Trip report for Dhaulagiri Circuit May '08 led by Roland Hunter

Roland led a reconnaissance trek around the Dhaulagiri Circuit in late April 2008. We wrote briefly about this trek in our Blog post TMC pre-monsoon ‘08, however since then we have received a lot of interest with people asking for more information. Therefore, we are now writing a full Trip Report that hopefully will answer some of these questions about the Dhaulagiri Circuit trek. This trek has the reputation for being one of the most difficult in Nepal.

Photo: terraced fields near Muri village

Having completed the Dhaulagiri Circuit with a group last year I thought that it was one of the best that I have done in the Himalayas.

This trek visits a remote area where there are few other trekkers, this is becoming increasingly rare in Nepal these days. At the beginning of the trek the trail passes through beautiful Gurung villages with views of the Dhaulagiri massif, then above these villages it follows a rough trail to the Italian BC. Above Italian BC the trek is a an alpine experience walking along moraine covered glaciers to the main Dhaulalgiri BC then over the French pass to the beautiful Hidden Valley. The toughest day is crossing the Dhampus pass, with a long traverse on icy slopes before finally descending to Marpha and the busy trails of the Annapurna Circuit.

Photo: villagers threshing wheat

Photo: Chonbarden gorge

I have discussed the main challenges of the Dhaulagiri Circuit and the ways we organise this trek to minimise these risks: 

1) Lack of sufficient acclimatisation as a result of a rapid ascent between Italian BC (3,660m) and Dhaulagiri BC (4,700m) and from there to Hidden Valley (5,050m). Most trekking groups on “standard” itineraries go from Italian BC to Dhaulagiri BC in one day, this is a 1000m increase in altitude is significantly more than the recommended increase in altitude gain per day of 300 to 500m! The Mountain Company has developed our itinerary to include two extra nights between Italian and Dhaulagiri BC. 

First of all we spend two nights at Italian BC then move up to spend the night at French BC at 3,870m (placement of the camp is important as there is some risk of rockfall). The next day we move to Glacier camp and spend the night at 4,200m, then continue to the main Dhaulagiri BC the following day. In the Hidden Valley one camps at over 5,000m, if anyone gets altitude sickness you are in a potentially serious situation because you can only get to a lower altitude by climbing up over high passes. To minimise the risk of altitude sickness in the Hidden Valley we recommend groups spend three nights at Dhaulagiri BC, this combined with the cumulative benefits of trekking slowly from Italian BC means people should be well acclimatised for the Hidden Valley. However, it is important that the leader carefully monitors the trekkers and crew and to turn people back if not sufficiently acclimatised. 

2) Sadly there are still porters and crew working on the Dhaulagiri Circuit.trek with inadequate equipment. On many other treks in Nepal the crew can find shelter along the way so can survive without the right gear (of course still not right), however on the Dhaulagiri Circuit there are no porter shelters above Italian BC. It is essential they are provided with porter tents, walking boots, sunglasses, down (insulated) jackets, wind & waterproof jackets & trousers, gloves, hats etc. This is the regular gear recommended by the International Porter Protection Group (IPPG) in their five guidelines for all treks, take a look at their website at http://www.ippg.net/guidelines In addition to this equipment it is critical for all porters to be issued with crampons. After the descent from Dhampus pass there is a long traverse for over 3 hours on snow and ice slopes. From previous experience the Nepalese made crampons are not sufficient so at The Mountain Company we provide Edelrid 6 point crampons to all of our trek crew

Photo: Mount Dhaulagiri

Photo: Hidden Valley

Photo: approaching Dhampus pass

3) There is a risk of the French or Dhampus pass being blocked by snow and impassable for a trekking party. You can minimise this risk by selecting the optimal time of year to undertake this trek. In my view there are two times of year when you have a reasonable chance of completing this trek: late April and mid October. There are advantages & disadvantage of both of these dates, during the pre monsoon season the temperatures are warmer meaning the night in the Hidden Valley will be more comfortable for trekkers & crew. More importantly it means that the snowline is higher and with the ground temperature warmer any fresh snow is likely to melt off quite fast. 

In post monsoon season, by the time you cross the passes in/out of Hidden Valley the temperatures will be dropping as winter approaches. If there are early storms the snows will most likely block the passes for a while. The main advantage of post monsoon is that the weather tends to be more stable with better views of the mountains and normally settled sunny conditions. 

