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Gokyo TrekGokyo Trek info, ideas, and photos Click and drag to rotate view.Panorama of Everest from Gokyo Ri above the village of Gokyo in the Khumbu, Nepal - Look for Cho Oyo, Gyaching Kang, Everest, Nuptse, Lhotse, Makalu, and Ama Dablam among the hundreds of peaks here Trekking to Gokyo is the ideal trek for those interested in seeing some of the least explored areas of the Everest Region as well as seeing the best views of Everest itself. Ask someone who has trekked to both Everest Base Camp and to Gokyo, and chances are, they'll invariably say that their favorite view of Everest is the view from the top of the 5,483 meter Gokyo Ri. While further away from Everest than the classic Kala Patar hill viewpoint near Everest Base Camp, Gokyo Ri affords a panoramic view of the Everest Massif as well as Makalu and Cho Oyo. There simply is nowhere else in the world a non-technical hiker can see 4 different 8,000 meter peaks at the same time, so close together. The village of Gokyo, perched on a scenic moraine at 4,750 meters, makes an excellent base camp for a hike up to Gokyo Ri as well as exploratory hikes into the surrounding valleys. To say the scenery here is spectacular is an vast understatement. To get to Gokyo travelers fly to Kathmandu, Nepal and spend a few days enjoying the exotic life of Kathmandu and arranging their trek with a local company if they haven't already made arrangements in their home country. Most trekkers then take an early morning plane flight from Kathmandu (1245 meters) to Lukla at 2,804 meters, secure their porters, and begin their trek. Beginning at Lukla, acclimatization and not ascending too quickly is extremely important, with the risk of Altitude Sickness, also known as Acute Mountain Sickness, and its more serious cousins High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE) and High Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE). After a night at Lukla or one of the guesthouses below Lukla at Phakding, at 2,610 meters, trekkers then make their way to Namche Bazaar, the capital the Khumbu Region at 3,441 meters. At Namche, trekkers take at least one, and preferably two mandatory acclimatization days. From Namche, there are plenty of day hikes that also aid acclimatization. For example, one might go up to Kumjung for a quick first view of Everest or up to the Thame to see some of the vibrant local Sherpa culture and great mountain views there. Namche Bazaar has a great market on every Friday and Saturday and is great place to stock up on last minute supplies. After climbing steeply out of Namche, Base Camp trekkers make their way up a gradually ascending trail along a steep hillside to a then descend several hundred meters on switchbacks to spend the night in a guesthouse at Phortse Tenga at 3,680 meters. The next day, trekkers make their way to Dole. The trek to Dole is a short day, but because of the 520 meter climb from Phortse Tenga to Dole at 4,200 meters, it's not advisable to sleep higher. The next day trekkers make their way to Machermo at 4,470 meters. Again, this is a short day, and because the 770 meter climb from Dole to Gokyo is not advisable to ascend in one day, trekkers should stop at Machermo, it's not advisable to go higher. A day hike up the valley to the west of Machermo to the base of beautiful Kyajo Ri would be an excellent acclimatization hike for trekkers who would like to hike more.
Above Machermo, on day 4 after leaving Namche, the trail traverses then steepens to stone steps as the trail cuts up and West around the snout of the Ngozumpa Glacier. Here you will come to First Lake, which is surrounded by beautiful stone cairns built by trekkers over the years. Traversing to the east of First Lake, the first of six beautiful turquoise colored lakes to the west of the glacier. The trail follows the lateral moraine between the mountainside and the glacier among fairy meadows to Second Lake and finally on to Third lake and Gokyo at 4,970 meters. Trekkers generally take an acclimatization day in Gokyo and rest before making an attempt to hike to the summit of Gokyo Ri for the view.  Everest from Gokyo Ri.
If you've acclimatized well and you're in good shape, it's possible to reach the top in 45 minutes to an hour. For mere mortals count on at least an hour and a half. Be prepared for extreme cold and rapid weather changes, ie. pack your down jacket for the top.
Most people make their way to Gokyo, climb Gokyo Ri on day 2 and then depart on day 3. What a shame. They don't realize that there are superb hiking opportunities going further North up the Gokyo Valley as well as a view of the world's highest mountain, that's every bit as good as the one from Gokyo Ri, Scoundrel's View. The hike from Gokyo past Fourth Lake and on to "Scoundrel's View" at magical Fifth Lake is unbelievable. Here you are able to walk into a part of Nepal that actually juts into Tibet and can see the great couloir on the Tibetan side as well as the famed second and third steps of Mallory and Irvine fame. Here's a panoramic photo of Scoundrel's view near Gokyo
Other day trips include exploring the valley to the Northwest of Fourth Lake, a hike up the valley to the west of Fifth lake, heading to Cho Oyo N base camp at remoter 6th lake, and a roped climb up the "Nameless Teeth," between 4th and 5th Lakes.
