" A real wilderness trek, no other groups, a route I would like to do myself ", enthused Ang Zangbu, managing director of Highland Sherpa.
My plan was to follow the traditional approach march for Everest expeditions along the trade route from the roadhead at Jiri for two days before branching off northwards up the Likhu Khola Valley through the seldom visited Sherpa villages of Gumdel and Charma to reach the remote yak pastures of Gyajo nestling at the foot of the ice-fall tumbling from the sacred summit of Numbur.
Crossing the Gyajo La, a high pass, would then gain the extensive tundra at Thare Teng in an isolated valleyhead dominated by the 6000 metre peaks of Chugimago and Ramdung Go ( one of Nepal's so-called " Trekking" Peaks " ). The normal approach to these peaks is from the north via the remote and mysterious Rolwaling Valley ( the rumoured abode of the legendary yeti ) and it was my intention to cross a glaciated pass, un-named on my map, that had traditionally been used by local Sherpas to bring yaks from Beding, the main village in the Rolwaling Valley, across the mountains to Charma and Gumdel.
 Mount Numbur on ascent to Gyajo La |
Nima Lakpa Sherpa, 26, was once again to be my guide and sirdar. It was now ten years since he had been recruited on my previous journey through the Rolwaling Valley as a porter on his very first trek. Also in my trekking crew from Nima's home village of Tashinam were Mingma Sherpa, 20, cook ( who had been with me on Tilman's Pass two years before ), Pema Sherpa, 19, kitchenboy, and Nima's nephew, Lakpa Sherpa, 18, one of our four porters. ( Darwa Sherpa, 18, Chandra Bahadur Lama, 18, and his uncle, Gur Bahadur Tamang, 35, were the other three ).
I had no descriptions of my proposed route nor had Highland Sherpa any guide with experience of the area however Nima was to have the assistance of Sunam Sherpa, 20, a trainee sirdar, from Gumdel, whose father had once crossed the pass to buy yaks in Beding.
From Jiri the well-trodden, switchback route across the Deorali Pass leads to the large, farming village of Bhandar sprawled around a wide amphitheatre. A long, high-level traverse along steep, terraced hillsides, with fine views down to the sparkling waters of the Likhu Khola then brought us to the substantial, stone-built, three-storied, slate-roofed houses of Gumdel where we met Sunam's father Gelu.
It had been forty years since Gelu had made his journey to Beding and his recollections of the route were sketchy. He was pessimistic about our chances. A previous trekking group had failed to find a way to Gyajo through the extensive jungle beyond Charma and Gelu was convinced that we also would get lost.
Next day we continued up the steep-sided, forested valley through the picturesque village of Kyama. In the flag-stoned farmyards the grain was being thrashed manually with long-handled, wooden flails. On the horizon, beneath clear, azure skies, the prominent cone of Numbur and its satellite peaks provided a spectacular backdrop. Late in the afternoon a steep climb on a narrow, tortuous path winding up through precipitous rock faces was followed by a gradual gradient across a plateau into Charma - the highest settlement in the area - where I was escorted into town by a host of excited schoolchildren intrigued by their first sight of a westerner.
 Sherpani in Charma
Village |
In Charma I visited the home of my friend Ang Jangbu Sherpa, nephew of Ang Zangbu, who had been my sirdar on my first trek, the classic Annapurna Circuit. From this remote, medieval village in Solu Khumbu, Jangbu had progressed to a management post in a trekking office in Kathmandu before winning a " green card " for the USA where he was now working " in computers ".
Beyond Charma we plunged into dense jungle with old, lichen-covered, fir trees and occasional kharkas ( yak pastures ) with rudimentary shelters. From a col we gained a view up the steep-sided, V-shaped valley to the white cone of Numbur rising above a plethora of interlocking spurs. The muddy, undulating path climbed steadily through the forest above the rushing waters of the Likhu Khola, confined in its gorge, to the larger kharka at Bethangding where we encamped for the night.
