Mt. Kanchenjunga (8,586m)

01 / THE EXPERIENCE

Discover the journey

At a mighty elevation of 8,586m/28,169ft, Kanchenjunga is part of the renowned Great Himalayan Range. It is the third highest mountain in the world, located in the eastern part of Nepal, straddling the border between India and Nepal. The appeal of climbing this mountain is enhanced by its lengthy history. The first men to climb it, a British party from 1955, stopped short of the actual summit out of respect for the mountain's gods. Its five peaks are cloaked in folklore and are said to be so sacred. A large portion of our expedition's schedule is dedicated to rest and acclimatization, as well as a lengthy climbing window. The expedition will set off from Kathmandu. You will have a few days to prepare the necessary supplies, tools, and paperwork. After that, you'll drive to Ilam after taking a flight to Bhadrapur. This tour is best suited for people who have summited one or more peaks over 7,000 meters. In order to achieve the best acclimatization, we will frequently rotate through each camp. Camp I is typically located at 5,475 meters (17,963 feet), Camp II at 6,400 meters (20,997 feet), Camp III at 7,100 meters (23,294 feet), Camp IV at 7,570 meters (24770 feet), and the summit is at 8,586 meters (28,169 feet).

03 / YOUR ROUTE

Journey at a glance

Day Day 1: Arrival at Kathmandu — Upon arrival in Kathmandu, you will be picked up by our representative at the airport and taken to the hotel. You will meet your guide, discuss the trek program, and make final preparations for the trek. If you have an early arrival, we will take you for a sightseeing trip in the UNESCO world heritage site in Kathmandu and later, in the evening, you’ll have dinner in the hotel. From 20th March 2020 due to heavy congestion, all flights to and from Lukla depart from Ramechhap airport, 130km, a 4-hour drive from Kathmandu. It means now it’ll take an extra day to get to Lukla from Kathmandu though the flight price is the same. Day Day 2: Welcome brief, Gear check and Official formalities in Kathmandu — On this day, you will go on a sightseeing tour of the city, visiting some of the popular tourist attractions. In the afternoon, you will have a pre-climbing briefing with your guide and do some final preparation. Day Day 3: Fly from Kathmandu to Bhadrapur and drive to Ilam (1,400 meters/4,593 feet) and then, to Taplejung (1,820 meters/5,971 feet) — Kathmandu - Bhadrapur - Ilam - Taplejung Take an early flight from Kathmandu to Bhadrapur which takes about 45 minutes and drive to Ilam which is one and half hours. You will have lunch in IIlam and then head to Taplejung which is a 4-5 hours drive from Ilam. Driving distance: 244 km/152 mi Driving time: 6-7 hrs Day Day 4: Trek from Taplejung to Mitlung (921 meters/3,021 feet) — Taplejung - Handewa - Mitlung This is the starting point of the trek and the trail begins down to the Tamur River and then follow it upstream, stopping for lunch at Handewa. You will be following the Great Himalaya Trail Cultural Route, a spectacular and interesting route through some of Nepal’s most remote villages. Trekking distance: 22 km/13.67 mi Trekking time: 5-6 hrs Total Ascend: 0 m Total Descend: 429 m/ 1,572 ft Day Day 5: Trek from Mitlung to Chirwa (1,270 meters/4,166 feet) — Mitlung - Sinwa - Tawa - Porke - Chirwa This day is particularly difficult as we go along unpaved roads above the river. The trail travels through the Limbu and Tamang settlements of Sinwa, Tawa, and Porke. After a final segment of up and down, the trail descends across the Thiwa Khola River on a wooden bridge and follows a few more ups and downs before arriving at Chirwa. Trekking distance: 14.4 km/8.95 mi Trekking time: 6-7 hrs Total Ascend: 349 m/ 1,145 ft Total Descend: 91 m/ 299 ft Day Day 6: Trek from Chirwa to Sekathum (1,576 meters/5,171 feet) — Chirwa - Gunsa Khola Valley - Sekathum The trail continues along the Tamur river. The steep climb and descend to Simbua Khola which originates from Yalung Glacier on the south of Kanchenjunga. The trail crosses the ridge and reach to narrow Gunsa Khola Valley as well as to the Sekathum. The views of himalayas including Jannu is incredible from here. Trekking distance: 9 km/5.59 km Trekking time: 4-5 hr Total Ascend: 306 m/ 1,003 ft Total Descend: 99 m/ 299 ft Day Day 7: Trek from Sekathum to Amjilosa (2,308 meters/7,572 feet) — Sekathum - Jaubari - Amjilosa From Sukethum you trek northeast along the Ghunsa Khola and steep uphill