Experience 3-day Kora around Mt. Kailash

One of the most unique experiences in Tibet is trekking around one of the many thousands of kora routes that can be found around every single holy lake, mountain, and monastery, and even around most of the simple stupas in the region. Mount Kailash, however, is even more unique than any other kora, as it is done around the world’s most sacred mountain. Even those without a belief in one of the four religions often find themselves having a spiritual experience along the way. 

The kora around Mount Kailash is normally done by tourists in around three days, though many of the pilgrims that head to the mountain to pray and experience this sacred site can manage to complete one circuit in just one day. The route around the mountain is 52 kilometers long, and heads up over one of the highest passes in the region, Dolma La Pass, at 5,636 meters above sea level. As one of the hardest treks in Tibet, the route around Mount Kailash is not for the faint hearted, though it is also possible to travel the route on horseback.

Starting at Darchen, a small village just to the south of the mountain, the route heads west to the entrance of the valley that leads north past the flagpole at Tarboche and the Chukku Gompa. Following the small river that flows along the valley, the trail heads up to the first of the stops on the route, Drirapuk Gompa at 4,909 meters. After staying the night in the monastery or the campsite, the second day is the hardest of the three, trekking mostly upwards towards the pinnacle of the trek, Dolma La Pass. The views from the pass are stunning, and the site is strewn with the thousands of prayer flags that have been strung by both pilgrims and tourists trekking along the kora.

After the pass, it is a downhill trek to the valley floor, where you will once again follow a small stream as it winds its way through the lush green valley. The second night of the trek is spent at the Dzultripuk Gompa, which lies in the shadow of the mountain’s eastern slope. In the morning, you will get chance to visit the famous meditation caves once used by the Buddhist sage Milarepa, before heading back out on the trail for the last leg. The final stretch takes around 3 hours of trekking to reach Darchen again, the end of the trek.