Jhomolhari, aka Chomolhari or Jumolhari, regardless of the spelling of Bhutan’s second highest peak, trek to Jhomolhari is the most sought after trek in Bhutan for visitors that believe they are in a good enough physical condition. Confirmed as diverse from trekking in Nepal, Bhutan treks pass through almost no villages thus afford dramatically a lot less contact with local people. Bhutanese Himalaya only have handful of distant settlements and to reach there demands to labor over a number of Himalaya’s most brutal passes. In Nepal, however, trekkers go through many villages that accommodate all their needs, especially providing quality lodging. Trekking in Bhutan is camp out only. Despite the fact that Bhutan features two or three soft treks suited to a recreational hiker, all high altitude treks in Bhutan present not only extreme ascents and descents day after day and traverse plenty high passes, being forced to walk as much as 8 or 9 hours a day, first and foremost it is the high altitude which is the primary worry for all trekkers. Many folks appear to still naively believe that being young or in good shape they’ll not suffer from the side effects of high altitude. But the premise is wrong as altitude influences each of us in a distinctive way, therefore before you might start encountering altitude sickness on the Jhomolhari trek it makes sense you choose your alternatives how to proceed when that may happen to you prior to leaving Paro.
Jhomolhari treks is the trek that you get best acquainted with before you sign up. First four days are pretty uncomplicated and you will get to Jangothang. Plan to put in some seven hours daily on the hiking trail with altitude gain of some 1,200 to 1,800 feet per day. When you get to Jangothang you will have arrived at a destination with a magnificent view of Jhomolhari, and basically it is exactly what you came for.
Though there may be some pursuit to be done when you’re here, it’s quite possible that by this point you will start feeling some signs of the altitude sickness because of being over 12,000 feet above sea level. The decision time will be here. Rest a day doing as little as possible and see if you get over the effects of altitude. If your headache and queasieness will diminish you’ll have two alternatives. If you’ll believe you are really have no problem with altitude, then go on the following day to the remote village of Lingzhi. But be ware it is not a stroll. Think of the Bactrian double-hump camel and you have the trek profile for what is coming up next in terms of getting to Lingzhi and following that on to Thimphu. After you get going you’ll have to keep going. No turning back!
Those two humps are two significant passes of some 15,000 feet, and Lingzhi is way on the bottom in the middle of those two humps. So that suggests you will face long and challenging trekking up and down and up and down again. If you like a number picture 3,000 feet steeply uphill, then 3,000 feet steeply downhill and you will get to repeat that more than just couple times to get to Thimphu. Related to distance that means some 10 to 17 miles a day. If you were in self-denial that you were feeling fine and felt no ill-effects of the altitude, let alone the physical suffering you most likely are battling, be prepared you will endure repercussions of your bad call. No reason to terrify you with the key phrases the likes of pulmonary edema or cerebral edema, just the utter fatigue and queasiness will do you in well to where in the end you in all likelihood recollect next to nothing of the beauty of the Chomolhari trek.If you are genuine with yourself and deduce you can deal with additional passes but alternatively decide on a little less difficult route than the one via Lingzhi, then opt for coming back to Paro via “Chomolhari trek 2″ over the passes of Bhonte La, Thakung La and Thombu La, each progresively lower but still in excess of 12,000 feet.
If you are genuinely wiped out, with gigantic throbbing headache, nausea, not eating, barely managing to drink, inform your guide you prefer to return to Paro the way you arrived, downhill via Drukgyel Dzong, the identical gradual way, retracing your steps, no surprises. Wonderful, you almost certainly made a correct judgment which is beneficial to all, you as well the fellow members of your party and your guide.
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