Many years ago, one would not be able to even imagine scaling the Mt. Everest and spending some time at the peak with only clouds for company. But now, this is possible for travellers with some amount of training. We leave the peak to serious expeditioners, but do cover the Everest Base Camp, which itself is a thrilling trek for amateur level trekkers. From permissions to camping facilities and booking the right guides for you, we can plan this as an end to end expedittion.

Expect one of the most stunning views of the mountains and the forests of Bhutan, during this trek. This trek is possible to during the entire year except July & August. The trek is to the beautiful Phobjikha valley (3,000m), one of the few glacial valleys in Bhutan, which lies in the mountains east of Wangduephodrang. After crossing over the pass you soon come to the great monastery of Gangtey, established in the 17th century. The village of Phobjikha lies a few kilometers down from the monastery, on the valley floor. This quiet, remote valley is the chosen winter home of the rare black-necked cranes, which migrate here annually from the Tibetan plateau. This moderate trek visits the villages of Gogona and Khotokha, passing through meadows and fields, then forests of juniper, magnolia and rhododendrons in full bloom in April. It is a short trek at relatively low elevations, which encounters several remote villages.

The Markha valley is one of the most beautiful valleys in Ladakh and a popular destination due to the proximity of its whole circuit to Leh. A varied trek across high passes with tremendous views of the snow capped mountains, gorges, arid landscape dotted with villages with their colourful fields of mustard and barley and meetings with locals make this trip a trekker’s delight. However, on this particular itinerary, we do not take the standard route but begin from the little village of Chilling, the only village where metalwork is done in Ladakh. Chilling is sleepy and gorgeous tiny village.  One of the reason that we start our trek from Chilling to avoid crossing any passes in first few days of our trek so that we do not encounter any altitude related problem. Spending a night here, we cross the Zanskar River by cable to meet with our horses on the other side which joins the popular route at Skiu. At the end after crossing the Kongmarula, we make a diversion into a lesser known but again another beautiful valley with high pastures and great views to Stok Base Camp and the ultimate highlight of our trip – the summit of Stok Kangri (6137m). It is best to do this between end of June and end of August.

One of the most magnificent treks of the subcontinent, this one requires reasonable amount of fitness and a dire love for the outdoors and the mountains. It is best to do it in Oct-Nov or March-April, when there is little chance of the rains. Towering snow covered peaks, sprawling meadows and interactions with locals along the way are the highlight of this trek. The trek challenges the most seasoned of travellers, so it recommended to gauge your fitness first.

This trek is more like a pilgrimage and less like a trek. And the ode is to the tallest mountain in the world – the Mt. Everest. The base camp has increasingly got popular over the years but still commands respect in the trekking circles as it poses a lot of challenges. Of course they hold no sway as compared to the stunning views of the Himalayan Range, the simplicity  of  Tibetan life and the spiritual essence of far flung monasteries. All of this adds up to a memorable trip.