Trip report for Dhaulagiri Circuit (Nepal) led by Paul Burditt in October 2012

Photo: Dhaulagiri Base Camp

Our October Dhaulagiri Circuit group arrived back to Kathmandu last week after a successful trek around Mount Dhaulagiri where they crossed both French and Dhampus passes out to Jomsom in Kali Gandaki valley. The western leader for this trek was Paul Burditt who worked with Nepalese sirdar Jire Rai who has done this trek seven times so knows the route pretty well by now! The cook was Saila Rai who is our regular for camping treks as we always get great feedback on his food, luckily Saila is also coming as cook on my Mera Peak Expedition starting later this week....

I met up with this Dhaulagiri Circuit group on their return to Kathmandu at the ever popular K Too steakhouse where after much discussion we concluded these are definitely the best steaks in town! I also heard about the trek and obtain their feedback, it sounds like everyone had an enjoyable time with good weather and superb views from the days crossing the high passes. This year the coldest camp was at Glacier Camp where there was some snow on the ground however as explained in our Trip Dossier it is essential to stay here for at least one night (better two nights) in order to help the acclimatisation process. It seems other groups are still ascending too fast up to main Dhaulagiri Base Camp and others are camping at Swiss Camp in the Chonbarden gorge, this is incredibly dangerous place to stay as there is a high risk of rockfall (whereas once you get to Glacier camp this is a wider valley so rockfall would not affect the camp).

From what I heard the highlights of the trip was as usual the spectacular day crossing Dhampus Pass and in fact this group made really good time arriving to Yak Kharka camp by mid-afternoon. I gather one of the other highlights was watching Paul dance in Boghara at a culture show put on by the locals…if anyone in the group has any video or photos please email to me, thanks!!  In the end the group decided to spend one night in Hidden Valley and cross Dhampus Pass a day early then spent the extra day in the beautiful village of Marpha. There were rumours that one member of the group still felt energetic on this rest day and walked back up the hill to Yak Kharka, this is a 1,000m ascent! Whereas the others in the group had a somewhat more gentle day walking around the village then visited the Tibetan monastery followed by sampling the locally made apple brandy. Then on the next day the group walked short distance to Jomsom where I gather Paul organised a honeymoon suite in lodge for Simon and Vicky recently married- what a great trip for a honeymoon!!

Unfortunately on October 24th when this group planned to fly back from Jomsom to Pokhara and onto Kathmandu their flights were cancelled due to high winds at the airport so the decision was made to drive down Kali Gandaki  valley back to Beni. As this was during Dashain festival there were not many buses and many people wanting to travel so after changing from jeeps to an overcrowded bus everyone felt it would be better (and safer) to walk in the end they got to Tatopani (hot springs) that evening. A jeep was organised to pick them up early next morning for the drive to Beni where on arrival they took our crew bus to Pokhara and luckily managed to get flights in the afternoon back to Kathmandu.

There is no doubt this was a challenging end to the trip especially tough after a long trek when I am sure everyone was looking forward to spending some time in Kathmandu. However from what I heard everyone accepted the change in itinerary in good spirits so thanks you to everyone's patience and understanding and after all this is adventure travel in a developing country so flexibility and sense of humour is a must in these situations! This is of course the reason we include two nights in Kathmandu at the end of this itinerary to act as a buffer day in case of any delays so reduce the risk of people missing their flights back home.

I would like to thank Paul very much for his help in leading this trek especially with the challenges as explained above with organising the group's transport down Kali Gandaki after their flight was cancelled from Jomsom.  And of course a huge thanks to Jire and Saila plus the Sherpas and rest of the crew who worked incredibly hard throughout the trek.

The Mountain Company is organising two Dhaulagiri Circuit treks in 2013, our first departure is in April with second departure in October,  please get in touch with us soon if you are interested in joining one of these treks.

