Pachermo Kyajori Peak Climbing -30 days

On arrival to Nepal, we receive you at Kathmandu airport and drive to hotel. Spend free day is at leisure.

Kathmandu sightseeing tour and prepare for trekking/climbing.

We take 2 days to journey by road to the beginning of our trek. Singati lies in the mountainous district Dolakha of Janakpur Zone which is situated in the central Development Region of Nepal. Singati bazaar is 180 km from Kathmandu and about 30km east of the main Dolakha bazaar.

From Singati we take a predominantly rough off road track for approx. Trek 5 hours to Gongour Khola.

We are among temperate forests that are home to ferns, mosses and small orchids, as well as rhesus and langur monkeys that are often seen jumping across the trees. Crossing the river just downstream from the confluence of the Rolwaling Khola, we make a steep two-hour ascent to the village of Simigoan. The village is rich with terraces of wheat, barley and millet; and people busily tending fields and livestock to make a living for them. It is a pleasant camp on a sharp ridge at the top of the village offering superb sunset and sunrise views of Gauri Shankar.

A fairly solid day of walking up to the Rolwaling Valley passes through forests of birch, rhododendron and conifers. We enjoy our first glimpses of the rapid glacial blue waters that we follow to the source, and the house-sized boulders that are scattered in its path. Camp is beside Rolwaling Khola, providing another opportunity for a refreshing wash or to watch the many small water birds darting in and about the river.

Continuing on up through forest, we cross a swing bridge and trek high on the valley side before vast cliff faces that make up the northern valley wall. A wide gorge opens to our left and offers impressive views of the south face of Gauri Shankar for the first time. It is here that our Buddhist crew may build a cairn for good luck while we are in the mountains. As we approach the busy Sherpa village of Beding there are yak pastures at riverside and views of the fluted face of Chekigo at the head of the valley. The sturdy stone housing reflects the harsh winters the local people must endure.

Most residents of Rolwaling are Sherpa yak herders who are only able to grow potatoes and turnips. We have some appreciation of their hardy existence as we ascend the valley to the summer grazing settlement of Na. Trekking at an easy pace to ensure good acclimatisation, we make our way along an easy trail beside the river. The vegetation is mostly small shrubs, grasses and some juniper and birch. Our alpine views span out as we approach camp and we are fortunate to have them with us for the next three or four days before a change of scenery. Chobuje, Kang Nachugo, Chekigo, Bamongo, Dorje Phagmo to name a few. Na is the last substantial settlement before we reach Khumbu over the pass so we spend the afternoon in a relaxed environment familiarising ourselves with the climbing equipment and organising ourselves for the challenges ahead.

Depending on snow conditions, the walking to our lake camp should be relatively easy and a half days walk. The path is fairly level, curving to the east and leading towards the Trakarding Glacier. Two fine mountains feed the glacier at the head of the valley and may clearly be seen as we approach camp; Bigphera Go Shar (East) and Bigphera Go Nup (West). A ten minute walk from camp up the lateral moraine provides a spectacular view of Tso Rolpa; one of the largest glacial lakes in Nepal. Looking back we have a superb view of Kang Nachugo and a glimpse of Melungtse in Tibet.

A challenging day trek ascends and cross the moraine toward the pass. The weather may be quite changeable and the rocks on the moraine are often loose necessitating concentration and keeping a steady pace as a group. Camp is usually made near the base of the Drolambau Glacier with stunning views to the south and east in particular. Note - Our itinerary is totally flexible while crossing the pass and it may be influenced by many factors such as weather, glacier and snow conditions, and the progress of the group and crew/porters. Your leader will have complete control of setting the schedule in order to maintain safety for all members of the expedition and to achieve the trip objectives in the smoothest and most efficient

Short but challenging, the day is spent negotiating a route up through rubble and rock buttresses to a ledge, being a strategic position for ascending on to the Drolambau glacier. Some fixed ropes are usually required to ensure our route over the rock slabs is completely safe. Our camp is literally like an eagle’s nest, perched on a buttress from the rock slopes and an outlook across the entire valley below.

Today is considered an approach day to the pass as we travel along the Drolambu Glacier, putting ourselves in a good position to negotiate the pass tomorrow.

