On the Way to Kanchenjunga

Himalayas: fascinating, majestic, mighty. We are once again drawn to this impressive mountain world, this time to Kanchenjunga - with 8,586 meters the third highest mountain in the world. On an eight-day hike, we come within touching distance of it.

We start the hike again with Indiahikes and this time a group of 22 other people. After breakfast together at the base camp, we shoulder our rucksacks and start the ascent.

The path leads uphill and downhill through dense mixed forest. We see monstera plants twining up tree trunks, ferns and mosses covering the ground and trunks and an incredible variety of plants and trees. Butterflies and colorful birds buzz around and make the scenery magical. In the midst of this idyll, our group of 24 hikers and three guides pushes on bit by bit. 

There are three bridges to cross before we reach our camp at 2,255 meters. The yaks and mules have already arrived and our tents have already been set up when we arrive. It takes a while for everyone to settle in, then we have snacks and play games in the communal tent. Meanwhile, I take advantage of the last daylight to enjoy the forest in peace and solitude.

The next morning starts at a leisurely pace and we don't set off until 9:30 am. The forest slowly changes and more and more old, gnarled rhododendron trees line our path. The red flowers provide a stark contrast to the dense green of the trees.

At lunchtime, we reach a small dhaba, a hut, and enrich our packed lunch with a delicious omelette. The sun is shining, Prasun, a fellow hiker, is playing his flute and everything is perfect.
 
After lunch, as always, it is a little harder to continue walking. However, the path soon leads over old wooden planks through a fascinating rhododendron forest. The scenery distracts us so much from the ascent that we manage the climb up to the next camp at 2,985 meters with ease.

The camp is located right next to a small Buddhist monastery/temple, which we visit shortly after our arrival. Horses and yaks from many hiking groups graze thoughtfully between our tents, prayer flags flutter in the wind.

After dinner, a storm sets in and the thunder rumbles back and forth between the mountain peaks. We snuggle up tightly in our sleeping bags, the rising cold seeps through the tent walls and grips us with icy fingers. Hah, we have no idea how cold we are going to get on this trek.

Today is an intensive day. Our next camp is located at 4,020 meters above sea level and the ascent of just over 1,000 meters is spread over a short distance, so it is very steep. Our rucksacks weigh more than 10 kg, the lower oxygen saturation is slowly becoming noticeable and neither makes the ascent any easier.

So it's all the nicer that we reach a dhaba at lunchtime, which serves momos and omelettes. The highlight is that we also meet Mayank, our tour guide for our trek to Gaumukh Tapovan, who is already leading another group back to the base camp in Yuksom. Four of our group say goodbye here and walk back to the valley with Mayank. They were not adequately prepared for the exertion of this trek.

In the afternoon, we pass a small store that stands randomly in the mountains. We stock up on Snickers and buy a warm hat for me. At 4,000 meters it's getting pretty cold.

A short final spurt, then we can choose the best campsite and pitch our tent. By the time we have finished, the thunder is already rumbling again and we make ourselves comfortable in the tent.

The fourth day is actually known as the rest day or acclimatization day - but that doesn't mean that we only dawdle around. The alarm clock rings at 4 a.m. and we peel ourselves out of our tent. It has cooled down so much overnight that the condensation on and in our tent has frozen.

In the cold, we climb another 130 meters to Dzongri Top. Here we wait for the sunrise and excellent mountain views. The cold creeps through all our layers of clothing and very soon I can't feel my feet or hands. Shortly after sunrise, Martin and I leave the summit - I'm just too cold. When my blood starts pumping again as we start walking, the cold really shakes me for a few minutes.

At the camp, we immediately crawl into our tent (the yellow tents in the picture are from our group). Our tent is soon warmed by the sun and so we can sleep restfully for a few more hours.
 
In the early afternoon, Martin and I hike back to the store to pass the time. Back at camp, we are visited by a couple of wild yaks who want to help us wash up our lunch  😅.

We spend a few hours with the group in the communal tent in the afternoon. You can always find our fellow hikers here when we're not hiking or sleeping. But for us the tent is a little too dark, draughty and cold; the peace and quiet of the mountains drownes out in the cheerful chatter and laughter of the group.

And so, shortly before sunset, we set off again, this time with a hiker from our group, to explore a nearby mountain.

Off we go to the last camp, from where we will climb the "summit". The path continues through rhododendron trees. It's fascinating that they still grow at this altitude - albeit much smaller than 1,000 meters further down. In Germany, we are already well above the tree line, or even above the summit line - the Zugspitze is 2,962 meters high, the Grossglockner in Ausrtia 3,798 meters.

