Kathmandu to Kailash - Tibet Journey

Kathmandu to Mt Kailash

The Friendship Bridge was the point where we entered China and left Nepal. Our papers were thoroughly checked by Chinese guards many times starting from the middle of the bridge until we emerged through the back door of the immigration building on the Chinese side. Books and magazines were being scrutinized for the word "Dalai Lama" and if found they would be confiscated.

Once over the border, the first stop was lunch in the border town of Zhangmu. Money changers are like flies and hard to get rid of. This was the start of the Friendship Road at 2300 meters from here it climbed quickly toward the next town of Nyalam where we would sleep. 
Nyalam was the stop for the first night - an unimpressive town - lined with hotels, stores selling Cordyceps that many think will help with altitude sickness, and dingy-looking restaurants.
It was hard to sleep the first night at an elevation of 3700 meters complicated by being in a noisy room near the toilets. The next morning's forecast was cloudy and after a greasy breakfast, there was a strong chance of indigestion.

The views were dramatic as we drove through agricultural areas with barley fields and the threats from the glaciers splitting the fields with washed-out fans.

We saw the Himalayas from their south side, or backside, compared to the view on the Nepal side.

Everything looked bigger and the views were endless. Lakes reflected the surrounding hills and mountains.

Ruins from the Cultural Revolution were sighted along the road. Most monasteries and gompas were destroyed at that time. Slowly some are being rebuilt, but there are few monks to do the work since most go to Dharamsala, India.

The drive along the Tibetan side has spectacular views of the Himalayas. The landscape contrasts greatly with Nepal. Tibet is mostly a dry open treeless plateau, with snow-capped mountains as a backdrop; whereas the Nepal side is covered with hilly farmed terraces that slowly meet the rise of the mountains.

Army check posts define the road distances. All along the way, very young Chinese police want to know where you are coming from and where you are going. They come to the car window and check that your face matches your passport. Photos are prohibited at the checkpoints.

Our lunch stop is called "Song of Tibetan Meal". It was a pre-prepared noodle box filled with hot water and came with a greasy spice packet. Not exactly the song of "Tibetan Meal" I expected.  Our appetites were not so good anyway on the first day of high elevation.

Along the way, we met a friendly nomad woman with a lovely baby. They explained that the rest of the family including young children were up in the high yak pastures.


We stopped to visit one rebuilt gompa. It had wonderful new statues and paintings inside. The one above is of Guru Rimpoche.

One pillar had hunting trophies on it and the penance was paid with money and gold by the hunters who gave up hunting.

The government built fences along both sides of the road and there were several layers of power/telephone lines and poles. Photos without lines were hard to get.

The fences prevent yaks from reaching their pastures and wild Tibetan Ass from their grazing areas. Some animals were trapped behind the fences and died in the winter leaving their remains tangled in the fences.
The Black-necked Crane uses the high-altitude wetlands to raise their young. The road passes were getting higher as we drove toward Saga.
Saga was under construction - new pipes for water and power were being laid. The place was dredged and dusty. Our hotel had a big lobby where our cook staff set up a dining table to seat us for our two meals. Our rooms had toilets but no water until after 9pm - that would change. It was a challenge to sleep at 4500m and there was still a nagging headache but the Diamox was beginning to help.

Burang, or Taklakot, sits on the Karnali River at 4755m. It is the junction and trade center for goods coming via Darchula in Uttarakhand and Simikot in Nepal. At another Snow Land Hotel - no relation to the first just a bit cleaner and with a bath and toilet in the room.

A visit to the Burang International market was interesting with all kinds of goods from India, China, and Nepal. Leaving the valley we could see across the Karnali River and the barley fields.


The origin of the Karnali River flows into western Nepal.

We made an early morning visit to the 7th-century Tsegu Gompa. This one was mostly spared complete destruction, but the hill ruins of Simbling Monastery and the Tegla Kar or Sleeping Tiger Fort remain as scars from the 1967 Cultural Revolution.

The Chinese name is different from the Tibetan. A sign for tourists was placed outside the gate.

Rakshas Tal or Lake of the Demon is saline and connected with bad omens.

Lake Manasarovar is beautifully ringed by mountains on one side and plains leading to Kailash on the other end.

We camped next to Lake Manasarovar at 4590 meters and woke to a splendid sunrise and the opportunity to take a dip. A bath in Manasarovar cleanses one of their sins and a sip of water takes one to the abode of Shiva. Some Buddhists believe this was the place where Lord Buddha was conceived.

