Detailed Itinerary

• Day 1

  Arrival in Kathmandu

  Meals: D
  Upon arrival in Kathmandu (1300m), you will be met by Thamserku representative and transferred to hotel.

  Meals: D
• Day 2

  Sightseeing in Kathmandu
  The program will be - the Patan and Bhaktapur Durbar Square monuments with their wooden pagoda-temples, the Boudhanath or Swoyambhunath’s Buddhist sanctuaries and Pashupatinath Hinduist one where the cremations occur, not to speak of the many temples spread about along the crowded and busy streets of the antique city. Hotel.
• Day 3

  Kathmandu - Biratnagar - Basantapur (2250m)

  Meals: BLD
  1 hours Twin Otter flight Kathmandu - Biratnagar, a Terai town near the border between India and Sikkim. From here we drive to 100km long track which climbs over the first hills. We will stop at Basantapur, the far end of the track, after a minimum of 5 hours, so we usually arrive in the night.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 4

  Basantapur - Chauki (2650m) – 4/5 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Our caravans are made a day before and today morning under the Sirdar’s order. An important caravan, because we have to carry 22 days long autonomy. The first 3 days, the trail goes on a more or less wide ridge with super views of Makalu and Kangchenjunga ranges. Several tiny villages to be crossed: Tute, Dhorpani (2750m), Deorali and Chauki. Good campsite with Makalu overlooking the ridge.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 5

  Chauki - Gupa Pokhari (2870m) – 3/4 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Most of the day’s hike is along the ridge with super views of Makalu (8481m), Chamlang (7317m), Kangch and Jannu. Few villages as Manglabari and Lama Pokhari. Campsite about 10 minutes away from Gupa Pokhari on the ridge. The view from the site is one of the best we can have during all the trek, especially the sunset over the Kangchenjunga.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 6

  Gupa Pokhari - Nesum (1460m) – 5/6 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  A 1h walk up to a high point, Deorali Serkabuje (2870m). From here the trail goes down for around 2100m height difference and stop at Nesum. We progressively leave the dense forest for rice fields. Kalopani, Gorga, and Kyantrapati are nice villages we pass through as we walk with triangular Jannu massif in front of us. We may see Suketar airport, our last trek point, perched on the other valley side.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 7

  Nesum - Doban (730m) - Mitlung (1010m) – 5/6 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  As we make a long zigzag descent to Doban, we pass rice fields, buffaloes and cob houses. We will cross two suspension bridges and arrive on the Tamur Kosi left bank.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 8

  Mitlung - Chirwa (1360m) – 4/5 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Always alongside the Tamur gorge, sometimes so narrow that its rumbling water refrains us from talking. Today is a tiring hike along unstable slopes after Sinwa. A quite short day conditioned by the scarcity of campsites as we experience humid temperature.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 9

  Chirwa - Sakathum (1680m) – 4 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  From Chirwa the trail starts getting better. We will go past several suspension bridges, especially over the Simbua Khola, a torrent which springs up on the Kanchenjunga south face. The valley is getting more deep sided. Campsite in front of a teashop near the Ghunsa Khola, the river we will walk alongside till its spring. We get the impressive views of Ghunsa Khola gorges that we have to climb the day after. In the afternoon we can have an optional walk up to Sakathum high village.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 10

  Sakathum - Amjilassa (2550m) – 4/5 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  We will have a feeling of leaving for the unknown while entering the deep gorge. After a 1h balcony trail along the riverbed, the trail steeply climbs till Ghaiya Bari (2210m), a perched village. Then the balcony path goes on a perched and hanged trail across a breathtaking slope. We need to be careful here although the trail is horizontal and We will arrive at Amjilassa.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 11

  Amjilassa - Gyabla camp (2760m) – 3/4 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Today we will not be coming across any villages and mostly forests along the route. It is said that during the monsoon, the bear lives in, searching food in these forests we have to cross out. After a way down from Amjilassa to the riverside, we will be walking for about 2 hours alongside its rumbling water. In the afternoon we walk up to Gyabla, a Tibetan village. The atmosphere starts changing. As we move further up we will notice the humid weather is gone and begin to feel the cold weather and in the upper valley, we can see the first snow covered peaks.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 12

