Himalayan Scenery Treks & Expedition

Dolpo Trekking

Dolpo is a high-altitude culturally Tibetan region in the upper part of the Dolpa District of western Nepal, bordered in the north by the Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Three Part of the region lies in Shey Phoksundo National Park. The sparse, agro-pastoral population, known as Dolpa in standard Tibetan and Dhol-wa in the local dialect, is connected to the rest of Nepal via Jufal airport.

In spite of the near inaccessibility of the region and tourism restrictions for the more remote parts, upper Dolpo Trekking is a popular destination of Nepal.

Dolpo is geologically part of the sedimentary Tibetan-Tethys zone. It is surrounded by Himalayan mountain chains including the Dhaulagiri (8,172 meters (26,811 ft)). These cloud barriers cause a semi-arid climate, with reported annual precipitations of less than 500 millimeters.

Upper Dolpo Trekking gives you the golden opportunity to explore Tarap Valley in the southern part of Dolpo.The region is historically divided into four valleys: Tsharka ("good growing-place"), Tarap ("auspicious excellent"), Panzang ("abode of monks"), and Nangkhong ("innermost place"). They constitute four of the seven village development committees (VDCs) that were created in 1975. The valleys south of the watershed drain into the Bheri River.

Dolpo can be roughly divided into four valleys, each of which is represented since 1975 by a village development committee. Dho (Tarap Valley), Saldang (Nankhong Valley, the most populous. Tinje (Panzang Valley), and Chharka (Tsharka Valley).There are also smaller VDCs at Bhijer, Mukot and Phoksundo.

Dolpo appears in historical records since c. 8th century. In the time from the 6th century to the 8th century the Tibetan Yarlung dynasty conquered most Tibetan-speaking territories. This seems to have caused a southward migration towards Dolpo and the peripheral areas along the upper Kali Gandaki River (Lo and Serib). In 842 Tibet fell apart, and Dolpo fell under the kingdom of Purang. Purang and Dolpo became temporarily part of the kingdom of Guge in the 10th century, but soon became separate again when King sKyid lde Nyi ma mgon divided Guge among his three sons.

In the 14th century Dolpo fell under its eastern neighbor the Kingdom of Lo, which controlled the trans-Himalayan trade route through the Kali Gandaki Gorge. The Dolpopa had to pay tax and travel to Lo Monthang to provide manual labor.