Chiu Gompa or bird gompa sits on a craggy hill at the western end of the lake overlooking both Manasarovar and Kailash in the distance. It is believed that Buddha made several trips to the area and meditated at this spot.

Circumambulating Kailash
The Kora Begins a 52km sacred walk 

Day 1

After leaving the last outpost of Darchen, followed by a stop at the new tourist information center where we had to register - our holy kora started.

A sky burial site is marked with prayer flags. A sky burial is performed on dead bodies by a "priest" who calls the ravens and other scavenger birds to come while he cuts up the corpse and feeds it to the birds.

We held a short puja at a small open-sided puja chorten to bless our journey.
A beautiful valley opens up as you begin the walk and the going is fairly easy at first. But if you feel too exhausted to walk there is always a sure-footed Tibetan horse to carry you.

The small peaks hold significance to those who recognize the 21 Taras that surround the valley. There are also special stones that have been draped in silk Kadha cloths.

Kailash appears and disappears in the clouds exposing different faces layered with snow on the sacred surfaces.





Bon Po pilgrims circumambulate counterclockwise - they are colorful and happy travelers. Some chant or sing and prayer beads are always moving through their fingers. They move rapidly circling the 54km route around the mountain every day taking about 15 to 19 hours to do the full trip. After 13 trips they can enter the more sacred inner Kora.



The north side of Kailash is so close it seems tangible. Following a small stream, it is easy to reach a glacier valley under the Holy Baba where unique flowers, insects, and animals thrive and adapt to the harsh environment.



Our goods were carried by yaks. They arrived shortly after us. The cement block hotel is fit only for sleeping - there are no toilets nor places to even wash your hands. The area behind the hotel is a minefield of excrement - while in front of one of the most amazing scenes in the world.

Day 2

The morning begins with sleet and the slow ascent to Dromo La. At 5470 meters it is the highest point on the walk around the holy Mt Kailash. Some pilgrims as they approach the pass leave something from their past life behind and they believe that they are entering a new life.

Some of the garments are comically displayed on the stones.
At the top prayer flags decorate the landscape. The names of loved ones are written somewhere on the cloth and strung up for the wind to blow across them to carry their prayers to the sky.
A glacial lake has formed on the other side of the pass and the water from that is also carried home for use in prayers.

As we descend from the pass we meet the same pilgrims that we saw the day before. They were doing their daily circumambulation. One man was chanting and running his fingers around his prayer beads as he climbed.
 

On the other side of the pass, there were so many beautiful high-altitude flowers


We walked for 12 hours in the snow, sleet, and rain to get to the next stop. We stopped briefly for hot tea and waited for the weather to improve. The young woman at the tea shop was very pretty.


It was a very long day and clouded with some sleet, hail, snow, and rain. The night was spent in a trailer pre-fabricated lodge - again no toilets.

Day 3


The next morning was a short walk and we said goodbye to the yak team as we approached a truck that picked up the yak loads.

A young girl, the daughter of one yak herder, was keen to learn her ABC so we practiced several times.
Only a short 2.5-hour walk and sadly it was all over.

Back in Darchula, we passed a group of Tibetans gathered around their elaborately decorated motorcycles. They reminded me of cowboys.
The weather is again snowy and the day leaves the cloud-draped sky with a glowing sunset.

A snowy morning drive was our end to the holy Mt Kailash area as we drove over the passes and headed toward Lhasa passing through Shigatse.

Shigatse is home to the 5th Panchen Lama, a lama chosen by the Chinese government after the young reincarnate that was identified by the Dalai Lama disappeared mysteriously.

The Panchen Lama lives in the magnificent Tashilhunpo Monastery. Tours are very quiet and no one speaks very loudly. The magnitude of importance is felt as we walk through the main hall holding an enormous Buddha.
A new railway extension from the Lhasa -Beijing line now reaches Shigatse and a high-elevation airport will allow the number of Chinese tourists to climb.

We drive beside the Yarlung Tsangpo River toward Lhasa. This river becomes the Brahmaputra River as it travels through North East India and Bangladesh. The source is near Mt Kailash. The valley is green and the farmers have good soil for their crops of barley.

Reaching modern Lhasa was disappointing after the lovely countryside we passed through. The city and Potala Palace were sighted through the spokes of a giant Ferris wheel at the edge of the city. Many modern expensive foreign shops lined the streets.

Only the old streets in the Tibetan quarter were where it felt like Tibet. The old I wish I had gone many years ago. There are still areas that are amazing to see and I hope to go farther west.

Another trip to Tibet - yes of course - if the opportunity comes along...