Nepal 2019 - Day 18 - Tagnag to Gokyo & Gokyo Ri

 Tagnag to Gokyo

Despite being one of the best lodges so far, the previous night was one of the coldest yet. The windows were etched in frost when I woke up. The owner as usual gave visiting cards for their sister concern lodges at Gokyo and gave some churpi for the day. The hike from Tagnag to Gokyo took me through the Ngozumba glacial moraine. It was a huge stretch that I didn't expect that early in the day. Up and down and around slopes of rocks and boulders was the only way to make progress. I followed the myriad of cairns and trails as best as possible while ensuring that I avoided all icy water bodies. 



Eventually this terrain opened up to a grassy hillside with a view of Gokyo. One of the best village settings in the Himalayas, Gokyo (15,580ft) sat along the eastern bank of a beautiful, gleaming turquoise lake. You could see Gokyo Ri along the northern side of the lake, the trail climbing up to it's peak looked steep and stiff from distance. The lake, Dudh Pokhari, was the third of the 6 sacred lakes that stretched from south to the north of Gokyo. After taking some obligatory photos atop boulders with the spectacular view in the background, I hiked down into the village greeted by odd looking brown warbling birds. On enquiry, they were called Himalayan Chickens but they looked like a cross between a pheasant and a pigeon. The recommended lodge welcomed me after being presented their card. I quickly dumoed my bag and grabbed a quick bite before heading out for Gokyo Ri.


The trail was fairly well marked and ran along the lake. It started off as a gradual climb which got steep in sections with loose gravel and rocks. The best way to move ahead was to just target the next cairn which were well maintained. These cairns led you to almost the top of Gokyo Ri. The top was soon visible and fairly made it there in quick time. As usual, prayer flags and chorten adorned the top. I saw a lot of offerings made by fellow trekkers. From the top, there were clear views of Cho Oyo, Everest, Makalu, Cholatse, Tobuche as well as the lakes of Gokyo. This view was also the first vantage point from which Mt. Everest clearly stood out as the highest mountain on the landscape. Chilly at the top, I didn't linger long, taking in the landscape and photos before heading back to the lodge.



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