after our lunch stop at Jaubari, bringing us to the Tibetan village of Amjilossa where we will camp for the night. Trekking distance: 12 km/6.21 mi Trekking time: 6-7 hr Total Ascend: 732 m/ Total Descend: 0 m/ft Day Day 8: Trek from Amjilosa to Gyabla (2,730 meters/8,957 feet) — Amjilosa - Gyabla Today you will walk through oak, rhododendron and bamboo forests. The route makes numerous steep climbs and short descents and passes a beautiful large waterfall before the final steep climb up to Gybala. Trekking distance: 10 km/6.21 mi Trekking time: 6-7 hr Total Ascend: 600 m/ 1,969 ft Total Descend: 40 m/131 ft Day Day 9: Trek from Gyabla to Ghunsa (3,595 meters/11,794 feet) — Gyabla - Ghunsa You head for the largest village in the valley, Ghunsa. Ghunsa is a picturesque Tibetan village with wooden houses, a micro hydropower plant, school, and a health post. There is also a small Kanchenjunga Conservation Area office, plus a couple of gompas. Trekking distance: 7 km/4.35 mi Trekking time: 5-6 hr Total Ascend: 865 m/2,838 ft Total Descend: 0 m/0 ft Day Day 10: Trek from Ghunsa to Kambachen (4,150 meters/13,615 feet) — Ghunsa - Kambachen The route climbs gradually along the south bank of the Ghunsa Khola, through beautiful rhododendron and pine forests, passing many mani walls, prayer flags and chortens along the way. You will have to cross several scree slopes and some glacial moraine before we drop down to Khambachen, our home for the night. Trekking distance: 10 km/6.21 mi Trekking time: 4-5 hr Total Ascend: 555 m/1,821 ft Total Descend: 0 m/0 ft Day Day 11: Rest day in Kambachen for acclimatization — A day of rest and relaxation after a week of trekking. Khambachen is a Tibetan settlement with about a dozen houses nestled in a grassy plain, surrounded by mountains and a very impressive view of the huge north face of Jannu. There is an optional day walk to the high ridge behind the village for impressive views of the surrounding Himalayas. Day Day 12: Trek from Kambachen to Lhonak (4,780 meters/15,682 feet) — Khambachen - Lhonak You'll hike up a high plateau beyond the intersecting Lhonak Glacier to our left to reach the high, flat campsite at Lhonak in order to approach the source of the Ghunsa Khola while staying on the left (north) side of the Kanchenjunga Glacier. The views are incredible as you will be surrounded by some of the highest snow-peaks in the world, including Twins (7,351m), Wedge Peak (6,750m), Mera Peak (6344m), and Nepal Peak (6910m). Trekking distance: 8.5 km/5.28 mi Trekking time: 4-5 hr Total Ascend: 630 m/2,067 ft Total Descend: 0 m/0 ft Day Day 13: Trek from Lhonak to Pangpema/Kanchenjunga Base Camp (5,388 meters/17,673 feet) — Lhonak - Pangpema An early start for the trek to Kanchenjunga north side base camp at Pangpema (5143m), for majestic views of Tent Peak, Nepal Peak, Cross Peak, the Twins and the impressive Kanchenjunga. Trekking distance: 6.5 km/4.04 mi Trekking time: 3-4 hr Total Ascend: 608 m/1,995 ft Total Descend: 0 m/0 ft Day Day 14: Rest day — A rest day in Kanchenjunga Base Camp. You can hike around the area and enjoy the majestic view of Tent Peak, Nepal Peak, Cross Peak, Twins and Kanchenjunga. Day Day 15-42: Climbing Period — Base Camp will already have a route set up with ropes and ladders leading to Camp 1 by the time we first arrive there. Our strong Sherpa team will be hard at work carrying loads of gear up the mountain which will help ease the burden on the climbers. Two days for ladder training and familiarization in the lower Khumbu Icefall before going ascending to Camp 1(5,900m/19,500ft). Spend a couple of days at Camp 1 then proceed to Camp 2(6,400m/21,000ft) and stay several nights there to help the climbers adjust to the altitude. We also make a trip to Nuptse Camp 3(6,800m/22,300ft) to help fasten this process. Our Camp 2 is set up with cook tents, specialized cooks, and a heated dining tent with tables and chairs which will provide some level of comfort to the climbers. On the mountain, we use shared sleeping tents. After finishing this phase, we return to Base Camp to recover before making one more loop up the mountain to Camp 3, where we spend the night. Then we descend once more to Base Camp where we wait for a weather window to launch our summit attempt. When we do, we ascend through Camp 2 for a few nights before making our summit attempt after spending a night at Camp 3. The group will probably descend to Camp 3 after their long day of climbing. You would go