Above Bethangding the path deteriorated into a multiplicity of small, faint trails and it was only thanks to Nima's route finding skills, gained as a young " yak-boy ", that we succeeded in progressing through the jungle to emerge at the large clearing of Bakangdingma with a splendid outlook over pine forests to the surrounding snow peaks.
 Mount Numbur from Upper Likhu Khola Valley |
Shortly thereafter we climbed above the tree-line into the upper Likhu Khola Valley - a beautiful, himalayan valley enclosed by a great sweep of high rock and snow peaks - to pitch our tents in the yak pastures of Gyajo in a spectacular location beneath the moraine wall of the Zurmacher Glacier.
Accompanied by Darwa, I walked to the head of the lateral moraine then climbed to a ridgetop to command a superb panorama of a long, ice-bound ridge extending from Numbur around the northern skyline and encompassing vast summit snowfields, hanging glaciers, ice-falls, and avalanche fans.
An arduous, four hour climb the following morning to the 4900 metre high Gyajo La was alleviated by frequent stops to admire the increasingly fine outlook on Numbur and finally rewarded by a breathtaking, bird's-eye view from the cairned col of our objective of Thare Teng far below ensconced beneath Ramdung Go and Chugimago.
A much steeper descent on the far side over rough, loose scree rapidly brought us to the banks of the Nupenobug Khola where we stopped for the night. It was then only a short haul in the morning to reach the broad, flat tundra at Thare Teng and a magnificent camp site encircled by a great ring of jagged, rocky aretes and snow peaks.
With Darwa I headed up the ablation valley beneath the high moraine-wall of the long Bigphero Lo Glacier. At the head of the wall was a large amphitheatre enclosed by sheer rock faces and hanging glaciers. Towards the back we spotted a small lake - the target of our reconaissance - a site for the high camp necessary for a crossing into Rolwaling. The pass itself remained out of our view behind a spur. However Nima had gone ahead of us and later reported that above the lake crevassed snowfields led up to the pass. The kitbag holding our climbing gear was opened and we made preparations for crossing the pass.
The snow started during the night and continued relentlessly all day and all the next night - a total of some 30 hours - a white carpet over two feet deep blanketed the tundra and surrounding hillsides - a white mist shrouded the mountains.
 Mount Chugimago from camp at Thare Teng |
Amid clearing skies Nima and Sunam set off to try to break a trail to high camp but soon returned. " Sakdaina! ", ( not possible ) they announced. Later in the day the clouds cleared completely and in a dazzling snowscape I climbed with Nima through the deep soft snow to a vantage point above our campsite. At the head of the glacier towered the imposing cone of Mt. Bigphero-Go-Nup while along the valley high snowfields swept up from Liu Kharka to the level, summit ridge of Ramdung. To the south Gyajo La was also coated in white. Crossing into Rolwaling was out of the question. As the Sherpas say: " Some, the Gods let pass, others they don't ". We had most definitely been turned away!
That evening Bigphero-Go-Nup flamed red in the rays of the setting sun while Chugimago gleamed marble-white in the sunrise as we retreated next morning from Thare Teng across the crusted snow and headed down the Nupenobug Khola.
 Nupenobug Khola Valley |
Two days later we emerged from dense jungle onto open slopes high above the Likhu Khola with a view across to Charma perched on its plateau. Stopping in Kyama for lunch at the house of the village headman we learned that the local name for the pass to Rolwaling was the Nangma Gegu La.
Continuing back to Gumdel we confounded Gelu's expectations that we would get lost in the jungle. He retained the advantage however - he had crossed the Nangma Gegu La into Rolwaling - we had not.
Ang Zangbu's prediction on the other hand proved correct. In our 15 days circuit from Bhandar to Thare Teng we had met no other groups or indeed any evidence of any previous groups - no dirty lunch places strewn with plastic bags or empty cans, no spoilt campsites with improperly filled toilets or grease pits, no trail of paper tissues, chocolate wrappers or other detritus typical of all popular trekking and climbing routes. We had enjoyed our journey through the pristine wilderness. Hopefully any future groups will also leave no trace of their passage.
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