  Gyabla camp - Ghunsa (3470m) – 4/5 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Today, we make an easy way up through the forest and alongside Ghunsa River. Behind prayer flags bedecked big rock, making a natural entrance, a new landscape stands out and we enter the Kangchenjunga area. We will go pass a rhododendron forest covered nice valley before arriving at Phere, a Tibetan village where we visit the two Gompa. The trail continues along irrigation canals, well kept by the villagers, amidst larch and trees. Soon Ghunsa, a nice Tibetan village, appears. We will camp at the yak pasture. Visit of an old temple, built by monks from Tibet at the XVII-XVIIIth century, on the way out of the village.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 13

  Ghunsa - Khambachen (4100m) – 4 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  We walk for about 2 hours alongside the left bank, on an easy trail across a nice conifer trees forest. We will cross the river on a wooden bridge (3780m) from where the trail starts to climb. At around 4100m, it’s a dangerous passage across an exposed part where the rocks keep falling. Soon the Jannu appears! Arrival at Khambachen village, inhabited only during the good season. Sunset over the vertiginous Jannu north face (7710m), the mysterious terror peak, a central pole of the eastern Nepal Limbus’ cosmologic world.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 14

  Khambachen - Lhonak (4750m) – 4/5 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Easy walk across pastures as we approach again the frontal moraine of Kanchenjunga glacier. The trail is marked by stone cairns put here by yak breeders. We go pass big waterfalls, sometimes with snow bridges to cross. At Ramtang, a Tibetan high pasture camp, we have a rest. A short walk before reaching Lhonak beautiful pastures side of a huge glacier. It gets very cold in the night with the temperature going down to -20 degrees

  Meals: BLD
• Day 15

  Lhonak - Pang Pema (5120m) – Lhonak – 6/7 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Today we walk an easy way staying towards the right side of the Kanchenjunga glacier. A 3h 30 walk for reaching Pang Pema, base camp for the Kanchenjunga expeditions. At the bend of the Kanchenjunga huge north glacial cirque, we enter the sacred universe of the world third summit, the gigantic north ice wall with step glaciers. We will take lunch at Pang Pema. An optional climb of a hill towering Pang Pema (1h go and back), for a view of Jinsen Ri (7483m), between Nepal, Sikkim, and Tibet. We return back to Lhonak.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 16

  Lhonak - Khambachen - Ghunsa (3470m) – 6 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  We take our way down on a trail we have already used. We arrive at Ghunsa during the afternoon.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 17

  Ghunsa - Seleley camp (4210m). 3h30.

  Meals: BLD
  At first, we cross a moss covered forest giving a strange atmosphere. At around 3950m, we will go past a small clearing at Tamo La pass level. The view is progressive and gets clearer and we reach Selele pass (4180m). Half an hour later, we settle our camp on a flat.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 18

  Seleley camp - Sinion la (4600m) - Mirgin la (4620m) - Tseram (3900m) 5 hrs walk.

  Meals: BLD
  Today we go on the other hillside. Crossing 2 passes: the Sinion La and the Mirgin La, marked by many prayer flags. A steep descent to the bottom of the valley where we settle our camp at Tseram. We don’t have Lapsang La (5140m) crossing for many reasons: the way down that pass to the small lake at the foot of the moraines, a 300m height difference, is very hard, even dangerous for the porters across a huge scree. What’s more, the view going down from the Mirgin La is far more beautiful.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 19

