Everest Region Annapurna Region Remote Region Wild Life Rafting India Tebit Bhutan

The Gokyo route gets you off the beaten track to Everest and offers a better view of the peak and a number of other giants.

GRADE: MODERATE - CHALLENGING
DURATION: 20 DAYS
(15 DAYS TENTED TREK, 5 DAYS KATHMANDU)

Gokyo Lake sits at an altitude of 4,750 m at the side of the Ngozumpa Glacier, the largest in the Nepal Himalaya. From a ridge above the lake, the great peaks of Cho Oyu (8153m), Everest, Lhotse and Makalu (8481m, the fifth highest mountain in the world) can be taken in at one sweep. The emerald surface of the lake spreads out far below and there are stone-walled pastures on its shores.

The trail starts at the air strip of Lukla and follows the Dudh Koshi River through stretches of forest and over log bridges. Load-carrying yaks grunt past and you have your first glimpse of Everest through a clump of trees. Namche Bazaar is the Sherpa capital and the center of activity in the Khumbu region. Its terrace of houses set in a horseshoe-shaped hollow dramatically comes into view as you round a bend.

The Sherpas have historically been herders and traders and Namche Bazaar was the staging point for business trips into Tibet. We will also be visiting the school in Khumjung village which was built by Sir Edmund Hillary for the Sherpa children.

After exploring around Gokyo, we descend to Phortse and make tracks for Gorakshep (5160m) via Pheriche and Lobuche along the Khumbu Glacier. Kalapathar (5545m) offers the best vantage point for viewing Everest. Tengboche Monastery, the focus of Sherpa Buddhist devotion, sits at an elevation of 3,867m with Ama Dablam (6856m) as a magnificent backdrop.