Again, the weather, snow and glacier conditions will play a large part in how difficult the route will be. Leaving the Trakarding Glacier behind, we climb up steadily through several rock and ice gullies to reach the snout of the Drolambau Glacier where we are treated with a superb new vista of mountains. They extend the full length of the Drolambau. Few of these peaks have been climbed, nor do they have a formal name, and they are not open to foreigners. It is one of the least accessible parts of the Nepal Himalaya. Tengi Ragi Tau and Pharchamo tower to our right and mark the gap to the pass; both are captivating in their form with their sheer ice and rock faces. We need to make a long, steady trek along the rock/snow Drolambau glacier and then up crevassed snow slopes to the pass. There are several sections that usually require some scrambling on rock and ice, and if necessary we will fix a rope as a handrail. Our staff will work closely with team members to make a safe passage for all. The pass achieved, we enjoy the thrill of where we are, sandwiched between two fabulous regions and mountain ranges. It is also the last views we will have to the west before descending to Khumbu. Care must be taken as we make a route down firstly through snow and then mainly loose rock and scree to the moraine plateau below. At base camp, we are able to pull out all our climbing gear; sort and check it, and rehearse and revise techniques we will use on the climb. Your guide will coordinate these activities to ensure everyone is completely conversant in procedures and correctly equipped. It will only be necessary to take personal gear for the climb with you. Any group gear, such as food, fuel and group climbing equipment/ropes etc will be carried up by some of our porters and staff. The remainder of gear will be stored at base camp where some of our staff will also stay until our return.

A very early starts as our plan is to summit and return to base in one day. We make our summit push from Teshi Laptsa camp, ascending the the broad north ridge on main rope at relatively easy angle. There are a couple of small ice walls to negotiate before reaching the narrow ridge below the summit. Some pitches are likely to be fixed. Views across the Khumbu valley and back down the Rolwaling are spectacular. We return to our high camp on Teshi Laptsa and if time permits we descend further off the glacier down the valley.

Heading now in the direction of the Kumbhu we take a leisurely and pleasant days trekking. There is the possibility of reaching Thame today, which will allow us an extra day on Kyajo Ri. Your leader may decide to amend the itinerary as suits group movement.

We descend the glacier and moraine to grassy meadows where yaks are often grazing and our first signs of civilisation for some days. Before us, the mountains of Thamserku, Kang Taiga and Ama Dablam form a spectacular horizon before us (eastward), whilst Teng Kangpoche and Kwangde Ri rise directly beside us to the south. It is only a short walk on to Thame, a large Sherpa village at the junction of the Bhote Khosi. Thame has the oldest and most respected gompa in Khumbu and is the birthplace of Tensing Norgay.

A long day to reach our base camp, we have now branched off from the main trekking trails and other trekking parties are rare in this area.

We have 7 days set aside for our attempt on Kyajo Ri. This is a semi technical peak, and we will spend some days setting camps and moving up and down before attempting the summit. Generally there are 2 camps on Kyajo Ri however this is exploratory style climbing so exactly where the camps will be pitched is unknown. We expect some pitches to be fixed and others to be climbed alpine style on main rope. The terrain steepens near the summit (which is quite small) with exposure on all sides. The panoramic views from the top are sensational with all the major peaks in the Everest National park clearly visible. We expect to spend a 2nd night in C2 after our summit and return to BC the following day.

Our program is somewhat flexible for the return journey to Lukla, in that we should have some spare time available to take a leisurely pace and camp where we please. Namche is the principal town in Khumbu, and it is an opportunity to explore the markets and watch the activity. We may stop here, in a lodge above the town, or continue on our way, down valley to Monjo.

We descend the slopes of Namche to the Dudh Kosi joining the main trail to follow at riverside through numerous villages to Phakding. On crossing the bridge, we trek a short distance up and around, to the broad flat spur that Lukla lies upon. We set up camp on the green slopes at the lower end of the runway. The last night is always memorable for an end of trip celebration with all the crew and porters.

This morning, fingers crossed, we fly by Twin Otter aircraft to Kathmandu and transfer to Hotel. The remainder of the day is at leisure to rest, relax or explore and shop in the town.

Spend free day doing shopping in Kathmandu. Sightseeing tours to Patan and Bhaktpur durbar square.

The trip concludes in Kathmandu after breakfast with a transfer to the airport.