To the west of the 7th highest mountain in the world is a remote, inhospitable area of Nepal with steep valleys and gorges, spectacular jagged glaciers, barren high mountain passes and "hidden valley" terrain above 5000m. The extensive landslide damage to trails, very active glaciers, rockfall and avalanche risks, combined with the remoteness and equipment logistics make it a highly challenging trek.
no wonder many trekking sites call it one of the hardest treks in nepal !
Here is the story of the trek we've just completed in October 23 - from trip planning and the "under 18kg kit list" to the trek up through the villages and forests along the Myagdi Khola river valley to get to the high mountains. Finally the majestic, high altitude trek around Dhaulagiri covering 4 base camps, camping out on the high glaciers and crossing 5400m passes into the remote "Hidden Valley" and back to Jomsom and the tibetan plateau.
If you want the trip highlights, watch the first 3 minute video which covers our trip in photos from Kathmandu to Pokhara, then trekking up through villages to Dhaulagiri base camp and beyond.
If you love the high mountains, watch the second video and blog including our close shave with an avalanche, crossing French Pass and Dhampus Pass at nearly 5400 metres and what it was like camping at -18C degrees in a very active part of the mountain with constant avalanches and rockfalls.
I have included a google earth fly through of the route to show the route and elevation. It's amazing how much the glacier has receded since the google satellite image was taken.The fly by is of the trek in reverse.The pins show the camping spots.
THE UNDER 18KG KIT LIST (INCLUDING TECHNICAL EQUIPMENT)
With the remoteness of the route, we were limited to 18kg for all equipment and supplies including crampons, ice axes etc. This required very careful selection of lightweight equipment and clothes for the wide range of conditions. If you are interested in some geeky equipment reviews please read below, otherwise skip on to the trip section & photos ;-)
The key things I would call out (after a lot of research and use on the trek) are :
Trekking Boots - I went for the Salomon Quest GTX boots which get great reviews and after over 300km of walking have proved to be very tough, provide great support and are relatively lightweight and flexible although they can take a universal crampon. For crampons I went for the steel Kahtoola KTS crampons -lightweight, compact and recommended for the snow and glacier conditions on the "non technical" mountaineering route.
Sleeping Bag - Mountain Equipment Snowline which is rated down to -20C and which luckily I managed to buy from a Polar scientist returning from an arctic research project (saving me £500 !) plus a silk liner and Berghaus insulated sleeping mat. If there is one thing we all suffered from, it was the extreme cold nights on the high altitude sections of the trek so I would definitely advise getting the warmest sleeping bag, silk /thermal liner (which really helps) and any other warm clothes. We filled our water bottles with hot boiled water every evening and used them to warm the sleeping bag but it still took hours to warm up !
Trekking clothes - For the hotter part of the trek I had a couple of Black Diamond long sleeve tops + technical t-shirts along with Rab Incline lightweight trekking pants. For the colder sections my Rab Defender soft-shell/fleece trousers, Helly Hansen thermals, Arcteryx gilet and Thorium down jacket plus a couple of Rab midnight fleeces. Waterproofs are my trusty Marmot gore-tex jacket and Madison trousers.
Rucksacks - Thanks to Arcteryx Outlet my day pack was a Rush 32 which is waterproof, expands to around 40 litres to carry plenty of kit and has lots of options for clipping on helmet, ice axe, poles, crampons etc. My kit bag was my bomb proof 100l Mountain Equipment wet and dry bag which has survived many years of use.
Sunglasses - Julbo Shield High Mountain - designed for high altitude and great looking too.
Torch - Petzl Swift which at 900 lumens, 100g, up to 50 hours burn time ( active lighting to adjust the brightness to where you are looking to optimise battery life) in my opinion stands head and shoulders above anything else.
Trekking Poles - Finally worth mentioning (to keep the weight down) are the Black Diamond FLZ lightweight trekking poles - a must for this trip.
THE DHAULAGIRI TREKKING ROUTE
Overview - The trek started at Darbang (1200m) which is hot and humid and passes through small villages and farms before the fields give way to the steep gorges and forests of the Myagdi Khola river valley. From there the route climbs rapidly towards 4000 metres to reach Italian base camp set beneath Dhaulagiri and then further up the very active glacial valley surrounded by glaciers and moraine cliffs to reach Glacier base camp and then Dhaulagiri base camp which is at 4700M. The next stage is the high altitude ascent to French Col at 5360M and into the Hidden Valley, camping at 5050M which is known for it's very cold temperatures which we experienced as temperatures plummeted down to -18C once the sun set. The final section is a 10 hour trek climbing up to Dhampus pass (5200M) and then traversing a steep valley followed by a steep descent to Abu Bari. From there a steep descent to a traditional tibetan village called Marpha before a dusty bumpy bus ride back to Jomson on the tibetan plateau. Ice axes, crampons and helmets are required for the more technical sections of the route and where there is a risk of rockfalls or avalanches.
