valley and the Shey Phoksundo National Park permit (NPR 3,000 for foreign nationals). Permits are issued by the Department of Immigration only through a registered agency, to trekkers with a licensed guide; since March 2026 a single trekker can get it, and we need your original passport and visa in Kathmandu on day 2.
Juphal is reached by a 35-minute flight on small aircraft from Nepalgunj, which only operates in clear morning weather. Delays of one or more days are common in spring winds and during the monsoon. Baggage is usually limited to 10 to 15 kg including hand luggage. We hold a spare day at the end; longer delays may require a helicopter charter, so check your insurance covers it.
You spend seven nights above 4,000 m and cross Kang La (5,360 m), Sela La (5,095 m) and Jeng La (5,090 m). The four-day approach to Phoksundo, the rest day at Ringmo and the rest day at Shey Gompa are built in for acclimatisation, and your guide checks oxygen saturation every evening. Between Phoksundo and the Tarap valley you are several days from a road or airstrip, so any serious altitude illness means descent and possibly helicopter evacuation.
Bring all the Nepali rupees you need from Kathmandu; there are no ATMs on the route. Electricity is limited to small solar panels in villages, so carry a large power bank and spare batteries, which drain fast in the cold. Mobile signal is available around Dunai and Juphal and only sporadically elsewhere.
Dolpo lies in the rain shadow of Dhaulagiri, so the main trekking season runs from May to October, when the high passes are usually clear of snow. Days are warm in summer but nights at Shey and on the passes drop below freezing at any time of year, and from late October temperatures fall sharply. Kang La can hold snow into May, and the passes are usually closed from December to March.
Walk clockwise around chortens, mani walls and gompas, ask before entering monasteries or photographing people, and offer a small donation when you visit a gompa. Firewood is scarce on the plateau, so our kitchen cooks on kerosene or gas and we carry rubbish back out.
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 and a synthetic insulated jacket
Expedition down jacketWe provide
On loan
Waterproof and windproof jacket and trousers
Trekking trousers, two pairs, and insulated trousers for camp
Warm hat, sun hat and buff
Liner gloves and insulated mittens
Waterproof trekking boots with ankle support, broken in
Camp shoes
Wool trekking socks, six pairs
Gaiters
Four-season sleeping bag rated to -20°CWe provide
On loan
Sleeping bag liner
Daypack, 30 to 35 litres
Trekking polesRent locally
Microspikes
For snow or ice on the passes
Headtorch and spare batteries
Insulated water bottles, two litres total
Power bank, 20,000 mAh or more, and a small solar panel
Category 3 or 4 sunglasses
Sunscreen SPF 50 and lip balm
Water purification tablets or filter
Personal first-aid kit and prescribed medicines
Discuss acetazolamide with your doctor
Wet wipes and hand sanitiser
Passport with at least six months' validity and Nepal visa
Original needed for the permits
Travel insurance policy with evacuation cover
Nepali rupees in cash, including small notes for gompa donations
The Upper Dolpo restricted area permit costs USD 500 per person for the first 10 days and USD 50 per person for each extra day. The Lower Dolpo permit and Shey Phoksundo National Park permit are also required. All permits are included in our trip.
No. Restricted area permits are issued only through a registered agency to trekkers with a licensed guide; since March 2026 a single trekker can get it. If you are on your own, ask us about joining other trekkers on a departure.
No. Apart from Dunai, Chhepka, Ringmo and Juphal there is almost no tourist accommodation, so this is a full camping trek with our own tents, dining tent, kitchen and cook.
The highest point is Kang La at 5,360 m. You also cross Sela La at 5,095 m and Jeng La at 5,090 m, and the highest camp is at Namgung at about 4,430 m.
May, June, September and October. Dolpo is in the rain shadow of Dhaulagiri, so summer stays fairly dry, although flights to Juphal can be disrupted. Late autumn and winter bring snow and severe cold on the passes.
The Shey festival at Shey Gompa is held once every twelve years, when pilgrims circle Crystal Mountain. Contact us for the date of the next festival and we can plan a departure around it.
Your guide is trained in first aid and altitude illness and monitors everyone daily. Between Phoksundo and the Tarap valley the nearest road or airstrip is several days away, so serious illness means descent and usually a helicopter evacuation, which your insurance must cover.
We keep a spare day at the end of the trip. If delays run longer we rebook or arrange a helicopter at extra cost.
Yes. We spend two nights at Ringmo on the southern shore, then walk the cliff path along the western shore of the lake on our way to Kang La.
Upper Dolpo Trek
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