Damodar Kunda Trek

Early morning, we drive to Pokhara by tourist bus. On the way, we will see the natural beauty like the Trisuli river which is the most popular in Nepal for rafting and we will follow the way to almost the bank of the Trisuli and Marshyangdi River when we arrive in Pokhara transfer to the hotel.

Early morning, take a pleasant flight from Pokhara to Jomsom airport. Jomsom airport is situated at an elevation of 2,720 meters above sea level with spectacular views of Nilgiri, Dhaulagiri, Tukuche peak, and Dhampus peak.

Jomsom is the District headquarters of Mustang and the gateway to exploring Mustang trekking trails and offers several comfort lodges.

We take a delicious breakfast in Jomsom Bazaar Lodge and take a private jeep tour to Yara village. Most important thing to do today is to register your name and travel date at the Upper Mustang check post located in Kagbeni fort. Besides the Nepali people, every trekker should require a Restricted Area trekking permit (RAP) to hike into the upper part of mustang territory.

The jeep tour today from Jomsom airport to Yara takes about 4 to 5 hours. Stay overnight at the guesthouse and arrange all camping gear for Damodhar Kunda trekking.

It’s a first day of your trekking therefore, we walk about three hours to get better acclimatization. Today, we climb up to reach Luri Cave Monastery (Luri Gumpa) to get to know about 400 year old monastery and see around to active their legs. Luri gompa is an isolated monastery located 2 kilometers away from Yara village in upper mustang the legendary kingdom of Lo. Famous Luri monastery situated at about 190 meters high on steep rock cliffs in remote area of mustang. Tourists can optionally hike the small mountains nearby to have a glimpse of the Tibetan Plateau and Upper Mustang Zone.

Walk continue towards an exposed terrain following past Yak herder’s summer pasture with a temporary shelter of stone huts. Continue a faint path with a climb to a ridgeline about 5,010m, leaving villages and human settlements with picturesque scenery, we reach Ghuma Thanti.

Ghuma Thanti travelers and pilgrims rest place on route to holy Damodar Kund (pond). Our Sherpa will setup a campsite facing the great views of surroundings high landscapes and mountains. From Luri Gumpa to Ghuma Thanti distance is about 6km that takes seven hours roughly to complete.

Begin the day with breakfast before embarking on the hiking path, which includes a series of ascents and descents. It takes you across another pass at 18,374 feet, leading to the highest point of Damodar Kunda. Since there are no lodges along the way, the Gokyo agency cook will provide a special packed lunch for you.

We spend the day at Damodar Kund and perform all the required rituals and take a holy bath at the lake like in Mansarovar in Tibet. After performing pooja, and havan, and taking the holy bath, we will have lunch.

Explore the divine trail and feel against the high altitude adventure. Determine the three other prime lakes which are situated around the main kunda. They are Brahma Kunda, Rudra Kunda, and Ananta Kunda. In Hindu culture bathing in Damodar Kunda take out all the sins done in previous and current lives.

That’s the main reason that many pilgrimages visit Damodar Lake and collect Shaligram fossils on their way back. Shaligram is typically fossils of ammonite shells from the Devonian Cretaceous period of 400 to 66 million years ago. Around the afternoon, we return downhill to stay at a campsite.

Today, we follows the same path, crossing the 5,600 meters high pass once again. This return journey will take around two hours shorter than the previous walk along the same route. It has reduction in time due to fewer uphill climbs and a longer downhill descent.

Today’s return from Ghuma Thanti to Yara follows the same trail and remains challenging due to the high pass. Trekkers must cross a 5,100 meters elevation while passing through majestic hills over dry landscapes. With fewer ascents, the journey primarily involves descending, offering glimpses of the highland communities along the way.

Not the Longest day comparing others so we first have a short steep ascent and a Long flat hiking trail steeply down to Dechhyang Khola whose origin is from Damodar Kunda. We find them everywhere Saligrames (the black fossils of marine animals).

The trans Himalayan trail steeply ascents and leads us to the top of the pass where we have our packed lunch break. Up and down and we are on a huge plateau and cross it for reaching Tangya village. We can see several big Chhortens.

Long day hikes, therefore, we start early in the morning. We leave the village, cross the suspension bridge, and follow the short river route. Crossing the river, we steeply climb up to reach a small pass, that goes straight to Paha (shelter house stays with drinking water tap).

Continue to cross many small passes until we reach the hill top and hike over the barren trail steeply descends to encounter strong winds to Tetang village. We have a superb view of Nilgiri Himal, Dhaulagiri I, Tukuche Peak, and other snowy peaks along the journey.

We keep ascending until reaching Gyu la at 4,077m from where we can see the high mountains and picturesque view of Muktinath. Walk down to the small stream and cross by a suspension bridge, we arrive at Chhyongar. In the evening, we explore a spiritual place for Hindus and Tibetan Buddhists for about 30 minutes in its territory.

We can visit the 108 brass waterspouts, Muktinath temple stands to enshrine Vishnu, a Hindu God. When we visit Muktinath Temple at once, we are the free/salvation of escape from the cycle of birth and rebirth.

Below the temple, there is another Buddhist monastery where the combination of earth water fire gives Muktinath great religious significance. Nilgiri Himal and Dhaulagiri first can be seen from the temple premises.

In the morning before breakfast, we hike to the Muktinath temple premises for prayer and puja. Muktinath, a Vishnu temple religious to both Hindus and Buddhists, is located in the Muktinath Valley at the foot of the Thorong La mountain pass in Mustang, Nepal.

Pilgrims visit this high altitude temple, situated at 3,800 meters, to connect with Brahman, demonstrate their faith, and gain a deeper understanding of this important holy site. It also serves as a place to meet fellow believers and strive towards achieving moksha.

Afterward, we return to the hotel for a special breakfast, pack our hiking gear, and take a shared jeep or bus back to Pokhara via the Kaligandaki River valley, known for its strong winds and stunning landscapes, including Rupse waterfalls and natural hot springs. Trip complete!