DAY1 / 2 - KATHMANDU
Tribhuvan international airport at 7am was full of the hustle and bustle of Nepalese life. The landing gave us stunning views of the Himalayas and a steep descent into Kathmandu valley. After a short bus ride and quick "power nap" I had a long afternoon walk to the temple heart of The city - Durbar Square. The buzz and noise of the traffic and large crowds of extremely friendly people was intense to say the least !
DAY 3 - POKHARA
We had an early start today to get a local flight to Pokhara. A very helpful buddhist monk assisted with the complicated boarding calls and the 30 minute flight on Buddha Airways was very peaceful ! After a walk around the lake and a great thi meal., off to bed for the start of the trek at 6am tomorrow .
DAY 4 - BUS RIDE TO DARBANG AND TREK TO DHARAPANI (1470M)
It was a "hair raising" bus ride to Darbang which crossed multiple land slides with the wheels of the bus literally centimetres from vertical drops into the gorge below. I made a tactical error sitting by the window and being able to stare down into my oblivion, although the plus side was that I got some good video of our close escapes ! Take a look at the first video to see that I am not exaggerating.
The first night was spent camping above the village of Dharapani much to the interest of the the locals and their children.
DAY 5 - TREK TO MURI (1850M)
After a camp breakfast of porridge, chapatis and a fried egg, we walked for four hours through the rice fields and small holdings to reach the village of Muri where we were treated to an amazing evening show of Nepalese dancing and song. Proud local parents and grandparents looked on as their children put on an amazing display, accompanied by their teacher who spent the evening enthusiastically shouting through his microphone.
DAY 6 - TREK TO DOBANG (2500M)
We spent the next day walking up the valley leaving the small villages and small holdings and signed of civilisation behind. The scenery slowly changed from fields and terraces to dense forest, steep valleys, ravines and stunning waterfalls. We were well and truly into leech country and a couple of people were bitten. The narrow trails winding through the dense bushes and undergrowth required constant vigilance to check for them.
That evening we camped in a high up camp site, dozing off to the gentle bells off the mules in the field next door.
DAY 7 - TREK TO SALLAGHARI (2820M)
After a 7.30am start we followed the Myagdi Khola river valley higher up. The route was seriously steep with narrow ledges and pathways weaving across the gorge.
The porters (some in flip flops) and mules seemed to have no problem navigating the slippery steep paths, leaving the trekkers to edge along looking hundreds of feet down to the river below.
DAY 8 / 9 - TREK TO ITALIAN BASE CAMP (3660M) AND ACCLIMATISATION DAY
Finally we hit the high mountains today. As the forests gave way to scree slopes, we had our first sighting of Italian base camp with Dhauligiri mountain standing majestically behind.
As the porters set up camp, we spent the afternoon exploring the area, with memorials to dead climbers, seeing some of the small reclusive Pikas (small high
altitude mammals) and looking for the ascent routes on the mountain. On day 9 we did a 3 hour acclimatisation walk in preparation for the long trek up to Glacier camp.
The morning was interrupted by a rescue helicopter landing next to my tent and loading up equipment before heading off to try and recover a dead climber.
DAY 9/10 - TREK TO GLACIER CAMP (JAPANESE CAMP) (4200M) AND REST DAY
The path and river crossing had been washed away so we had to climb and traverse a steep glacier scree slope to get up and across the river before continuing to climb up to glacier camp. The weather closed in and it was snowing, very cold and low visibility as we arrived. Everyone huddled in the porter tent to keep warm. Compared to the google satellite images, the glacier erosion was significant. We had planned to camp for two nights on the glacier ice, digging ledges for the tents. The ice had receded so much that the porters and guides had to clear rocks and boulders to be able to pitch the tents.
I think I can say honestly that, despite best efforts, 2 nights sleeping on large rocks on a precariously balanced tent with heavy snow and wind and subzero temperatures dented my enjoyment of this amazing place.
Being next to the porter tent also added a charming chorus of crashing tin pots, hawking and spitting and chatter as they played cards late into the night. Hey that's what trekking is all about so it was all good.
Our "glacier camp" was surrounded by (yes) lots of active glaciers, steep moraine cliffs and overhanging seracs. There was a constant noise, day and night, of rock and ice falls and avalanches.
DAY 11/12 - TREK TO DHAULIGIRI BASE CAMP (4700M) AND REST DAY
Our next ascent was to trek further up the valley to Dhaulagiri Base Camp, gaining 500m in altitude which many of us really noticed. We had to really slow down our activities, walking slowly. Any sudden movements would leave you out of breath and dizzy. Thankfully we were able to camp on snow which was so much more comfortable.