Roland Hunter

www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Trip Report for K2 & Gondogoro La led by Chris Horobin in August '12

Photo: K2 and Broad Peak from Concordia

Our K2 Base Camp & Gondogoro la group flew back home last weekend after a successful trip led by Chris Horobin and our local Pakistan guide Hassan. From speaking to Chris on the phone on his return to UK it sounds like the trip went well and his group were lucky to fly both ways Islamabad to Skardu at start of the trip and back again to Islamabad after the trek rather than tackle the two day bus ride on Karakoram Highway (KKH). In fact there was a sad incident on KKH while our group were on trek where twenty five Shia muslims were killed in a sectarian attack, for more information take a look at BBC website. While this incident was not directly targeting foreigners it raised the overall risk levels of driving KKH so we pushed PIA hard to get our group to fly back to Islamabad.

As the group flew to Skardu at start of the trip on August 5th they had two nights staying at K2 Motel before starting the trek so everyone had some time to explore Skardu as well as relax in the gardens of the hotel overlooking Indus river. After an exciting (!) jeep ride to Askole the group were ready to start walking. I gather the weather for most of the trek was sunny and fine apart from one cloudy day on arrival to Concordia however the day to K2 Base Camp was completely clear revealing spectacular views of K2 the second highest mountain in the world. Some of the group decided to make Broad Base Camp their final objective as in fact the best views of K2 are from here and then the rest of the group continued onto K2 Base Camp.

At Concordia one member of the group decided he would prefer to walk back down Baltoro rather than cross Gondogoro la, this was organised for him and by the sounds of it his walk out went well while the rest carried onto Ali Camp. In fact this year the group stayed at Ali Camp 2 located higher than original Ali Camp and has advantages as closer to Gondogoro La and avoids the tricky walk over moraine in early hours when dark. Also Ali Camp 2 is cleaner and less dirty than Ali Camp so we would certainly consider staying here again in future years.

This year there were more groups undertaking K2 trek compared to previous years, this is really encouraging for tourism in Pakistan with more people are travelling to this amazing and hospitable country. However for us it meant there were two other groups crossing Gondogoro La at same time as ours and as a result had to wait for an hour or so at top of pass for other groups to descend and clear the ropes. There is a high risk of rockfall while crossing Gondogoro La and this risk increases later in the morning when sun warms the rock face above descent line. This is the reason for leaving Ali Camp in the early hours of morning to cross the pass before frequent rockfall and mudslides are released by the warmer temperatures. In spite of a few close calls our group crossed the pass without incident and reached the lovely campsite at Khuspang, please note a climbing helmet is essential kit to safely cross this pass!!

The feedback I have received from this group is how challenging they found the crossing of Gondogoro La and for most people trickier than they expected. I am well aware of how tough crossing of Gondogoro La can be as I have taken our groups over four times in the past (2004, 2006, 2009 and 2010). There is no doubt the risk of rockfall was increased this year due to their wait at top of the pass however even if one starts descent of ropes at first light around 5.30am there will always be some rock falling down onto the descent route. In fact what many people do not realise beforehand is that probably the trickiest part of the descent is after the ropes have finished as there is a very vague trail over loose rock and moraine with several gulleys to cross before descending to glacier level where there is proper trail to follow down to the campsite at Khuspang.

The other factor that makes descent of Gondogoro La quite risky is the poor state of the fixed ropes supposedly maintained by the "Hushe Rescue Team". Everyone crossing the pass will pay a toll to this local team and in return they are meant to fix the ascent and descent of Gondogoro La as well as escorting trekkers over and provide assistance if required. The ropes have been damaged by constant rockfall so are in a poor state however I am disappointed that 400m of rope donated by The Mountain Company in previous years has never been used instead probably for sale in Skardu Bazaar? After every trek and expedition in Pakistan the leader attends a debriefing at Alpine Club of Pakistan and each time we at The Mountain Company have discussed the issue surrounding the poor state of fixed ropes however unfortunately there have been no improvements over last few years...in fact we now bring 400m of extra fixed rope to refix sections where required however we do not have time or resources to fix the whole pass for our groups.

