Nepal 2025 - Day 4: Namrung to Shyala

 Namrung to Shyala

Today was going to be an easy and gradual walk of about 4-5 hours to reach the hamlet of Shyala. The shortest of days so far on the trail which averaged about 20km/day.  I woke up to beautiful views of Mt Siring, Mount Himal Chuli and Ganesh Himal. It was quite a breathtaking sight as the morning sun lit up those peaks. I soaked up those views and for me, they act like a cup of coffee every time. Had my usual breakfast and then it was off for Shyala.

As soon as we left Namrung, we were greeted by a gate with a broken door welcoming us to the Chumnubri area. There was some renovation of that arch so we only presumed the reason for the damage around the area. We walked into the valley with glorious views of the mighty mountains ahead. The walk was very gradual but with stunning views of some very pretty villages, the first of which was Bhaniam with lush wheat and barley fields along with beautifully constructed stone houses. The Mani stones also increased in frequency highlighting the Tibetan & Buddhist culture prevalent from hereon. 

The trail got more beautiful as we moved ahead to an alluring 

forest surrounded by the Nubri mountains, the smell of pine, waterfalls across the valley and multiple rice terraces making it one of the most beautiful sections so far. We gained some more elevation before we reached the Buddhist hamlet of Lhi. The village is marked by a beautiful arch welcoming visitors to it's temple. 

The Tibetan influence was heavy in this village with multiple Stupas, prayer wheels, Mani walls and temples. It made for a very colourful sight nestled between a deep valley.     

Next on our stop was a small hilltop village marked by a white Stupa. The trail consisted of gentle switchbacks with heavy mule traffic on either side. After an hour, we reached the village of Shyo where we refilled our water and continued ahead to our lunch stop of Lho. We passed through several small villages which looked almost abandoned or not housing more than 2-3 families. As we neared Lho, the Mani walls and stupas increased in number, there was a fountain marking the village, which in itself was a huge in comparison to the others we saw on the trail. 

Lunch was great and few of us experimented with some soups instead of the staple, Dal Bhat.

From Lho, Shyala was just about a couple of hours with an ascent of 200m. The trail was relatively easy descending into a forest with beautiful streams to our East before finally climbing the final 100m of elevation leading to the village of Shyala. It was a pity that the rhododendrons through our trail weren't in bloom even though this was the season for it. We finally saw the village entrance arch marked by beautiful yellow flowers adorning the path. 

We spent some time at the village gate as we were one of the last groups to reach. We were a slow group in general through the trail for the last 5 days but this wasn't a race. 

Our teahouse (Nubri Shyala) was the last one in the village but the prettiest we came across so far. Surrounded by huge mountains which were hidden by clouds that day but it still made for a beautiful setting. 

After checking in to our rooms and a quick beverage, we were mesmerized at the beauty of the village, we decided to go for a stroll to the local school and monastery.