In the pre monsoon season there is often haze lower down and at higher altitudes clouds usually build up each day followed by afternoon convective precipitation. However the clouds usually clear over night to reveal blue skies by the morning. Also there are likely to be more groups undertaking this trek in the post monsoon season so there will be other trekkers around, however it will be much quieter than most of the other trekking destinations in Nepal. In May ’08 during the whole trek we only met one other group of 5 or so people along the way and then a few expeditions at BC.

4) If you have only been trekking in the Everest or Annapurna regions with their well constructed trails and bridges then you will find the Dhaulagiri Circuit trail far more challenging! There is one section before Boghara village where the trail is very exposed with rope to pull yourself up a rock slab! However, it is possible to walk around this difficult section by taking a high route on a spur above but even here the trail is exposed and could be slippery on a wet day. 

 After Italian BC there is a very steep section down the lateral moraine onto the glacier. It is best to fix some rope at this point to secure the descent especially for the porters. There are a number of other sections where the trail crosses landslide zones. Due to the low numbers of trekkers and locals walking the trail it is unlikely repairs would be made very quickly after a fresh slide. You should be prepared for adventurous scrambling as well as having a rope handy just in case required! From Boghara village the bridges are of a basic construction often a just tree trunk over a river.

In summary.... without doubt Dhaulagiri Circuit is one of the great Himalayan treks. Hopefully this trip report explains the main challenges involved and the way The Mountain Company organises the planning and logistics to increase the chance of safely completing the trek. George, one of the members of our trek last year, summarises his experience on the Dhaulalgiri Circuit: "Dhaulagiri was great. The days from arrival at base camp, over Hidden Valley, and down to Marpha were outstanding and I will always remember them. Thanks very much for arranging it. It was all quite an adventure." George Muir, Dhaulagiri Circuit May 2008

The Mountain Company is planning to organise Dhaulagiri Circuit in October 2010 with Roland leading the trek again. Please get in touch with us if you are interested in joining this trek or if you have any questions.

Roland Hunter

www.themountaincompany.co.uk

Bhutan government cancel planned daily rate increase for 2009

The Bhutanese government has recently decided not to go head with its planned increase in the daily rate for 2009 from US$200 per night to US$250. Furthermore, they have introduced a US$20 per night discount for visits longer than 8 days. The Mountain Company will be reducing all our Bhutan holidays to reflect the new daily rates. Why not take advantage of these discounts to join our epic Lunana Snowman trek in September/ October 2009?

Everest Rocks DVD documentary

In October 2007 The Mountain Company organised the Everest Rocks trek for the Love Hope Strength Foundation. To find out more about this trek take a look at the Everest Rocks website

At the end of 2008 the Love Hope Strength Foundation released a superb DVD documenting their trek, I have just got around to watching the DVD and can highly recommend it. I have copied the description of the Everest Rocks DVD below from the Love Hope Strength Foundation site:

"Two times cancer survivor and musician mike peters (the alarm) along with fellow musicians (glenn tillbrook of squeeze, slim jim phantom of the stray cats, cy curnin and jamie west-oram of the fixx, and nick harper) , cancer survivors, everest summiteers and trekkers go on a once in a lifetime journey to Mt Everest. They are on a quest to raise money for a local cancer hospital in Nepal and set the Guinness Book of World records for the highest concert on land. Proceeds from Everest Rocks purchased the first mammography machine and first internal radiation machines for the country of Nepal." Love Hope Strength Foundation

Trip report for Manaslu Circuit led by Mike Farris in October '08

Mike Farris led a group for The Mountain Company on the Manaslu Circuit in October '08. This was the third time that we have organised this trek, previous groups successfully completed the Manaslu Circuit trek in October '07 and April '08. One advantage of running the same a trek a number of times is that we build up cumulative knowledge and experience that can be used for planning future treks. For all western led treks we have written day by day Trek Leader Notes so that a leader who has not previously done the trek can tap into our cumulative experience. After a trek each western leader will submit their Trip Report to The Mountain Company, after reading this we will update the Trek Leader's Notes for any lessons learnt or changes in the route etc. 

Roland met up with the Manaslu group on their return to Kathmandu and by all accounts the trek was very enjoyable with everyone successfully crossing the Larkya La pass. One point forward for future groups on the Manaslu Circuit is that there are some noisy dogs at night in Lho, Samagaon and Samdo so bring along ear plugs! Although this was not an issue for the Manaslu Circuit group in April....