After one night in Khuspang the group continued down to Shaisho where they spent two nights as at this point they had one day in hand within their itinerary. On meeting jeeps at Hushe village everyone enjoyed the ride through the villages of this spectacular valley and then stopped for lunch in the newly restored Khaplu Palace operated by Serena Hotels, for more information on this lovely boutique hotel. After lunch the group continued their jeep ride back to K2 Motel in Skardu then next day as mentioned above they were fortunate in being able to fly back to Islamabad by PIA scheduled flight. Most of the group decided to reschedule their flights to fly home a day earlier however I understand they enjoyed a good meal at the legendary Kabul Restaurant in Jinnah Market before leaving to go their separates ways back to USA, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland and UK.

At The Mountain Company we try our best to provide detailed and accurate advice to our trekkers about crossing Gondogoro La on people's initial enquiries and as well as providing tips and advice with the run up to departure. It is worth pointing out that this trek is far more challenging on many levels than the classic treks in Nepal or Bhutan. This starts from uncertainty in terms of itinerary i.e flying or driving KKH to Skardu, lack of security and overall risk level of visiting Pakistan, the lower level of facilities and infrastructure while on trek (for example you are very likely to have to cross rivers as many have no bridges). Also the trail itself is tough especially for first three days on Baltoro Glacier from Paiju to Goro Two with moraine and loose rocks as well as significant amount of ascent and descent on the ice ridges.

Having said this if you are prepared for this trek there is no doubt K2 is simply one of the best treks in the world. If you are considering completing K2 Base Camp and Gondogoro La then at a minimum you should have done one previous high altitude trek in Himalaya or Karakoram, have a high fitness level and preferably have some mountaineering experience (although our western leader will also provide some mountaineering and rope training on the trek itself it is better if this is a refresher/ reminder on techniques). I suggest if you are interested in this trek then you get in touch with us, we will send our Pre Trip questionnaire for you to complete. Then once we receive your replies we will let you know if this trek is a suitable objective for you or we will provide advice on how to increase your fitness and experience level to be in a position to join this trek in the future. Or you could consider walking to Concordia and K2 Base Camp then retracing trail back down to Baltoro avoiding the Gondogoro La pass.

I would like to thank Chris Horobin and Hassan for doing a great job leading this group and also of course the rest of our amazing Pakistan crew. I suggest you take a look at the trip report on Chris's blog about leading K2 Base Camp & Gondogoro La and visiting Pakistan for the first time.

And lastly you might be interested to read the blog written by Helen Chorlton (Head of Communications at British High Commission in Islambad) who also trekked to K2 Base Camp this summer. This is very refreshing to see diplomats travelling and getting out to see remote places like K2 and reporting back in a honest and informative fashion, well done Helen!

The Mountain Company is organising K2 Base Camp & Gondogoro La trek in August 2013 so please get in touch with us soon if you would like to join this group.

Roland Hunter
www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Book review for Everest The Old Way- a bright remembering by David Peckett, John Driskell and Les Simms with Foreword by Sir Chris Bonnington

Photo: Everest The Old Way

This is a wonderful book describing a trek to Everest Base Camp undertaken by a group of five teachers in 1967 followed by a revisit to the area 43 years later in 2010. In 1967 these friends decided to undertake this trip together after meeting on their teacher training course in Sheffield where they all made a pact to save £10 a month (at the time over a quarter of their income) for two years in order to finance the trip.

Their journey was inspired by the words of climbing legend Geoffrey Winthrop Young “Live life to the full, blend dream with the deed” and also by the ethos of Sixties which was full of optimism and opportunities. Their trek was the highlight of a two year trip driving a Landrover from Barnsley through Europe, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, and India to Nepal and back again to UK after visiting Everest Base Camp.