Our camp today is slightly below the previous one, but that doesn't mean there are no ascents 😅. So far Martin and I are coping well with the altitude. We've been taking half a Diamox tablet every 12 hours since the start of the trek to help us acclimatize quickly. Our guide Shivank also measures everyones oxygen saturation and pulse every day to make sure all feel well. 

Altitude sickness can occur from an altitude of 3,000 meters and can be fatal if left untreated. Symptoms include loss of appetite, vomiting, headaches and exhaustion. If altitude sickness occurs, an evacuation must be initiated immediately and the person must be brought below 3,000 meters as quickly as possible. Compared to the Alps however, the Himalayan mountains are difficult to access. A helicopter is unlikely to be used. This means that an evacuation can only be carried out with a very large number of personnel and yaks.

As described, we are still coping well with the altitude. The air becomes thinner, we walk a little slower and are out of breath more quickly, but the whole group struggles with this.

Once we arrive at camp, we go to bed soon after an early dinner. Already at midnight we want to set off for the final viewpoint.

At midnight, we put on our cold clothes and prepare ourselves mentally for the climb. But when we come out of the tent, we are in for a surprise. At least 15 cm of snow had already fallen and it is still snowing. In the communal tent, we decide together not to set off in the dark in difficult conditions through the snow, but to wait until the morning.

And so we sleep for a few more hours before setting off. We climb up to 4,603 meters to the first (and only) viewpoint with a direct view of Kanchenjunga. There used to be two more viewpoints, but these are no longer accessible to protect snow leopards.

We hike through the snow in daylight, pass small streams and have a fun snowball fight before we reach Goechala Lake.

The locals believe that the lake has great power and so no one is allowed to enter the lake, throw stones into the water or draw drinking water. Once upon a time, a family of eight lived here. One night, the man killed all six of his children, his wife and his cows and fled to Nepal. According to local legend, the lake led the man to do this.

We only take a short break, then we continue to climb. We are running out of air, the group is getting slower and slower and at the end we put on our snowshoes to pass the last narrow and snowy section. Unfortunately due to bad weather, we can't see anything when we reach the viewpoint, but we are still very proud on what we have achieved. The decision to walk in daylight was definitely the right one.

On the way back, we take a short break by the lake and a pot of hot soup is cooked 🙂. We reach camp in the late afternoon and are greeted with snacks. Soon afterwards, we are ready for bed.

I get up at 3:30 in the morning and walk towards the viewpoint again with five other members of the group to catch a glimpse of Kanchenjunga under a clear sky. Although the snow has melted in the meantime, it's not so easy to always choose the right path - especially the stream crossings are tricky.

At 5 am it starts to get light and we see that we have done everything right! The view of Kanchenjunga is phenomenal!

Martin had a slight headache the night before and stayed in bed. In the morning, however, he feels much better again and also sets off once more to enjoy the view and peace and quiet of the mountains.

We are back at camp around 8 am and have breakfast. Then we pack up quickly as we still have a long day of hiking ahead of us.

Today we walk around the Dzongri, a different route to the ascent. Even though it is less steep than the direct route, it is still very long. The path leads through dense, mossy rhododendron forest, fog rolls in and once again immerses everything in a mystical atmosphere. We don't reach our lunch point until around 3 pm, our stomachs rumbling - the packed lunch is already eaten and we gratefully snack on momos and chai in the dhaba.

Almost 2 hours later, after a steep descent, we reach our camp at the monastery in the last light of day. This night, it's not cold but stormy. When I set off for the toilet tent at 2 in the night, there is neither a toilet nor the communal tent. Fortunately, I don't need a sheltered spot and can soon disappear back into our cozy tent. The roaring wind is integrated into my dreams.

The next morning, the clouds are swept away and we get another fantastic view of the mountains. The rhododendrons are in full bloom and Prasun plays the flute one last time.

We leave the last camp and start the "descent". The last day includes quite some meters of ascent and all the more downhill. We start in beautiful sunshine, but the weather changes again in the afternoon and a rain shower makes the forest air fragrant. We reach base camp in the late afternoon. Hungry, we enjoy the snacks on offer, followed by a hot shower.

In the evening, we have dinner with our fellow hikers and round off this wonderful experience together.

If you are as enchanted by the mountains as we are, you should also read about our first hike in the Himalayas. In this overview of our tour to Gaumukh Tapovan, we describe everything you need to know about hiking in the Himalayas.