© Daniel Allen
Until recently, what little the outside world knew of Dolpa was gleaned from artistic and spiritual accounts from early visitors. Peter Matthiessen’s meditative book ‘The Snow Leopard’ and Eric Valli’s stunning movie ‘Himalaya (Caravan)’ only added to the allure of this unknown land. The region was only opened to foreigners in 1989, and receives a fraction of the visitors thronging other parts of Nepal. With more trekking agencies venturing into Inner Dolpo – allowing access beyond Phoksundo Lake to the 800-year-old Shey Gompa – a truly remarkable natural and cultural experience is there for the taking (even in the monsoon!). Look out for views of mighty Dhaulagiri (8167m), once thought to be the highest mountain in the world.
The greener, southern fringes of Dolpa, the largest district in Nepal, are distinctly Hindu. But venture north past the ring of high passes intoarid Inner Dolpo, and you will encounter not only Tibetan Buddhists, but also practitioners of the ancient Bön religion, extant in just two villages. The spirituality of Dolpa is visible everywhere – legend says Dolpa is a Beyul, one of the “hidden valleys” created by Guru Rinpoche as a refuge for those of exceptionally pure mind. Today, its northern reaches are settled by Rokpa farmers and Drokpa nomads from Tibet, who are cut off from the rest of Nepal by snow for most of the year. They live in some of the highest inhabited villages on Earth, nestling amongst mountains of stark, ascetic beauty.
In such barren terrain, the spectacle of Nepal’s deepest lake, Phoksundo, is almost beyond describing. Locals believe Phoksundo was formed when a spiteful demonness flooded a village for revealing her whereabouts to the saint Padmasambhava. The surreal sight of the lake, which hosts no aquatic life and appears to fluctuate between a turquoise and ultramarine hue – appears to substantiate the legend. If you follow in the footsteps of generations of nomads, look out for the remains of the ill-fated village below the lake’s surface.
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In addition to capacity building of local service providers like teahouse owners, guides and porters etc., the GHT Development Programme is investing in infrastructure development in the countries' emerging trekking destinations in East and West Nepal.
A new trekking trail package named ‘The Guerrilla Trek’ has recently been launched, including the release of a Guerrilla Trekking Guide book and trekking map.The book written by Alonzo Lyons retraces the path adopted by the Maoist guerrillas starting from Beni in Myagdi District, t...
BY FRANKIE TAGGART, AFP, September 2012 UPPER DOLPA, Nepal - The clansmen and monks of the mystical land of Upper Dolpa first gathered eight centuries ago to pray, feast, fight over property and vie for the title of fastest horseman in the Himalayas.
55-year old German Gerda Pauler embarked on an epic journey on the Upper Great Himalaya Trail to raise awareness and funds for the Nepalese NGO Autism Care Nepal, an active organisation supporting parents of autistic children in Nepal.
In late August, we sent Nepali photographer Samir Jung Thapa to Dolpa to document Shey Festival, an event that is celebrated only every twelve years in the year of the Dragon. Samir brought us incredible pictures of one of the most special cultural happenings on earth and his trek around t...
Treks in this Region
- The highest mountain of the region is Churen Himal with 7,381 meters
- The majority of Dolpa lies behind the rain shadow of the Dhaulagiri Himal (range) and is high altitude desert, strongly reminiscent of Tibet.
- 3,555 km2 of Dolpa has been set aside as Shey-Phoksundo National Park. The park shelters blue sheep, Himalayan black bear, leopards, wolves and the elusive snow leopard – of which there is a trek of the same name.
- Overlooking the Phoksundo Lake is the Pal Sentan Thasoon Chholing Gompa, a Bön-po Gompa said to have been built 60 generations ago.
- Dolpa is well known for: the movie ‘Himalaya‘, the stunning, turquoise Phoksundo lake, Shey Gompa, said to be 800 years old and its desert like Tibetan scenery
- From May 15 until June 15 it is yarchagumba season in Dolpa. During this period people all over Dolpa leave their house to collect yarchagumba, a unique combination of a fungus and a caterpillar which only grows in certain areas above 3500 meters and is in high demand in countries like Japan and Malaysia for its medicinal qualities. Even schools close during this time! Besides, many people from surrounding districts enter the village to collect this precious species. They get about US$ 1 for each yarchagumba, but it is worth far more in Japan, China and Malaysia.