  Tseram - Ramche (4460m) - Oktang (4800m) – Ramche – 5 Hrs Walk

  Meals: BLD
  An easy walk till Lapsang (the Lapsang La pass down point) for about 2 hours from where we reach between the frontal moraine and the lateral one of the Yalung glacier, we reach in 45 minutes a two huts hamlet: Ramche. Porters will stop here. We walk for one and half hour of easy walk up along the pasture delimited by the lateral moraine till Oktang. We arrive at the Kanchenjunga mineral universe with the gigantic Yalung glacier. At a bend, we will see the 5 heads a sacred crown of the Kanchenjunga. The last meters are still left alone out of respect for the deity which is given celebration every year by Sikkim inhabitants. We take an hour way down back to Ramche with a generally a tremendous sunset over a majestic mountains cirque.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 20

  Ramche - Tseram - Torontan (3000m) – 5 Hrs Walk

  Meals: BLD
  Back to Lapsang, then way down the ablation zone of Yalung glacier, for reaching the humid pastures of Yalung and Tseram. The trail goes across a forest from here. We camp at Torontan, right bank of the Simbua Khola. In the night, the temperature will get milder.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 21

  Torontan - Lamite Bhanjyang (3420m) - Omje Khola Camp (2340m) – 4/5 Hrs Walk

  Meals: BLD
  Crossing a wooden bridge, we go on to the right bank of the Simbua Khola, across bamboo forests. An about 500m mountain ascent to reach the Lamite pass (3420m) in 2h, where we have a nice view of Jannu and Kangchenjunga. We walk down to down to Chittre.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 22

  Omje Khola Camp - Yamphudin (1710m) - Mamankhe (1810m) -5 Hrs Walk

  Meals: BLD
  Today we cross the Omje Khola on a shaky wooden bridge. A short way up till the Dubi Bhanjyang pass at 2360m. Then a steep walk down to the bottom of the Kabeli Khola valley. Arrival at Yamphudin village, called Yangkhutang by the Tibetans. A village inhabited by Sherpas, Tibetans, and Gurungs. An up and down balcony path leads us to Mamankhe nice village. On the way, we can use a real suspension bridge. Those who are too much impressed may avoid it while going down to the bottom of the thalweg and backing up!

  Meals: BLD
• Day 23

  Mamankhe – Bhanjyang (2160m) – 5/6 Hrs Walk

  Meals: BLD
  From Manankhe, the trail goes down to a suspension bridge (1550m) from where we take a steep ascentto Phonpe (1880m). We get to see the Jannu mountain looming up above the skyline from where a balcony trail goes down easily to Yangprang (1650m). We change direction for a new climb. At Phun Phun (1820m) we can see now Kanchenjunga summits. We continue a long crossing through a tropical forest till Keswa. At the level of Bhanjyang village (which means pass in local language), we settle the camp on a panoramic viewpoint.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 24

  Bhanjyang - Lali Kharka (2250m) – 4 Hrs Walk

  Meals: BLD
  A 1h 30 long way down to the bottom of the Pha Khola valley (1430m). On the way, we will visit a very nice village called Khunjari. Terraced rice fields stretch away endlessly. Then the trail goes up again on the opposite hillside as we pass through different villages as Pokhara, Shimu, Thembewa. Camp at the forest trees line, near a rudimentary tea shop.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 25

  Lali kharka - Suketar (2400m) – 2/3 hrs walk

  Meals: BLD
  Our last day trekking through a forest to a kind of pass at around 2600m. Again the Kanchenjunga snow-covered summits tower above the other peaks. Trees are replaced by pastures and soon we can see Suketar airport. Camp in the airport premises. Those who want may go down to Taplejung (1h way down, 1h 30 backup). We enjoy our last day with our Nepali staff that will leave us tomorrow.

  Meals: BLD
• Day 26

  Fly back to Kathmandu

  Meals: B
  The flight back to Kathmandu takes about 50 minutes depending on the weather condition. Upon arrival, you will be met by Thamserku representative at the domestic airport and transfer you to the hotel.

  Meals: B
• Day 27

  Free day in Kathmandu

  Meals: BD
  You can enjoy your day after the long trek drinking beer or stroll around Thamel. In the evening you will be transferred to Le Sherpa Restaurant for Dinner.

  Meals: BD
• Day 28

  Final departure
  As per your flight time, you will be transferred to the airport.

Accommodation