On our rest day, the weather had turned and we woke to a cloudless sky. We trekked further up the valley for an hour to gain a couple of hundred metres of altitude, however we had to turn back due to the morning sun causing too many rock falls.
It was actually quite fortunate that we did. A couple of hours later a huge avalanche caused by a falling serac high up on Dhaulagiri crashed down near where we had been walking.
That night during our daily briefing, Cory and Arjun, our two lead guides let us know that due to heavy (waist high) snowfall at the pass and in the hidden valley, it was touch and go whether we would be able to proceed with the trek or have to turn around.
After a series of frantic satellite calls and a huddled meeting between our guides and the guides from a german climbing team who were camped next to us, an agreement was reached. The german climbing group who were better equipped would go first and make a path through the deep snow and we would follow up.
DAY 10 - TREK TO FRENCH PASS (5360M) AND HIDDEN VALLEY (5050M)
We set out at around 7.15am to quickly trek up the valley past the overhanging frozen moraine cliffs before the sun came out and loosened the rocks. As usual we started in subzero temperatures and with frozen feet and hands, before the sun came up at around 8.15 and started to warm us up.
It was the most challenging day yet as we had at least 7-8 hours of walking at high altitude, ascending around 650M to French Pass and then several hours through deep snow to reach our "hidden valley" campsite at 5050M.
The walk up towards french pass was stunning and as we quickly clocked up the altitude metres (from 4700M up to 5360M) the walk got really tough and I learnt a valuable lesson from Cory. The trick was not to walk and stop, but to slow the walking right down to a slow pace, breathing slowly and to just keep walking. It became hypnotic.
Crossing the pass was a major milestone and we could see the snow covered "hidden valley" stretching out before us with Tukche peak to our right as we left Dhaulagiri mountain behind.
We hit the deep snow and slogged and slipped our way for another couple of hours through the valley to reach our remote camp site in the freezing, remote "hidden valley".
As soon as the sun started to drop, the temperature plummeted and we had our coldest night yet at -18C. That evening the weather report forecast snow over the next few days so a decision was made to ditch the acclimatisation day and leave the valley the next day to avoid getting snowed in. Another 10 hour trek !
That night was the coldest I have ever had in my life. Despite my minus 20 sleeping bag, I got zero sleep, shivered all night and lost all sensation in my feet and legs.
The strangest thing that happened (which I hesitated to put it in the blog) was that I was staring at the ceiling of my tent when several tibetan demon like faces appeared in my vision and told me to leave the mountain. It was the weirdest thing and these faces were so real. They were there for around half and hour staring at me and then disappeared. I put it down to the altitude but when I told the nepalese guides the next day, they said that "hidden valley" was a very spiritual place !
DAY 11 - TREK FROM HIDDEN VALLEY OVER DHAMPUS PASS TO ALU BARI
After that miserable night, we set out really early the next day to climb up to Dhampus pass and complete the 5 hour traverse across steep snow slopes to Alu Bari and spectacular views of Nilgiri.
It was pretty tough due to the very steep slopes, whiteout conditions and soft snow conditions which meant we couldn't rope up. We were carrying the full arsenal of crampons, ice axe and helmets just in case.
After the traverse we had a steep descent down to our final campsite at Alu Bari which gave us amazing views of the Kali Kandaki gorge and across to Nigiri mountain and the Annapurnas behind.
For the next two days we rested and explored the local valley, chasing yaks for the perfect photo, sleeping, drying out wet sleeping bags and repairing things.
Our last afternoon and team photo call was an emotional moment before the bus journey back to Jomsom and flight back to Pokhara. Cory and I worked out the tips for the nepalese crew, counting out large figures of Nepalese rupees for an amazing team of guides, porters and cooks who made our trip possible and worked tirelessly on the mountain.
Purba - cooks assistant with over 35 years of trekking experience and who patiently put up with my constant poor attempts to speak Nepalese.
Arjun - our lead guide who kept us safe on the mountain with his modest quiet approach to keeping the wheels on the trek. Juggling logistics, nepalese team health and dynamics, weather/ mountain condition reports and taking the hard decisions on safety.
Cory - our international trek leader. Hugely knowledgable, brought the group together and dealt brilliantly with any health or safety decisions during the trek. Top guy and a twitcher (bird watcher) lol !
Our final bus journey back to Jomson from Marpha. The dustiest bumpiest journey I have ever experienced.
This trek was made possible through The Mountain Company, founded by Roland Hunter and offering sustainable, ethical (Porter Protection Group guidelines, AITO Protect) trekking experiences.
https://www.themountaincompany.co.uk/trips/dhaulagiri-circuit
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