Tsho Rolpa Lake Trek — A wonderful off-the-beaten place I’ve been
Hello folks! How’s life going on?
I hope you all are doing well. I’m writing this article on Sep 12, 2022, the day I’m feeling much better from dengue fever. Surprisingly, I recovered so well on the fourth day. So, here I’m writing the tour blog for you all. (Today’s January 21, 2023, and I’m looking forward to completing this today. Haha! I went to Everest and Annapurna base camp after Sep 12. And this has to be my fifth attempt to write this article. Now writing it to complete today).
Also, I’ve started my own travel blog site neptrek.com that now serves travel information for trekkers. There’s also a Tsho Rolpa Trek in 2023 blog that gives you information on if it’s the best trek in 2023 for you.
Sunam (then my gf, now my beloved half) was desperate to travel. And I was travelling with other groups. She wanted me to go on a trip with her. And it happened. On May 19, we took a jeep ride to Charikot and joined Nita, Dr. Karuna, and Kaushal bhai.
We officially started the Tsho Rolpa Trek from Dolakha. The morning was very tense because it was constantly raining. But, around 9 am, the weather cleared and we started dreaming of the rainfree tour.
After lunch, we set off for Chhet Chhet in a Bolero van. It was a bumpy ride at most places. But, the road along the shore of Upper Tamakoshi was truly a wonder to appreciate. We also stopped at some waterfalls to enjoy the mesmerising glimpses.
By the time we reached Chhet Chhet, it was almost 3 or something. Everyone started looking tense as the hiking route was pretty steep on the rocky hill. But first, we stopped for hot noodles.
Tsho Rolpa Lake Trek Overview
Day 1: Dolakha to Chhet Chhet Drive — Trek to Simi Gaun
The route is tiring due to the stairs on the rocky hill. The halfway, nearly one hour route, is almost a stair climb with some running water taps. We were pretty sweaty and tired. As we reached Simi Gaun, the rain started. First, it was drizzling and later, it was getting heavier. The tea house we were staying overnight at was on the edge of Simi Gaun. We somehow managed to reach there before a heavy rainfall began. It was relieving.
We played cards, charged our mobile phones and camera batteries. And after dinner, we went to bed.
Day 2: Trek from Simi Gaun — Dongang
Simi Gaun to Dongang on Tsho Rolpa Trekking route was good, not much scenic, but lots of fun. The trekking route till Dongang is well maintained and you won’t have any trouble finding the main route. We started our hike around 7:30 am and the morning time was super fantastic, the weather was good so far. Since we were trekking in June, we were also worried about the rain.
We hiked for three hours, maybe till Surmuche where we stopped for lunch. The lunch was good, especially mushroom and pickles. The best meals of the trek so far!!
The route after Surmuche was some gradual hike till Kyalje. After Kyalje, the route becomes fairly flat and some downhill hike to Dongang.
Dongang sits beautifully on the shore of the Rolwaling river. Very near to the river and it’s scary as well as beautiful.
We reached Dongang early so we had lots of time to stroll around. I was busy taking pictures and videos, and so were other guys. Everyone was having the best time. I got an invitation from another trekking team for a small drink and guff session.
The dinner was decent. We ate dinner around 7 and went to bed early. It rained all night. Everyone had trouble sleeping and was scared if there was some ghost or witch which we discussed the next day en route. Haha!!
Dday 3: Trek from Dongang — Na Village
The early morning breakfast was decent. We had some roti and cooked beans. And also a black tea and some boiled eggs.
Due to rain, it was a bit chilly in the morning. We hiked on the most beautiful shoreline for one and half hours before climbing Thadding Kharka. We actually had plans to eat breakfast at Thadding.
By the time we reached Thadding, the rain had started. We drank some tea and satu. There were other people in the tea house and one group was the environmental cleanup campaign. They told us that they had an amazing time at the lake as the weather was good a few days ago. We crossed our fingers that the weather would be good for us too.
Everyone was on the Poncho against the downpour. I was so unlucky that my poncho had some holes and my jacket got wet throughout.
Even though it was raining, our trekking was getting interesting. We even stopped at one cave-like place and made fire. Also we got some good rest there.
The rain became thinner and we again resumed our hike. And after one hour, we reached Bedding for lunch. Gaurisankar Lodge was where we stopped for lunch at Bedding.
From Bedding, we started our hike. The treeline was decreasing as we were hiking further away from Bedding.
As expected, it snowed. I had never seen snowfall in my life but today, it snowed. It didn’t last long but was enough to excite us.
An hour’s trail to Na village, the trekking route was almost flat. It was a comfortable hike with fantastic glimpses of peaks around with fresh snowfall.
We reached Na Village around 4 pm and went to our rooms, unpacked the backpack, and went to the dining room to dry our trekking boots. It wasn’t very cold but we stayed in throughout and went to the room after dinner.
Day 5: Trek from Na Village-Tsho Rolpa Lake-Na Village- Bedding
To get the best view of Tsho Rolpa, we hiked early in the morning, around 7 am. It was freezing cold in the morning. The clouds were frequently coming up and covering mountains but we had some good windows for good glimpses.
We hiked on flat terrain with best glimpses of mountains and rock faces. The final part of the route was steep and difficult. Kaushal from our group experienced some altitude sickness symptoms but continued the hike to Lake.
By the time we reached the lake, it was fairly visible and we got the good glimpses of mountains and Tsho Rolpa Lake. We took some photographs and returned back to Na village. It was windy with some rain drops.
After reaching Na, we ate noodle soup and prepared to return to Bedding. We were looking to reach Thanding Kharka but Karuna twisted her ankle and she was lagging behind.
But, we managed to reach Bedding on time. It was raining, cold, and freezing.
As we reached Bedding, we unpacked our backpacks and went to dining to get warm on fire. After Karuna and Kaushal arrived, we started playing cards for some time. We ate dinner and went to sleep.
Day 6: Trek from Bedding to Chhet Chhet
We started our hike at 5 am from Bedding. We stopped at Thandding Kharka for breakfast. We stopped at Kyalche for lunch.
We hiked down Chhet Chhet at 5 pm. Everyone in the group was super tired. We reserved a jeep and returned to Dolakha at 9 pm.
Some informations regarding Tsho Rolpa Trek
Trek difficulty: Easy to moderate grade
Trek Duration: 4–5 days from Chhet Chhet and one week from Kathmandu
Budget: Around Nrs. 10,000–15,000. Budget Friendly Trekking
Accommodation and meals: Basic Dal Bhat with some breakfast items and noodles.
Electricity: Yes upto Bedding
Internet: No
Recommended: Highly Recommended
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