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]]>Three high passes trek in Nepal is great choice for those who cannot choose between Gokyo lakes and Everest base camp (EBC). While doing three passes you will visit both of these places and much more. Most of the trek is not so busy as EBC trek and usually you will meet just a few people on the passes.
If you will start your trek from Namche clockwise the first pass is going to be before Gokyo lakes. This will be the lowest pass of all three – Renjo La, which reaches 5345 meters above sea level.
Second one is Cho La pass which reaches 5420 meters, it is between Dragnag and Dzhongla.
The last one of Three passes is Kongma La which is also the highest one – 5535 meters. Kongma La is between Lobuche and Chukung villages.
I did the trek anti-clockwise – started with Kongma La and finished with Renjo La.
In my opinion the easiest pass was Renjo La pass. Keep in mind that during most of the hiking season you will probably need micro spikes for Cho La pass. Before or after the pass (depends from which side you come) there is around 200-300 meters of crystal blue ice which is slippery.
Depends from where you start but three passes trek will take you at least 10-12 days. If you start from Phaplu and will do some rest days or additional climbs the trek might take you even 20 or 25 days. For this time you will need some stuff. Check out what I had in my backpack during the trek:
Three passes trek is not technical at all and you will not need ice axe, climbing chalk bag or helmet with harness.
If you are acclimatized and fast you can make this itinerary shorter. Although, if you are not acclimatized you might want to spend some extra rest days in Namche Bazaar.
It is also worth to stay an extra day in Gokyo and do a trek to 6th lake (Cho Oyu basecamp). The itinerary I recommend:
Everyone wants to save money, especially when they are travelling long time. I have found some ways to save money on expensive Khumbu valley treks:
Enjoy your trek in Khumbu valley!
About author: Joseph travels since he was a child. Now he runs a travel blog – NomadJoseph.com where he writes about his travel experiences and gives tips to other fellow travellers. Joseph writes about budget travelling and mountains climbing. Follow Joseph on Facebook or Instagram.
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]]>This picture was taken during my trekking Annapurnas Circle trail near Ghorepani (Ghode Pani).
It was Rhododendron blossom season and Dhaulagiri mountain was shining in the background. You stay for days the and observing this view.
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]]>July, 2012
Two years ago TIMS card fee was introduced and now Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN) want to force hikers to hire porters or guides no matter you need it or not.
In July TAAN announced about mandatory support staff (porter or guide) for all tourists traveling to any trekking destination In Nepal from September.
Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal has welcomed the decision and urged the government to include the decision in the Tourism Act for effective implementation. “The decision will help promote Nepal as a safe destination for tourists at a time when international media are questioning the safety of foreigners in Nepal,” Mohan Lamsal, general secretary of TAAN, said.
Of course they welcomed it, but they forgot it can be against them, as a lot of people already are thinking are they really want to go to Nepal to see Himalayas? May be instead to choose much cheaper Ladak region in India?
The reason for such rules?
Increased crime in the trekking areas
In last years it was couple assaults against young women in Langtang National Park with latest this June. But I doubt the guides or porters can prevent such accidents.
It always was hard to find good guide/porter in Nepal as the quality of guides and porters, even those who are TAAN registered, varies enormously. What will happen if it would become mandatory? It will be chaos and bad guides/porters will ruin all trekking business and it definitely won’t make trekking more secure. Even the best guide is not able to watch everybody as even in the small group people are hiking 100s meters apart and nobody can’t see what is happening around the corner. So I am sure the safety is not the first thing TAAN members are thinking when they pressuring the Nepali authorities to make these changes.
According to trekking operators, the new policy change will increase budget of FITs(Free Independent Travellers) by only around $10 per day.
Are they kidding? The porters hire price starts from $10. They forgot about food, transportation, agency tax. It will be at least double that. So hiker no should add (minimum) additional $100 for their weekly budget.
August, 2012
It good I double checked the information posted on TAAN website and found discussion in one of Lonely planet forums. Apparently all these announcements about mandatory guides/porter were only rumors spread by TAAN. I thought it is trusty body, but I won’t trust the information on their website without confirmation from other sources anymore. Thought they posted about government decision to put the ban of solo trekking on hold.
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]]>You need them everywhere – when you are getting tourist visa in airport(one), when getting local SIM card for your mobile phone(one), when getting national park entry permits (one picture for each park you are planning to visit) , when getting Trekkers’ Information Management System (TIMS) Card(two). I was lucky as in TIMS office they accepted photocopy of passport page with picture as I run out of photos at that moment and only one left instead of two needed.
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]]>Cheapest option is independent trekking. In this case you need about 10-15$US/day. Bed in guest houses cost about 2-3$US/night and other expenses are for food. But depending on season and the size of group you are travelling with it is possible to negotiate and stay for free, but you must order food in guest house you are staying. This is possible during low or shoulder season when there not so many trekkers in the mountains. Prices in the cities like Kathmandu or Pokhara are much higher. Expect to pay at least 15-30$US per night for double room in guest house or hotel.
For 10-15$US/day you can hire porter if you feel your backpack is too heavy to carry it all the way. Just make sure to hire porter from reputable company. Can’t recommend any as I didn’t use any myself, but I heard stories how porters leave clients in the middle of trek or stealing stuff from backpack they are carrying.
Organized tours are most expensive option as you can expect. Prices starts from 50-100$US/day depending on trek. There are too many companies organizing tours so it is difficult to summarize all services they offer.
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