From Gokyo, at least five options exist for moving on: For those short on time, the only option may be returning the way you came. The return to Namche and Lukla can be done in two long days or three leisurely days. More and more people are leaving Gokyo, double tracking back down the trail to Second Lake and then taking the ever widening trail across the Ngozumpa Glacier to the 5,420 meter Cho La Pass and eventually make their way to Everest Base Camp. Don't underestimate the Cho La Pass. This pass does have crevasses that are easily avoided if you can see them, the couloir on the West side of the pass can get super icy and require and ice ax and crampons, and on top of that there can be real avalanche danger on both sides of the pass. If there's been a lot of recent snow, don't even think about it and give it the miss. Most of the time, the Cho La is not too big of a deal. If you have an extra day on the return to Namche or if you need to bail on the Cho La Pass, you should strongly consider crossing the Ngozumpa glacier to Thankna at 4,500 meters and then continuing down precipitous but rarely-traveled trails on the East side of the Goyko Valley down to Pheriche on the main base camp trekking route. Others make their way from Gokyo to the West across the Renjo La and into the Thame Valley. Until recently, crossing the Renjo La from Gokyo was technical and required a rope, but the trail has been improved and actual steps put in, thousands of them, to facilitate crossing the pass, and yaks do it every day. The pass leads to the Upper Thame valley, which has a real Wild West feel to it. Because it's on the main trading route between Namche and Tibet, you're likely to see thousands of yaks carrying goods to and from the bazaar along with their sometime overly friendly Tibetan cowboys. Plan on a day to cross the pass and a long day, or a leisurely two days to get back to Namche this way. There are now simple guesthouses the entire way, no need for camping gear.
For the insanely adventurous with glacier gear, there's another option. It is possible to leave Gokyo, continue up to Fifth Lake, cross Pass 5443 to the NW, and continue across a glacier underneath Cho Oyo and Nangpai Gossum cross a pass and drop down onto the moraine of the Sumna Glacier. The upper Sumna Glacier has a ton of beautiful side valleys to explore and leads to a junction with the Nangpa Glacier which leads to the Nangpa La the main trading route to Tibet, or more likely back down Namche. Five days minimum and ideally seven days would be nice to do this technical circuit back to Namche.
Expect to get a headache within hours of arriving in Gokyo, even if you've made all the mandatory acclimatization stops. Keep an eye out for Himalayan Steppe Eagles around the 6th lake area and anywhere over 5,000 meters. They look a lot like the birds that rescue Frodo and Sam at the end of the Return of the King. If you're staying overnight at Phortse Tenga, it's possible you will see a snow leopard. Keep an eye out at evening time across the river from the guesthouses. Machermo, in the Gokyo valley was the site of a somewhat credible Yeti sighting back in the 1970's.
If you do cross the Renjo La into the Thame Valley, be aware that the area between Cho Oyo North base camp in Tibet, the Nangpa La and Ayre in Nepal has been the scene of several incidents with westerners ,Tibetans, and Chinese. These include Chinese soldiers shooting and killing 2 Tibetans on October 10 2006 an incident in 2004 where Chinese soldiers followed Tibetan refugees 10 miles into Nepal and shot at a western climbing party, and reports of robberies and attempted robberies of trekking groups by Tibetan herders near the Sumna glacier.
The best weather for mountain viewing is October-November and March-May. December is an interesting time to visit the Khumbu as almost no precipitation falls and it's sunny nearly every day, except that it can be very cold and days are short. Be careful in January and February as there have been some terrible storms and large avalanches in some years, killing dozens, for example 26 trekker died in the village of Panga, near Gokyo, in avalanches back in 1995. The summer monsoon from Late May to September is possible for trekking, but mountain views will be obscured. Project Himalaya is leading some excellent creative off-the beaten path treks in the Gokyo area Kumuka, based in the UK, does trips to Gokyo Trekking in the Everest Region, 5th: includes Kathmandu City Guide (Paperback) by Jamie McGuinness Everest: A Trekker's Guide (Cicerone Guide) by Kev Reynolds Trekking in the Nepal Himalaya (Lonely Planet) by Bradley Mayhew Trekking and Climbing in Nepal (Paperback)
by Kate Harper and Val Pitkethly
Day by Day Account of The Gokyo Trip Account of Deadly February, 2007 Snowstorm near Gokyo Post on IndiaMike.com about Gokyo vs. EBC Flickr Photo of Gokyo village in Winter Alternative Everest Gokyo Ri Trek Review on WorldReviews.com Increase in Visitors to Gokyo in the wake of Michael Palin's Himalaya Gokyo 4th Lake Photo in LA Times Looking for Bigfoot Near Gokyo Sindh Today article on British Trekker Missing Near Gokyo Be Aware of Risks of Trekking in the Gokyo Area |
  
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