Pikey Peak – a cultural trek by the foot of Mount Everest

We start off the early morning by our own vehicle to the village Thade, mainly populated by the ethnic group Magar and with a spectacular view over the Himalayas and Everest. We stay at a newbuilt resort and enjoy the sunset view in the evening. (B/L/D) Overnight at Everest View Hotel, a high-standard teahouse.

We start our eight days trek after breakfast. We walk up to the village of Jhapre. Here we visit the beautiful monastery and stay at a higher-standard teahouse. (B/L/D). Overnight at a normal standard teahouse.

Today the walk is long! After a walk crossing grasslands and forests, we reach Lhamuje, 3520 m. The path is steep the last bit up to Pikey Base Camp. We reach the teahouse and sleep early and prepare for going to the top tomorrow early morning. (B/L/D). Overnight at Shangri-La teahouse, a normal standard teahouse.

Early morning in the dark, with the help of headlights, we start our walk up to Pikey Peak. The walk takes us about an hour and we mainly walk up stairs. From Pikey Peak, we have an amazing view over the Himalayas and in case of clear weather, we can see all the way from Annapurna in the west to Kangchenjunga in the east. We spend the morning on the peak and descend slowly. After breakfast, we descend west from Pikey to the village of Goli. In case it is open we visit a yak cheese factory, and we have tea at a yak owner’s home. We continue downhill until we reach Goli. It is a beautiful green village with unimaginable amounts of rhododendron. (B/L/D). Overnight at Hilltop Lodge, a simple homestay/teahouse.

After breakfast, we start our long and pretty steep descendant to Thado Khola. To be able to reach Bhandar today we use a jeep for the long ascendant to Bhandar. (B/L/D). Overnight at Bhandar Guesthouse & Hotel, a normal standard teahouse.

Today is downhill. We pass small villages and in some places the path is steep. We take it slowly and reach in time for a late lunch. Shivalaya is a large village by a river, passed by several trekking routes. Here we find many teahouses and shops. (B/L/D). Overnight at Kalopattar Guesthouse, a normal standard teahouse.

Today’s walk is beautiful! We walk along rivers, hanging bridges, forests, and several really cute villages. In the beginning, we ascend a long uphill to a pass, around 3 hours, and from there down again. Jiri is the end of the Jiri Highway which traverses the districts of Sindhupalchowk and Dolakha, and it was from here Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay started their expedition which turned into the first successful summit of Mt Everest. From here the trek to Lukla takes 7-8 days, and it is still a well-trekked route. (B/L/D) Overnight at Gyabila Hotel, a normal standard hotel.

In the morning a jeep will come to pick us up and drive us to Khawa, a 40 minutes ride on the road towards Kathmandu. From there we start the last part of our trek, the way to Mirge, the village of your staff on the trek. It is a long downhill crossing dense greenery and some villages. In Mirge we stay with our staff and their families in homestays. Foreigners are a rare sight in the village and we are warmly welcomed by the local people. (B/L/D). Overnight at homestay.

After breakfast, we start the downhill walk to the village of Namdu. We walk on a dirt road with very few to no vehicles. The hike takes around 3 hours and in Namdu we get into the jeep which will take us halfway to Kathmandu. Our stop for today will be in Kuri, some 3-4 hours from Namdu. On the way, we stop at a wonderful small Buddhist nunnery. Here we will have tea with the nuns and if we are lucky there will be some ceremony to attend. From here the really bad road starts. We ascend slowly on the bumpy road to Kuri where we check in at the hotel, a Nepalese version of a Swiss Alps cottage. (B/L/D). Overnight at Tripura Hotel, a simple standard hotel.

We spend the day exploring the magical capital Kathmandu. Here we visit the important world heritage sites Kathmandu Durbar Square and in the evening we visit the evening ceremony at Pashupatinath, Kathmandu’s largest and most important Hindu temple. We also make a nice walk crossing the main bazaar of the city, Aasan. Today you will also get some free time for shopping. Lunch and dinner are not included as you will have the choice to roam around on your own. (B). Overnight at Hotel Dolmaling.

Our driver will drop you off at the airport according to your flight schedule.