The Langtang and Gosaikunda Trek – a beautiful trek in Nepal

The Langtang Gosaikunda Trek is one of the prettiest trekking trails in Nepal. It combines the spectacular hidden valleys of Nepal’s Langtang National Park with the holy lake of Gosainkunda at an altitude of 4.600 meters. In 2016, right after the 2015 earthquake, I decided to make this trek. Together with a Nepalese friend, a guy from Swiss and a local guide, I hiked for 7 days through the Langtang Valley. In this article, I share my experience of the Langtang Gosaikunda Trek.

The Langtang Gosaikunda Trek

The Langtang Gosaikunda Trek takes you to a picturesque Langtang Valley, surrounded by several glacial high-altitude lakes and the holy lake of Gosainkunda at an altitude of 4.600 meters. It’s a lovely walk that entails exploring Langtang National Park and several ethnic settlements.

You can either choose to start the Langtang Gosaikunda Trek in the Dhunche Village, in Syabru Besi or in Sundarijal in the Kathmandu Valley. I did the last one. Below you can see the planning of my trek:

• Day 1: Sundarijal (1460m) to Chisapani (2200m)
• Day 2: Chisapani (2200m)to Gul Bhanjyang (1800m)
• Day 3: Gul Bhanjyang (1800m) to Magin goth (3200m)
• Day 4: Magin goth (3200m) to Tharepati (3900m)
• Day 5: Tharepati (3900m) to Melamchigan (900m)
• Day 6: Melamchigan (900m) to Sermathang (2590m)
• Day 7: Sermathang (2590m) to Kathmandu

I recommend arranging your trek via a local company. Do you want to fulfill your thirst for mountains? Contact Nepal Hiking Team to get the best out of your journey in the Himalayas.

Day 1: Sundarijal to Chisapani

The route from Sundarijal to Chisapani was almost 90% uphill. The first three hours of the hike was like hell, a straight continuous steep uphill path which never looked like ending. During the first part of the hike, we officially entered the National Park. Before the start, my guide arranged the permits and entrance tickets which I needed. For an one-day hike to Chisapani and back to Sundarijal, you can buy your entrance ticket at the entrance.

After three hours of hiking, we had lunch at a local restaurant and continued our way up. A part of the hike was through a forest, which was very nice.

After three more hours, we arrived at Chisapani. We spent the night in the Hotel Green View & Bamboo Cottage, a simple ‘hotel’. The hotel also had a restaurant where we enjoyed the local Nepali dish: Dahl Baht.

Day 2: Chisapani to Gul Bhanjyang

The next day we woke up early for breakfast and continued our way to Gul Bhanjyang. This route was less uphill and even a few kilometers downhill. It was a nice route. We crossed some small villages, saw goats along the way and met local children whom were playing.

After seven hours of walking, we arrived at Gul Bhanjyang. Unfortunately, because of the 2015 earthquake, all the hotels were still destroyed. It was so sad to see. A local family offered us a two rooms of their house and spoiled us with a hot meal. I had my own room, but unfortunately no electricity, toilet and shower. It is sad how the locals here have to live under the bare conditions. Hopefully there will be more trekkers soon, so these people can earn some money again and rebuild their houses etc. faster.

Day 3: Gul Bhanjyang to Mangin Goth

On day three we had an uphill route again. We started from Gul Bhanjyang (1800 meters) and ended in Mangin Goth (3285 meters). After facing rain, snow and thunder during our way up, we decided to overnight in the Hotel Green View and Lodge in Magin Goth.

It was pretty cold, something we did not expect. There was snow everywhere and it was around -10 degrees outside AND inside the hotel. Around a fire kiln in the restaurant, we tried to keep ourselves warm. After three days, I finally got the chance to wash myself with a ‘hot bucket shower’, a bucket filled with warm water. After playing some games together, we all went to bed early and tried to get some sleep.

Day 4: Mangin goth to Tharepati

Luckily, the bad weather of yesterday disappeared and turned into a sunny, but cold morning. The hotel where we slept was located on a hill, so we had an amazing morning view over the Himalayas.

Today, we hiked more uphill. After five hours of walking over beautiful snow covered mountains, we faced bad weather again and decided to shelter in a restaurant in Tharepati. Luckily, they had a shed with some beds where we could overnight. There was a kiln in the shed, so the entire night we stoked up the fire to keep warm.

Day 5: Tharepati to Melamchigan

The view was again amazing when we woke up. The clouds were gone and we could enjoy the sunrise over the Himalayas. After taking plenty of pictures, we had to make a big decision; either continue our way to Gosaikunda and face unpredictable weather conditions or go for safety and return to Kathmandu. We decided to do the last option.

We walked through several forests, across a ravine and crossed the river via a suspension bridge. Then, we arrived in Malamchigaon at an altitude of 900 meters and spent the night in a tent of a local.

Day 6: Melamchigan to Sermathang

From Melamchigan the trail dropped over a ridge, but soon started going uphill through deep forests. We continued our way, saw the large gompa at Chumnik and ended our day in the village of Sermathang. Sermathang was located at an altitude of 2590 meters and was around 40 kilometers away from Kathmandu. Unfortunately, this village was also hit hard by the earthquake of last year and we were not able to find a hotel to sleep. We again had dinner with a local family, watched the sunset and spent the night in a tent.

Day 7: Sermathang to Kathmandu

The last day we visited the Palri Padma Odsal Ling in Sermathang. This stupa was on a walking distance from Sermathang, only 1 hour. This temple was really nice and offered an amazing view on the Himalayas. After taking some pictures we walked back to Sermathang and waited for our jeep that drove us back to Kathmandu.

After a four hours bumpy ride, we were back in our hotel in Kathmandu. The first thing we did was taking a hot shower and turning on our internet on our mobile phones to tell our family members about our experience. Even though we didn’t make it to the magnificent Gosaikunda lake, we still enjoyed spending time in the Langtang National Park and meeting all the super friendly locals. It was an amazing experience!

The Langtang Gosaikunda Trek

I hope you liked reading about my Langtang Gosaikunda Trek in Nepal. If you have any questions, please let me know in the comment section below.

Author: Daphne

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