Ramdung and Parchemo
Holiday Itinerary
Day 1: Rendezvous at the group hotel in Kathmandu. Complimentary airport transfers are provided. KE Land Only package services begin with the evening meal.
Day 2: We drive on the 'Friendship Highway' to Lamosangu and from there follow the Jiri road as far as Charikot and the neighbouring village of Dolakha, where we camp. 5 to 6 hours' drive.
Day 3: We trek steeply down through villages towards the river, then follow a trail which rises and falls through farmland, crossing a number of tributaries to reach Singati (950m / 3115ft).
Day 4: We cross a major tributary as we leave Singati, then follow the Bhote Kosi River, with glimpses of Gauri Shankar to the north. A great day's trekking to Jagat, beside the river.
Day 5: The gorge narrows as we approach the beautiful waterfall at Chetchet. Shortly afterwards we cross the Bhote Kosi to begin the steep climb up to the village of Simigaon (1996m / 6548ft).
Day 6: Following a ridge above the town, we drop down on its north side, traversing the Rolwaling Gorge and trekking through dense forest to reach our camp in a clearing at Douan (2850m / 9350ft).
Day 7: We cross the Rolwaling River and trek on through the villages of Nyimare and Ramding to the main village in this valley, Beding (3694m / 12,119ft). We camp by the school above the village.
Day 8: A day for acclimatisation day in Beding, with a chance to visit the local monastery and meet the resident monks.
Day 9: We make the slow trek up to the summer grazing area of Na Gaon (4183m / 13,724ft). We camp by a large boulder which marks the beginning of the southern route to the Yalung La.
Day 10: A rest and acclimatisation day at Na Gaon. There is the option for those who are acclimatising well to walk up to the glacial lake of Tsho Rolpa.
Day 11: Heading south, we climb out of the upper Rolwaling Valley, gradually ascending to Ramdung Basecamp at 5040 metres (16,535 feet).
Day 12: Another acclimatisation day. We will walk up to a viewpoint, where we can check out the route to our high camp on Ramdung. We spend a second night at basecamp.
Day 13: This is a snow skills training day. We have the option to make an ascent of nearby Yalung Peak (5650m / 18,537ft).
Day 14: Today, we trek up onto the Ramdung Glacier and establish a high camp at around 5350 metres (17,552 feet).
Day 15: Roping up as we leave camp, we make an early start for the long ascent to the summit of Ramdung. After admiring the views, we descend all the way to basecamp.
Day 16: A relatively easy day, descending to Na Gaon and then trekking beyond the lake of Tsho Rolpa to our camp.
Day 17: Trek to the foot of the Drolambu Icefall which lies beneath the Tesi Lapcha pass. Camp is at around 4800 metres (15,748 feet).
Day 18: We climb to top of the Tesi Lapcha and gain our first views of the Khumbu region. We camp just after the pass at an altitude of 5700 metres (18,700 feet).
Day 19: We make the short and direct climb to Parchemo's summit, where the views include Mount Everest. We then descend to a camp at Tengpo in the upper Thame valley.
Day 20: Good trails and an easy morning's trekking takes us to the important Sherpa settlement of Thame. Afternoon free to explore.
Day 21: An easy day down to Namche Bazaar. Here we check into a lodge and have some time to look around the thriving Sherpa capital.
Day 22: A long day, largely downhill, as we follow the Everest Trail from Namche Bazaar to Lukla. Again, we use a lodge in Lukla.
Day 23: We fly from Lukla to Kathmandu, where we transfer to the group hotel. The afternoon is free for sightseeing and shopping.
Day 24: Free day in Kathmandu for sightseeing or shopping. Overnight at the hotel.
Day 25: KE Land Only package services end after breakfast. Kathmandu Airport transfers are provided.
Altitude
This holiday involves going to very high altitude. During the course of your trip you will be spending at least one night above 4000 metres and/or trekking to 5000 metres or above. This is not something that you should worry about; the human body is quite capable of adapting to a very wide range of altitudes, but it is important that we follow some simple rules in order to acclimatise successfully. Before coming on this holiday you should read the advice on trekking at high altitude.