Their story is a fascinating insight into how the Everest region has changed since trekking became popular in this part of the Himalaya. In 1967 there were no commercial trek lodges in Nepal so the group stayed with local families often only paying a small charge covering firewood used for cooking their meals. They started the trek on February 19th from Dolaghat rather than flying into Lukla airport (like most people these days) and it took them sixteen days to reach Kalapatar and Gorakshep (original Base Camp for Everest expeditions). Then twenty seven days later on March 16th they returned back to Kathmandu and they managed to only spend £33 between them for the whole trek!

In 1967 there was only one trekking company in Nepal called Mountain Travel set up by Jimmy Roberts who was known as "the father of trekking in Nepal". However this group decided to organise this trek themselves on a shoestring budget by employing one Sherpa guide in Kathmandu called LP and also one porter called Kaman. This group were pioneers of independent trekking in Himalaya and since this time a large adventure travel industry has developed in Nepal with hundreds of tour operators, an extensive network of lodges and an upgraded runway at Lukla.

This book is made up of diaries written by David, John and Less as well as photos from 1967 and 2010 plus maps and some letters written home. I am sure this book will be of huge interest to people who have recently trekked to Everest Base Camp who will be able to compare their experience to David, John and Les’s story from an earlier trek in Khumbu before the commercialisation effects of modern adventure tourism.

Roland Hunter
www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Kanchenjunga Base Camp to Makalu Base Camp: Section 1 of The Great Himalaya Trail

Photo: north side of Mount Kanchenjunga

In October 2013 The Mountain Company is organising Kanchenjunga Base Camp to Makalu Base Camp trek along Section 1 of The Great Himalaya Trail ("GHT"). This is an epic 35 day trek from Kanchenjunga Base Camp passing through a remote region on border with Tibet to Makalu Base Camp. Mount Kanchenjunga at an altitude of 8,586m is the third highest mountain in the world and Mount Makalu at 8,481m is the fifth highest mountain.

If this trek is too long take a look at the shorter version at 23 days where you visit Kanchenjunga Base Camp and then walk out to Tumlingtar airstrip. Both of these treks follow the first section of The Great Himalaya Trail ("GHT") where very few other trekking groups have completed this adventurous mountain journey.

After visiting Kanchenjunga Base Camp (North) we will cross Nango La pass at 4,820m into the remote Yangma valley and to the small hamlet of Olangchunngola. From here we cross Lumba Sumba at 5,160m and walk out to Chyantang. At Chyantang village our group will split with the people booked onto shorter Kanchenjunga Base Camp to Tumlingtar trek walking south to this airstrip whereas the Kanchenjunga Base Camp to Makalu Base Camp walkers will continue traversing westwards towards Makalu. After visiting Makalu Base Camp we will descend the Barun Valley then cross Shipton la at 4,125m followed by the walk out to Tumlingtar airstrip for flight back to Kathmandu.

Roland Hunter, the owner and founder of the Mountain Company, will lead our Kanchenjunga Base Camp to Makalu Base Camp trek along with a team of experienced Sherpa guides. Please get in touch with us soon if you would like to join this trek.

Roland Hunter

www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Trip report for Dhaulagiri Circuit (Nepal) led by Jill Lawson in April 2012

Our Dhaulagiri Circuit in April/May 2012 was the sixth time The Mountain Company has organised this trek.  Our western leader for our Spring 2012 trek was Jill Lawson for more information on her background and experience. Jill was working with our Nepalese sirdar Jire Rai who has done this trek fives times with our groups and also Sherpa guides Sonam and Lanka. The cook was Saila Rai who always does a fantastic job and certainly his food was appreciated and enjoyed by this group- see their testimonials at bottom of this Trip Report.

It was great to see that over half of this group were repeat trekkers with us with some having already walked to Everest Base Camp and for Paul it was his fourth trek having previously done K2 Base Camp (Pakistan) in July 2007, Manaslu Circuit in April 2008 and Stok Kangri (August 2010). We really appreciate it when people show their support and come back for more than trip with The Mountain Company, it shows we are doing something right!

