Travel tips for Kailash Manasarovar Yatra

There are lots of blogs and travel websites which cover the dos and don’ts, the exercise regimen, packing lists etc for the Kailash Yatra, so I will not cover that here. I will only talk about things from my experience which I have not found covered sufficiently in the existing write-ups.

·         1.  Kailash Manasarovar Yatra is a purely religious / spiritual pilgrimage. Initiating the yatra is on human effort, but the successful completion along with the darshan is entirely up to His grace. I have heard of groups who have spent 4 days at Manasarovar and come back without having darshan as Kailash remained covered with clouds. Even in my group, there were a couple of people who had booked the horse for the parikrama and were fit and strong. However they fell ill just on the night before the parikrama and couldn’t make it.

Kailash is His abode and it is up to Him who He grants the permit to visit his home. The Lord is Ashutosh – one who is easily pleased. He bestows His Grace on His devotees liberally. But one must maintain the prayerful attitude and must not take it for granted.

·         2.  Diamox – High altitude comes with its own set of issues. Typical problems experienced by people are breathlessness, severe headache, nausea, vomiting, dysentery, loss of appetite, sleeplessness. Some people (very few) may also experience loss of coherence in mental function. These are temporary problems and are supposed to go away with acclimatization – spending some time at a given altitude to allow the body to cope up. However the schedule of the trip does not allow for sufficient acclimatization and you can’t wish that away.
Diamox (acetazolamide) is a magic pill which negates most of the effects of high altitude. The typical dose is 1 tablet (250 mg) once a day after breakfast.  The side effects are a tingling sensation in hands and feet for the first couple of days and red colored urine. These negative effects go away with drinking sufficient water (3 – 4 liters a day). The pros of the drug far outweigh the cons, so this is recommended by the Himalayan Mountaineering Association.
However this being a suplha drug, it cannot be taken by people having sulpha drug allergies. These were the people in our group suffering the most. I would strongly recommend such people to consult their physician to get an alternative pill.  Homeopathic alternatives are also available; these help to some extent but are not as effective.

·         3.  Clothing – You do not need warm clothes at Kathmandu. However, throughout Tibet you would be wearing 4 layers – a thermal inner, a T-shirt / shirt, a warm thick pullover, and the down jacket (this was provided by the tour operator). For the bottoms, you would wear a thermal inner and a pair of jeans on it. Other accessories – woolen socks, ankle high shoes, water proof gloves with a fur lining inside, a monkey cap, sunglasses, dust mask.  This is sufficient to handle the coldest weather that you could face; you do not need much else.
There are no laundry facilities in the entire trip. Having said that, you do not sweat much in Tibet. Also lot of germs that are there in plains would not exist in the harsh weather of the Himalayas. You do not need to change your inners even half as often as you typically do in the plains. So you need not stuff in too many of them. The only time you must change into all fresh clothes is before you go for the pooja and havan at Manasarovar. Everything else is optional.

·         4.  Backpack during the parikrama – You should have a two piece raincoat with you. The down jacket that the operator provided was of fairly good quality, had a hood, and was water proof and wind proof. You need to use the bottom piece of the raincoat though. And it is better to wear it at the start of the day even if it is sunny as the weather can change drastically in a matter of minutes. In the backpack you need to carry the stuff that you may need to change into in case you get wet – thermal inners, 1 T-shirt, 1 pant, a pullover, monkey cap, a pair of socks. Apart from this you will carry 2 one liter bottles, chocolates, dry fruits, toilet paper, a small towel, a torch, sun-cream and any essential personal medicines. This will make the backpack heavy enough. You need not and should not carry anything else during the 3 day parikrama.

5.  Horse and porter - These are hired at Tarboche. The charges are not included in the tour cost, you would need to carry sufficient yuans with you if you intend to hire them. You are not allowed to carry any bags with you while on the horse, so a porter becomes mandatory if you hire the horse. A porter carries max 1 bag which should be less than 8 kg. You need to pack accordingly. You need not hire the horse for the entire journey. Generally you will find horses before the climb to Dolma La just for taking you to the top of the pass, which is the toughest part of the trek. However this is not guaranteed.

In our group 19 people of 66 completed the parikrama. 11 of us (including me) hired horses at Tarboche for the entire 3 day trip. 3 determined trekkers completed the enire journey on foot. The rest had to hire the horse at Dolma La as they found the going too tough.

6.  6. Timing the Yatra – Tour operators typically highlight the dates wherein you get to be at Kailash on the full moon night. I beg to disagree.

One, the darkest period is most auspicious for Shiva pooja. Shivaratri falls on the day before the no-moon. Full moon, on the other hand, has no special religious significance.
Secondly, a full moon at Manasarovar is not much different from a full moon in the city. Instead, if you happen to be at Manasarovar on a no-moon cloud-free night, the sight of the star-lit night sky is mind blowing. You will not get such a spectacle anywhere else on earth. In my opinion, moon light spoils the beauty of the place.

If you have the luxury of choice, you should try selecting a date such that you are at Manasarovar around the no-moon night.

·         7.  The yatra is fairly tough, and you should not expect much of facilities during the entire trip, despite what your travel agent promises or does not promise you. You must leave all your concepts of hygiene, cleanliness and sanitation safely under lock and key at home before you leave for Tibet.

You get a shower at Kathmandu before you leave and on the day you come back.  In between you have an opportunity for a dip in the frigid waters of Manasarovar if your health permits it. I was running a high fever on that day, so I had to postpone the bath to Kathmandu.
Tibetans believe in building homes without restrooms. Sanitary toilets do not exist in Tibet. There were 2 slum dog style toilets for 66 of us, and they had not been cleaned for years. It is far more hygienic to go in the open, behind a boulder. The sooner you accept this, the better.

·         This is not a leisure trip. If you are looking for a nice holiday in a picturesque setting in the hills, Indian part of Himalayas offer far more panoramic locations than Tibetan Himalayas.
This is not to deride the glorious landscape of Tibet in any way. There aren’t many places on earth where you can see right up to the horizon in 360 degrees – whichever way you look. The vast unobstructed openness of the Tibetan landscape, the absolute silence (except for the gushing, icy Tibetan wind), the rugged bare rock mountains and innumerable snow peaks all around are truly captivating. Most of Tibet that you see en-route is at an average height of 15000 feet, well above the tree line. Except for some patches of grass, not much vegetation grows here. You can go a 100 miles without spotting a single living entity, except for members of your own group. Many people find the uninhabited silence a little unnerving; on the other hand there are people who would love the place just for its deep silence; it takes some mental preparation to appreciate it.

Compare this to Indian Himalayas – lush green landscape, with white snow peaks in the distant background for variety, a dazzling array of colorful flowers, birds chirping in a melodious harmony, a rainbow of butterflies, throbbing with life.

There is a certain beauty in the vast rugged openness of Tibet, and I simply loved it. On the other hand there is a soft feminine charm of the Indian Himalayas. I would cherish that aspect of the Himalayas as well.

Salutations to Kailashpati !!!