You might be interested to hear that Mike Farris has recently finished writing his book about altitude & acclimatisation called The Altitude Experience. I recently read this book and can highly recommend it if you are thinking of trekking or climbing at altitude. Mike combines his knowledge of climbing to extreme altitude on expeditions to K2, Broad Peak and Gasherbrum 2 with being a Professor or Biology to produce a highly informative and enjoyable book.

The Mountain Company is planning to run the Manaslu Circuit trek in October '09, please get in touch if you are interested in joining the group.

Trip report for Upper Mustang trek led by Alan Ward in September '08

Photo: Upper Mustang

In September '08 Alan Ward led a group for The Mountain Company to Upper Mustang in Nepal. I have copied Alan's description of this fascinating region below:

"The Kingdom of Mustang is located at the northern end of the Kali Ghandaki Valley, the world’s deepest gorge which, at it’s southern end lies between the spectacular peaks of the Niligiri Range (7,055m – 7,134m) and Dhaulagiri (8,167m). At an average altitude of 4,000m the Kingdom is geologically and culturally part of the Tibetan Plateau and has an arid and dry landscape with colourful rock formations containing thousands of long abandoned cave dwellings. Trekking groups were first allowed into this restricted area in 1992 with the government charging for special area permits. In recent years, only about 1,000 visitors reach Lo Manthang, the capital and this has resulted in the Tibetan culture being largely undisturbed. The trekking routes were used by salt caravans crossing from Tibet into Nepal and settlements are few and far between. Mustang became an independent kingdom in 1380 and the current royal family can trace their lineage back to this date. During the 1960’s, the Tibetan Khampa guerillas, trained and funded by the CIA, used Mustang as their stronghold against the Chinese." 

The highlight of the trek is visiting Lo Manthang, the capital of Upper Mustang, as described below by Alan: "Everyone was looking forward to reaching Lo Manthang, capital of Mustang, the last forbidden kingdom. Crossing a level plain to the last climb up to the Lho La (3,950m) was a relief to all as we finally saw Lo Manthang beyond the cairn and prayer flags at the pass. Before long we were enjoying lunch at the Hotel Mystique, our lodge and camp site for two nights. Our camp site was just in front of the lodge and looked eastwards towards the colourful Thakla Danda and Rijopuwa Danda mountain ranges. Our tour didn't take too long as Lo Manthang isn't a large settlement but we found two gompas and the teaching school interesting. During the afternoon we were granted a royal audience with the King of Mustang. Being in Lo Manthnag was like going back in time. The only water supply seemed to be in the main square where women were washing clothese and men were filling water containers before disappearing down narrow alleyways to houses beyond the square. The afternoon was spent at leisure with some of the group relaxing in camp whilst others continued wandering around the walled city." 

The Mountain Company is planning on organising another Upper Mustang trek in September '09, please get in touch if you are interested in joining the group. For more information please take a look at the Upper Mustang webpage

Everest Base Camp!!

Photo: Islamic Relief group at Everest BC

Congratulations to the team from the Islamic Relief who successfully trekked to Everest BC and Kalapathar on December 1st. They raised a large amount of money for water projects in developing countries, so well done to everyone involved! With increasing numbers of trekker visiting the Khumbu during the peak trekking month of October, my top tip is to go later in the year at the end of November and into December . The weather is normally stable at this time of year with sunny days and there are far fewer trekkers around. In fact from speaking to The Mountain Company's October Everest BC group I am convinced that it was colder in Gorakshep in October than late November....

Mera Peak summit! Trip report for expedition led by Roland in November '08

Photo: Mera Peak summit November 2008

Congratulations to the Mera Peak team who summitted on November 16th '08! We used the same itinerary as last year following the trail south of Lukla through the interesting villages of the Solu Khumbu and over the passes via the Panch Pokhari (five holy lakes) before joining the traditional Zatra La route at Kote. This itinerary is longer than walking in via the Zatra La, however this gives everyone the opportunity to increase their fitness levels and gain better acclimatisation before attempting Mera Peak at over 6,400m. It is for this reason that The Mountain Company has one of the best summit records. 

We also believe that November is the optimum time of year to climb Mera Peak, the weather is usually stable with sun and blue skies. Also there are far fewer groups tackling Mera Peak in November compared to October. This is especially important at High Camp where there is limited space. Roland will be leading the Mera Peak expedition in November 2009, so please get in touch soon if you are interested in joining him. For further information please take a look at the Mera Peak page on our website, you can also download the Trip Dossier and view our photo gallery from there.