Chonbarden Gorge

This group arrived to Kathmandu on April 22^nd, and met up with Jill at Hotel Tibet in the afternoon for a detailed briefing on the trek and kit check. We carefully selected the date of the trek for Spring season as by end of April and into May the temperatures tend to be warmer and usually there is less snow on French and Dhampus passes so should increase the chances of successfully crossing over to Jomsom in the Kali Gandaki valley. However this Spring the conditions experienced by this group were rather different to normal with far more precipitation in the afternoons and evenings plus a lower snowline down to Italian Base camp. 

On Day 10 of the itinerary when the group was meant to walk up Chonbarden gorge to Glacier Camp there was quite a lot of overnight snow so wisely Jill and Jire made a good call to hold for a day to let the snow melt in order to minimise the risk of rockfall in the gorge. This worked well and everyone safely made it to Glacier camp and for the rest of the trek weather was more stable with sunny weather. In fact this often happens on Dhaulagiri Circuit as main Base Camp and Hidden Valley are protected to some degree by rain shadow effect of Dhaulagiri. 

The most challenging day of Dhaulagiri Circuit trek is crossing Dhampus Pass over to Yak Kharka camp (or Alu Bari camp lower down). The group experienced deep snow on the traverse from summit of Dhampus pass to the descent down to camp however there was a trail blazed by the porters for everyone to follow. On arriving to Jomsom at the end of the trek I gather there was a good party where the group and crew enjoyed drinking some of the local apple brandy together. Later on in the evening the group generously handed out tips to the Nepalese crew as a thank you for all of their hard work during the trek.

Descending French Pass into Hidden Valley

Traverse after Dhampus Pass

I would like to thank Jill very much for all of her help leading this trek, the feedback from the group on her leadership and organisation skills has been excellent- please some of their testimonials copied below. I would also like to thank Tom, Jill’s husband, who also helped out on this trek supporting Jill and I gather his discussions on the "Rock of the Day" collected along the trail was very popular (Tom is a geologist!). Thanks also to Simon one of the members of the group who being a doctor helped out several times with crew and the group, this shows really good teamwork where members with various skills are happy to pitch in and help out when required.

As ever our Nepalese crew worked hard throughout the trek and did a great job of course without porters, Sherpa guides, cooks and helpers and Sirdar this trip would not be possible for the group. This is one of the advantages of having organised Dhaulagiri Circuit a number of times over last five years as we have built up a regular and reliable crew with good knowledge of the trail, expected conditions and the best campsites along the way

I have copied below some testimonials received so far from this group:

“I had a fantastic time I have so many brilliant memories and photos of the Dhaulagiri Circuit. The trek was challenging but the support of your team was fantastic, and Jill was a brilliant leader. She was thoughtful, caring and supportive. I had confidence in Jill, and she was a good teacher. I feel I have learnt so much this trek. The Nepal crew were great. Jire was an excellent sirdar, and Sonam was a very hard worker, and deserves special mention. Saila and his team deserve a medal for the quality and variety of food they turned out of that cook tent, I've never tasted such good pizza! I have already been looking at The Mountain Company website and dreaming of my next trek...” Jenny Fifield (UK)

“Dhaulagiri Circuit trek in April was awesome, had a fantastic time! The porters were amazing and the food the cooks prepared was great especially under such challenging conditions for the crew. Jill's leadership was great as well. She had great tips and was very thoughtful regarding people's health and safety.  Thank you for such a great opportunity” Jim Carmichael (USA)

The Mountain Company is organising our next Dhaulagiri Circuit trek in October 2012, this trek will be led by Paul Burditt for more information on his background and experience. This departure is now confirmed so please get in touch with us soon if you would like to join this group.

