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| First day : From Uttare to Chewa |
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| Here we go ! After a 5 hours jeep drive to reach the small village called Uttare in the South West of Sikkim, and a last night in a hotel, we meet our team for the trekking : 2 guides and 7 porters, all sherpa locals from Uttare. After then a permit check at the village check post, we start trekking the Singalila ridge. On the way up to Chewa, a military check post between Nepal and India, we trek through a nice forest with many torrents, and sometimes we meet some nepali people on their way to India. First night in tent tonight, and the views are already wonderful. |
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| Second day: From Chewa to Dhond |
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| After a good breaky, we go on with the Singalila trail, following the frontier between Nepal and India. We are in november so the views are really clear, and the landscape is incredible: the Mt Everest and the Makalu are rising above the himalayan ridge, above the clouds. We start to know everybody from our Yak and Yeti Team, we're becoming friends: we talk landcape and geography with the guides, and we share fun times with the porters during the breaks. Between 3000m and 4000m is the home of the yaks and dzo, we meet many of them on our way. For the sunset, we climb Mt Dhond, above the campground, to enjoy magnificent views. |
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| Third day : From Dhond to Sikkimey Megu |
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| We go on with the Singalila Trail on the morning. The landscapes are still very nice, we are now trekking pretty fast with pleasure. As we arrive closer to Sikkimey Megu, we meet more and more yaks and dzos. We set up a big fire to warm up the camp for this chill night. | ||||
| Fourth day : From Sikkime Megu to Lachmi Pokari |
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We leave early in the morning before the porters, with Furba our guide from Yak and Yeti Agency. The three of us trek up until the lake Lam Pokari, a sacred site for Nepali people. Many sacred bells and a small temple add a mystical charm on the natural beauty of this place. We then reach the pass where the rest of the team Yak and Yeti has prepared a lunch there; when eating our noodles we can admire two other lakes under our spot... |
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| Fifth day : From Lachmi Pokari to Langsap |
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| This fifth day is more easy, and for the first time we go down more than we go up. This is also the day when we quit the Singalila trail to reach the Dzongri Goecha La one. We welcome back the rododendrons trees and the pine forest. Easy going, the camp is set in Langsap, a place known from the locals for an overnight stay, where we set up a big fire and share some fun with our new guest, an himalayan shepard dog ! |
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| Sixth day : From Yangsap to Tikip Chu |
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| We jump from one valley to the other, with awarding views on the ridges ; Kangla Valley, Pandim Peak, Dzongri... After a climb above 4000m, we then go down to the Tipik Chu River, where the fog poses a delicate and mystical atmosphere. We discuss with the team about the next day plan, then have a big meal around the camp fire. Nice day ! |
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| Seventh day : From Tipuk Chu to Dzongri |
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| Once again, we leave this morning the porters going to Dzongri directly to trek further in the Kangla Valley. We follow up the Tipik Chu river until the base of the Kangla glacier, then we cut through the pass which brings us in the Dzongri Valley. After an improvised lunch on the pass, we head to Dzongri where the porters have set the camp for tonight. We've been trekking for one week now, and the complicity in the whole team is great, specially with the guides and Korma, our cook. Dal Bat with veggies curry tonight ! |
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| Eighth day : From Dzongri to Lamuney |
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| We wake up early for the sunrise from the nearest peak. The panorama is amazing, we can see the snowy peaks including the Kachenjunga, the third highest mountain in the world. We go on with the Goecha La trail, and reach the last valley we'll trek, via Kochrung. The rest of the day will be foggy, and we pass Tanshing to set up the camp in Lammuney, at the base of the Pandim peak and the Goecha icy valley. |
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| Ninth : From Lammuney to Goecha La, then back to Kochrung |
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The Yak and Yeti team wakes up at 4 am this morning ! Starting with torchlights we head to our final goal, the Goecha pass ! The team includes our 2 guides, 2 first timers porters as excited as us, jordi and me. We reach the Simiti Lake on dawn, we are now trekking again above 4000m. The views on the mounts Pandim and Goecha are wonderful, we can also ear the crackle of the glaciers around us. After passing a second lake and a last snowy part of the trail, we finally arrive at the Goecha La pass. The views on the Kanchejunga range are superb, the praying flags are flying in the wind, as many rewards for us as we are respectful with the mountain in this magical moment. |
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| Tenth day : From Kochrung to Tshoka |
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| The Singalila and Goecha La trek is ending, and we cut through alpine forests to reach Tshoka, the first real village since we left Uttare. People there are really nice, and we'll spend the night in their houses drinking Chang, the local beer, and sharing memories from our journey. In the morning we wake up above the clouds, surely for the last time of this trip... |
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| Eleventh day : From Tshoka to Yuksom |
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| We leave Tshoka and its inhabitants to go down further in the valley. The trail is easy going, and we meet more and more locals and tourists on their way to Dzongri. We finally arrive in Yuksom, the start and end of the Dzongri Goecha La trek. For us the journey is finished, but a last night has to be celebrated. We spend the night with the porters and guides around a last meal and a lot of Tsompa and chang ! Guides and porters singing the nepali and sikkimese folk, memories that will stay forever ! We'll cheers each other many times before they go, convinced we had the best team ever... |
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| Want to do the same ? Get some more information here ! | ||||
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