No. NP03

  Expeditions of Nepal, the Himalayas Kingdom 

LOBUCHE PEAK (6119m.) TREK

(CAMPING ORGANIZED TREK)

Visit Pashupatinath Temple (Hindusm: Lord Shiva-Parvati) Durbar square, Swoyambhunath and Boudhanath (Buddhist shrines)

Start trekking in the mountains.

Take the route straight up the hill, Climb through fields past a few lodges to a waterfall. A short distance beyond the waterfall there is an excellent view to the east of the peak of Thamserku. Climb steeply over a rocky ridge, then traverse high above the river to Benkar at 2700m. Beyond Benkar the trail crosses the Dudh Koshi to its east bank on a new suspension bridge.

The trail crosses the kyashar Khola and climbs out of the valley to Monjo just beyond Monjo the trek enters the Sagarmatha ( Everest) National Park . The trail turns left at the cluster of building at the bottom of the hill, crosses the Dudh Kosi on a high 120m long. 
A short distance up the river is jorsale (Thumbug) at 2810m. The trail follows the river bank, then makes a steep climb near the confluence of two rivers the Bhote Koshi from the west and the Dudh Koshi from the east. 

All along this part of the trail , villages are interspersed with magnificent forests of rhododendron

On the cliffs above the river it is possible to see musk deer and Himalayan thar. If you sit quietly beside the Dudh Koshi you may see water rats swimming in the fast current.  

The trail crosses the Dudh Koshi on a suspension bridge that's at a dizzying height above the river. The approach to the ridge on the north end is up a set of steep concrete stairs; it's prudent to choose a time when there are no yaks on the bridge or the stairs to make your crossing .

Leaving the ridge, the trail climbs less steeply, but still steadily, through pine forests to a National Park Forest nursery and some teashops at  Mishulung. Just beyond are a small spring and a hydraulic ram system that- when it works pumps water to the national park and army offices on the hill. when the trail turns into a stream, take the right, upper trail to reach the main street of Namche. The left hand trail leads to the lower pastures of the village.

Historically, Sherpas were herders and traders. Namche Bazaar was the staging point for expeditions over the Nangpa  La into Tibet, with loads of manufactured goods from India. On the return trip they brought wool, yaks and salt. Today, Sherpas raise barley, potatoes and a few vegetables in the barren fields of Khumbu .

There is a direct, reasonably level, route from Namche Bazzar to Tengpoche

That starts at Chhorkung, winds around the hill to the tea and souvenir shops of Kenjoma, and joins the hillside below the trail. A trail descends from the hotel to Khumjung village (3790m).

Tenpoche was founded by Lama Gulu, a monk from Khumjung on the instructions of the abbot Rongbuk monastery. Construction of the main temple building was completed in 1919. An earthquake destroyed the gompa in 1934, killing Lama Gulu. The temple was rebuilt a few years later and the remains of the founding lama were buried inside the gompa. On 19 January 1989 a fire devastated the monastery. Many itmes of the monastery's extensive collection of books, paintings and religion relics were saved, but the entire gompa building was destroyed. The Sherpa people of Khumbu, with help from many international organizations, have raised funds for the reconstruction of the gompa was consecrated in September 1993. The statues in the gompa are of Pawa Chenrizig (Avalokitesvara) and Guru Rimpoche (Padmasambhava). A statue of Sakyamuni (Buddha) that is almost four meters tall dominates the chapel. 
Tengpoche is the largest and most active monastery in Khumbu, but it is not the oldest. Sherpas believe that Buddhism was introduced into Khumbu towards the end of the 17^th century by Lama Sange Dorje, the fifth of the reincarnate lamas of the Rongbuk (or Rong-pho) monastery in Tibet, to the north of Mt. Everest. According to legend, lama Sange Dorje flew over the Himalayan and landed on rocks at Pangboche and Tengpoche, Leaving his footprints. He is thought to have been responsible for the founding of the first gompas in Khumbu, at Pangboche and Thami.

Tengpoche - Dingboche