Roland Hunter

www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Two new treks for The Mountain Company: Kopra Ridge and Rara Lake in Nepal

We have recently added two new treks to The Mountain Company’s portfolio in Nepal. Both of these treks have been selected by us as travel through quieter areas of Nepal with fewer other trekkers around compared to some of the busier trails in Everest and Annapurna regions.

Photo: Mount Dhaulagiri from Bayeli lodge

Our first new trek is Kopra Ridge, I walked this trail in December 2011 and I think this is one of the best short treks in Nepal. This trek contains all of the elements of a classic Nepal trekking experience including villages, wildlife, panoramic mountain views and range of landscape from forest to high alpine. Click here to read Trip Report on our blog from Kopra ridge trek in December 2011.

The mountain views from Kopra Ridge are superb and include Mount Dhaulagiri, Annapurna South, Fang and Nilgiri and also from Ghandruk one can see Mount Machhapuchhre (also known as Fishtail) and Mount Hiunchuli. For four nights of Kopra Ridge itinerary you stay in community lodges set up local villagers. The concept behind the community lodges at Bayeli Kharka, Upper Chistibung, Kopra and Swanta is that ownership of these lodges belongs to a village rather than individuals with profits contributing to community projects such as funding local schools.

Photo: Rara Lake in west Nepal

Our second new trek is Rara Lake and Kingdom of Khasa in a remote region of western Nepal. Alan Ward will lead this group in May 2013, click here for more information on his background and experience.

You start the trip by flying into the mountain airstrip at Simikot and trek to the stunning Rara Lake and then walk out to Jumla to fly out of another mountain airstrip back to Nepalganj. 

The Great Himalayan Trail (GHT) Upper and Lower routes pass along the shores of Rara Lake, Nepal’s largest body of water. It’s a beautiful, calm place surrounded by rugged hills forested with ancient blue pine, spruce and cedar, with the snowy peaks reflected in the still waters. This area is really off the beaten track with only 170 foreigners visiting Rara Lake in 2010.

If you are interested in joining one of these treks then please download the detailed Trip Dossiers from our website with day by itinerary and other practical information such as kit list in the Appendix. Please get in touch with us if you have any questions or require further information.

Roland Hunter
www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Upper Dolpo to Jomsom trek: Top 10 Wilderness treks by Trek & Mountain magazine

I just read an article in magazine Trek & Mountain's April edition recommending The Mountain Company's Upper Dolpo to Jomsom trek as one of their 10 Best Wilderness treks. Thanks Trek & Mountain and what a great magazine!

Extract from Trek & Mountain April edition:

1. Upper Dolpo, Nepal

One of Nepal's most remote and least inhabited regions.

Go with: The Mountain Company

When to go: Apr-May

How long: 29 days

Level: Strenuous

More info: www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Dolpo is the most remote and least inhabited region of Nepal, and the area has only been accessible to trekkers in the last 20 years. Upper Dolpo has been referred to as the last enclave of pure Tibetan culture, with the landscape, culture and Buddhist religion of the region more like Tibet in pre-Chinese times than the rest of Nepal. Situated between the Tibetan plateau and the Dhaulagiri Himalayan range, this region has a vast and rugged landscape inhabited by a hardy, enterprising folk who live in some of the highest villages of the world. The region is rich in wildlife and you might spot herds of blue sheep, musk deer, Himalayan fox, eagles, lammergeier and of course, the elusive snow leopard.

The Upper Dolpo to Jomsom trek, as run by The Mountain Company, forms part of the Great Himalayan Trail (GHT) and takes a route through a remote area very close to the Tibet border before walking out on the challenging trail to Jomsom in Mustang region. Highlights of the trek include crossing a number of high passes and enjoying the stunningly blue waters of Phoksumdo Lake, with the surrounding snow peaks of Kanjirowa Himalayan range all around.

Our Upper Dolpo to Jomsom trek led by Gary Pfisterer starting on April 29th 2012 is now guaranteed to run and there is currently availability, please get in touch with us soon if you would like to join this group.

Roland Hunter

www.themountaincompany.co.uk