Pikey Peak and Dudhkunda Lake Solu Khumbu District

INCLUDES

• Airport transfers
• Road transport to and from Paphlu
• Trek accommodation in lodges/tea houses (twin rooms with beds and mattresses)
• Three meals per day during the trek with a hot drink (additional drinks are self funded)
• National Park Fees
• Sherpa guides (English speaking, professional, experienced and trained in first aid)
• Porters (max weight carried for you is 15kgs)
• Staff food, insurance, accommodation and equipment

EXCLUDES

• Accommodation and meals in Kathmandu (see Extras tab to book with us or you can book online yourself)
• Personal trek costs and local expenses like drinks, laundry, hot showers, boiled water.
• Trip Insurance estimate £70 – £95 (2 week guided trek to 4000m, no technical climbing)
• Visa ($20 for 30 day visa)
• Tips (about £40-£45 each for a group of 4, £60-£65 each for a group of 2)

A deposit of £100 is required on booking to secure your place and we ask that the remaining balance (trip price minus the deposit) is paid in full 4 weeks prior to your departure. When you book with us you’re given your own secure online account which you can access 24/7. Through this account you can edit your booking, add flight, health, insurance and dietary details and also make interim payments. We make payments as flexible as possible and you can choose, if you wish, to pay a bit off your trip fee whenever it suits you.

As soon as you book you should purchase a policy which covers trekking to 4500m this will cover you should any unexpected events force you to cancel. Your policy should also include helicopter rescue in the event of an evacuation.

Spring from March to May is one of the best times with clear mountain views. The weather is warm and sunny with clear skies and daily temperatures of between 10°C to 20°C (50°F to 68°F) and dropping at night. Towards the end of May there will be more rain as the monsoon approaches.

The monsoon from June to September brings dramatic clouds and a mystical scenery, the lower trails will be slippery and there may be leeches in the forest. Rainfall is fairly predictable around midday, but clear skies in the early morning and evening generally. The temperatures are between 12°C to 25°C (50°F to 77°F).

Autumn from October to November brings beautifully clear blue skies, warm sunny days and cold nights. The average daytime temperature ranges between 10°C to 20°C (50°F to 68°F).

Winter from December to February is colder with temperatures ranging between 5°C to 15°C (41°F to 59°F). It will be freezing at night but winter trekking in Nepal is very rewarding and a lot quieter than other times. Not all lodges are open and the way needs to be taken with caution in case of ice.

The gradient on this trek is not very steep and is mostly on Sherpa trails between the villages with a mix of uphill and downhill. Pikey Peak is not a difficult summit to reach and the terrain is not difficult for walking, and anyone with hiking experience and an active lifestyle should not have a problem. The trail up to the lake is rocky and uneven but not particularly difficult. Most of the trek passes between villages where there is plenty of time to stop at monasteries and lodges and tea shops, the pace is not fast.

Arriving into Kathmandu we will arrange your airport pick up and transfer to the hotel of your choice, we have a number we can recommend, and after a day of sightseeing around Thamel it is an 8 hour drive by road to Paphlu which is the start of the trek. The trek will be led by one of our Sherpa guides and porters will carry your main bag (either a duffle or a rucksack), and mostly the accommodation is in Sherpa lodges which provide all the meals which are normally traditional fare like dal bhat, rice, potatoes and sometimes meat. In this lower region you are less likely to find western foods but there will be noodles, omelettes, pancakes, bread and fruit, and plenty of chocolate and snacks. Water is best boiled and kept in your bottle, rather than buying plastic bottles, and the lodges will have hot showers and bedrooms with beds, mattresses and some bedding like blankets.

You can bring your sleeping bag or a sleeping sheet or liner and then borrow a blanket. Toilets are mostly Asian style ‘long drops’ but in the bigger villages you will find flush toilets. You can buy toilet paper but feel free to bring your own biodegradable paper, and do also bring your own sanitary products from home. Everything will be in Nepali rupees so bring local cash in small denominations and expect to spend about £50-£100 for personal expenses like showers, snacks, boiled water and charging. We have a page called Nepal Local Price Guide which will help with figures.  The lodges will have power and often solar panels and batteries with an inverter but they will charge something for you to use a socket. Some of the lower lodges will have wifi and mobile signal, but mostly do not expect to get online. You can buy a local sim card in Kathmandu which will enable you to make calls.

You can leave travel clothes in the hotel or in our office store, and on trek take just a duffle or rucksack for the porter to carry (15kgs is normal) and then a day sack with essentials for the day like a water bottle, suncream, hat, snacks, camera, small first aid kit and any other small items. This may change as the days go by, for example warmer clothing as you go higher, an umbrella if it’s likely to rain, a head torch if it’s an early start.

We have a page called Nepal Preparation which will help with further information.

We also have a page called Acclimatising Safely which helps give an overview on altitude and how to look after yourself on a high level trek.

We provide all the meals on trek in the cost of the trip, which is not the case with most tour operators. Meals in lodges are expensive so a trek would require carrying a lot of cash. In our case we budget for three meals a day on trek. Breakfast includes cereal, porridge, or rice pudding and an egg dish with bread or toast. Lunch includes one dish such as fried rice, dal bhat, momos, or pasta. For afternoon tea, you get a hot drink plus biscuits. Dinner is two courses including soup and the main dish chosen by you from the menu. You are allowed one hot drink per meal but we don’t cover cans of drinks or extra flasks or cups of hot drinks or alcoholic drinks.

Meals are often vegetarian with meat additions if you want. So a dal bhat can come with or without meat for example. The lodges can cater for people who are intolerant to wheat but you may want to bring your own alternative gluten free products because they are not easy to buy in the rural areas. You can avoid dairy quite easily but vegan diets are a little harder to cater for.

For this trek if there was an emergency which required a quick evacuation to a hospital then a helicopter would have to be called and the guide would help to arrange this with you, having contacted your insurance company. Helicopters are common around the Nepalese trekking areas but obviously they depend on good weather. Mostly someone who is feeling ill from altitude must go down and that is normally done with the help of the staff or sometimes a horse. Locals will also help if the person is not able to be moved, and provide accommodation until help can come. The Solu region is well established with trails and now some new roads, so another option is to get back to Paphlu and take a car back to the capital.

There is a full page with tipping advice, but in general for a trip like this a suitable figure would be the equivalent of USD$40 for each porter and $75.00 for the trekking guide. This amount would be split between the group and given at the end in local currency.

This is a reasonably low trek with generally warm days and chilly evenings, with the coldest night being the one before going up to the lake. Do bring warm clothes but also shorts and T-shirts and plenty of underwear. It’s not possible in general to wash clothes because of the time it takes to dry, but sometimes on a hot day you can dry underwear in time for the next morning.

We have a page called Kit List for trekking in Nepal which will be helpful with packing. For footwear most of this trek can be done in walking shoes but it’s a good idea to have shoes with high ankles and a proper sole (Vibram) for the rocky sections. As for sleeping, you will need a 3 season bag for the camping nights but in the lodges there is also bedding you can use like blankets.