back to Base Camp the next day. Overall, the climbing plan needs to take into consideration the various factors that can affect a climb in the Himalayas. With the right weather conditions and a strong team effort, the summit attempt is achievable. Day Day 43: Clean up base camp — After our summit to Nuptse peak, our sherpa team will spare a day to clean up solid wastes that are residing in the mountains and make a fresh environment. Due to the tourism movement in these regions, there were huge chunks of garbage which are now controlled by such actions by climbers and the organizations responsible for clean environment. Day Day 44: Trek from Base Camp to Ramche — Dhaulagiri Base Camp - Ramche The trail ascends to Ramche crossing snout of Yalung glacier. In the eastern side of the region, Koktang (6147m), Rathong (6679m) and many more above 7000m are situated along Nepal-India border. Trekking distance: 4 km/2.5 mi Trekking time: 3-4 hours Total ascend: 40 m/131 ft Total descend: 420 m/1378 ft Day Day 45: Trek from Ramche to Tortong — Ramche - Tortong The trek continues from Ramche to Tortong through rhododendron forests enjoying the splendid views of the mountains and rivers. Trekking distance: 5 km/3.1 mi Trekking time: 3-4 hours, Total ascend: 30 m/98 ft Total descend: 410 m/1,345 ft Day Day 46: Trek from Tortong to Yamphudin — Tortong to Yamphudin Following a difficult descent to the Imja Khola, the trail traverses the Dubi Pass and continues to descend into Yamphudin where communities like Rais, Gurungs and Sherpas reside. Trekking distance: 17.5 km/10.87 mi Trekking time: 5-6 hr Total Ascend: 0 m/ ft Total Descend: 915 m/569 ft Day Day 47: Trek from Yamphudin to Khewang — Yamphudin - Khewang The trek begins on the sloppy mountains to Khewang and the path often goes on newly constructed roads with short ascend and continues level path to the village. The natives do cardamom plantation for their living and income. Dinner and overnight stay. Trekking distance: 14 km/8.7 mi Trekking time: 7-8 hr Total Ascend: 630 m/2,066 ft Total Descend: 1,290 m/4,232 ft Day Day 48: Trek from Khewang to Kandenba — Khewang - Kandenba The trek continues back to Kandenba. Trekking distance: 10 km/6.2 mi Trekking time: 6-7 hours Total ascend: 250 m/820 ft Total descend: 1,150 m/3,772 ft Day Day 49: Drive from Kandenba to Bhadrapur — Kandenba - Bhadrapur The trek ends here and you drive back to Bhadrapur by road early in the morning. Day Day 50: Fly from Bhadrapur to Kathmandu — Bhadrapur - Kathmandu This day you fly to Kathmandu from Bhadrapur Airport which takes 45 minutes and do sightseeing or leisure activities in Kathmandu. Day Day 51: Fly to Kathmandu and Afternoon Sightseeing and shopping — It’s a 25 min short flight from Pokhara to Kathmandu. If you are seated on the left window, you will see Mt. Dhaulagiri on west, Annapurna ranges followed by Manaslu, Ganesh and Langtang on north and your flight time will be over before you even notice. We will settle in the hotel and visit the city for sightseeing and souvenir shopping. Day Day 52: Leisure day at Kathmandu — This is a free day in Kathmandu. Visiting Durbar squares, temple and stupas some of which are also listed in UNESCO world heritage sites or strolling around Thamel area for some souvenir shopping are the few activities you can enjoy in Kathmandu. Try various Nepali and newari cuisines if you are a food lover and want to try something new in Nepal. On top of it, people in Nepal are really humble and hospitable. You can try talking to locals and learn a few Nepali words. In the evening, you can go to local bars or pubs if you love live music where local bands perform live every night especially on weekends. Day Day 53: Departure from Kathmandu — If your flight is in the evening, we will take you for sightseeing in one of the Buddhist stupa; Boudhanath/Swayambhunath which is also listed in UNESCO World Heritage Site. Then, Our representative will receive you from the hotel and drop you at the airport for your return journey back home.

YOUR DAY-BY-DAY ROUTE

Day-by-day itinerary

Day 1Arrival at Kathmandu — Upon arrival in Kathmandu, you will be picked up by our representative at the airport and taken to the hotel. You will meet your guide, discuss the trek program, and make final preparations for the trek. If you have an early arrival, we will take you for a sightseeing trip in the UNESCO world heritage site in Kathmandu and later, in the evening, you’ll have dinner in the hotel.+