Overland from Lhasa to Kathmandu
via the North Face of Everest

Greetings from the Himalaya group.

Impressions from Gyantse (Sep 30, 2011):

Lhasa to Gyantse

Lynne and Elizabeth left for the airport and their flight to Delhi (via Kathmandu), while the rest of us started our overland journey to Kathmandu with tonights halt being at Gyantse. A long drive lasting some 6 hours but filed with dramatic landscape. Leaving the Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) river valley we started climbing up a serpentine mountain road to a pass at 15600 feet with mountain ranges all around and a long meandering lake fed by Glacier melt, with beautiful turquoise water – Yamdruk Lake (photo below). This is one of four holy lakes of Tibet.

We drove along the lake for what seemed like hours, stopping for lunch at the far end. Early afternooon found us climbing once again to another high pass. Karo La, the second pass, just over (16,000 ft) we had our first close view of a glacier. Some of us went for a hike to the base of Karo mountain range (see banner photo), with its many waterfalls from the glaciers.

shepard's tents at the base of Karo Peak

Stayed one night at Gyantse at an altitude of 13200 feet. The hotel is not much to write about and the food was not all that great either.