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Trekking Routes: Helambu
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Day 1: Kathmandu to Pati Bhanjyang
Kathmandu to Sundarijal by taxi and bus: 1 hour; Sundarijal to Borlang Bhanjyang: 4 hours; Borlang Bhanjyang to Chisapani: 1 hour; Chisapani to Pati Bhanjyang: 1 1/2 & hours. Elevation Gain: 3,200 ft. (975m). Elevation Loss: 2,200 ft. (671m).
You should be able to hire a taxi for around Rs 500 ($7.60) to take you all the way to the trailhead at Sundarijal, which is beyond Boudha on the north side of the Kathmandu Valley. You can also take a taxi to Boudha (Rs 100 [$1.50]) and then take one of the minibuses that operate from there to Sundarijal. If a minibus is not available at a convenient time, you can walk to Sundarijal (and the trailhead) from Boudha in 2 to 3 hours.
Sundarijal (4,800 ft.; 1,463m) is at the foot of Shivapuri Ridge, the long hill that forms the north side of the Kathmandu Valley. This ridge is now part of the Shivapuri Watershed and Wildlife Reserve, and a Rs250 ($3.80) admission is charged. The trail begins at the north end of town near a water treatment plant and parallels a large water pipe that brings water down to the plant. In about 45 minutes you cross a small dam. The trail climbs alternately through forest and terraced fields to the village of Mulkharka (5,800 ft.; 1,768m). After another 2 hours on a steep and badly eroded trail, you reach the top of the Shivapuri Ridge and the small village of Borlang Bhanjyang (8,000 ft.; 2,438m), which is just over the pass on the north side of the ridge. From the pass you get your first view of the Langtang and Jugal Himal, the mountains you are hiking toward.
The trail descends through sparsely populated scrubby forests. After an hour or so, you cross a dirt road in a closely cropped pasture near the village of Chisapani. About 100 yards beyond the road, there is a lodge that takes good advantage of the view from here. This is a better place to stop than the village of Pati Bhanjyang (5,800 ft.; 1,768m), which is in a ridge saddle another 1 1/2 & hours farther down the trail and doesn't have such a spectacular view. There are a couple of lodges in Pati Bhanjyang and a police checkpoint.
Day 2: Pati Bhanjyang to Talamarang
Pati Bhanjyang to Thakani: 1 1/2 & hours; Thakani to Batache: 1 hour; Batache to Talamarang: 3 hours. Elevation Loss: 2,653 ft. (808m).
From Pati Bhanjyang you have a choice of two routes. One stays high on the ridge, whereas the other descends steeply to the valley floor. I prefer the lower route, since it makes the trek a bit easier and gives you a few days to develop your trekking muscles before making the ascent to Tharepati. The trail to the Malemchi Khola and Talamarang begins north of town near the top of a hill with a few houses on it. Take a right to head east at these houses, and you will see the trail ascending to a notch in a ridge. It is about an hour to the notch and another 30 minutes to the village of Thakani. The trail stays above the village and then passes through a meadow. In another hour you will come to Batache. Here the trail turns northward and begins its steep descent to the river. This trail may be difficult to find. If you are trekking without a guide, ask directions frequently. It is 3 hours to Talamarang (3,147 ft.; 960m), which has several lodges and is now on a dirt road that is an extension of the road to Malemchi Pul, an alternative starting or finishing point for this trek.
Day 3: Talamarang to Lower Thimbu
Talamarang to Mahankal: 2 hours; Mahankal to Kiul: 1 hour; Kiul to Thimbu: 1 1/2 & hours. Elevation Gain: 2,032 ft. (620m).
The trail from Talamarang to Thimbu is fairly flat and easy to walk, a welcome relief after the previous 2 days' steep ascent and descent. The villages along the Malemchi Khola are prosperous and attractive, and all of them have lodges. If you decide to stop early, you should have no problem securing a room. The elevation here is quite low, only about 3,000 feet (914m), so bananas line the trail. It can be warm hiking even in December. It is about 2 hours along the dirt road to the lodges in Mahankal village, beyond which the road reverts to trail and crosses the Malemchi Khola on a suspension bridge. An hour from Mahankal you will reach Kiul, where there are several lodges. From Kiul, it is 1 1/2 & hours to Thimbu (5,179 ft.; 1,580m), which is a scattered village covering a very steep hillside. At the foot of the mountainside on which Thimbu is built, there are a couple of lodges beside a stream (4,500 ft.; 1,372m). These are your only choices for a place to stay in Thimbu, and they are not very luxurious accommodations, even by trekking standards.
Day 4: Lower Thimbu to Tarke Gyang
Thimbu to Kakani: 2 1/2 & hours; Kakani to Tarke Gyang: 4 hours. Elevation Gain: 3,821 ft. (1,163m).
This day starts out with a grueling climb up from the river on a bad trail that seems to go straight up the mountainside. However, once the trail gets above upper Thimbu, it is a fairly gradual ascent, with a few short climbs, to Tarke Gyang (9,000 ft.; 2,743m). There are few houses or villages along this section of trail, so be sure to carry some food with you for lunch. Chapati and egg sandwiches, made up in the morning at your lodge, are an easy trail meal. In 2 1/2 & hours you pass through the village of Kakani (7,850 ft.; 2,393m). Several lodges and a gompa (Buddhist monastery) are located here. Beware of begging children, who have been known to throw rocks at trekkers who do not give in to their demands.
You are now entering the region inhabited by the Helambu Sherpas, who are only distantly related to the famous Sherpas of the Solu-Khumbu region. As in Solu-Khumbu, the Sherpas of this region build both mani walls (walls of stones that have had prayers carved onto them) and chortens (small stupalike shrines). Remember to keep these mani walls and chortens on your right side as you pass them. It is considered disrespectful to have your left side to one of these structures.
Beyond Kakani, the trail enters a large valley created by a tributary of the Malemchi Khola. There is a hydroelectric project in this valley, and electric power lines stretch from here to Tarke Gyang. From Kakani it is about 3 hours to the hydroelectric project and another hour to Tarke Gyang, the largest and most important village in the region. After the many small and scattered villages you pass on the way here, Tarke Gyang is like an oasis. There is a large gompa surrounded by the densely packed stone houses of the village. On the steep slopes above the village there is a dark forest of rhododendrons and fir trees. Five minutes before town, there is a large lodge, but I prefer the smaller Lama Lodge beside the gompa. Local entrepreneurs may want to sell you curios, but most of the items they have for sale are available in Kathmandu at lower prices. The genuinely valuable pieces offered for sale carry steep price tags.
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