Rara Lake Trek

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Activities

Trekking

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DURATION

12 Days 11 Nights

DESTINATION

Kathmandu Nepalgunj Mugu Rara Lake

landscape

MAX ALTITUDE

3190 Meters.

people

GROUP SIZE

2 Min. Pax

restaurant_menu

MEALS

Breakfast Lunch Dinner

hotel

ACCOMODATION

Tea House, Home stay, Lodge

BEST TIME

Spring Autumn

TRIP OVERVIEW

In the Northwest part of Nepal there lies the largest and the most famous lake, Rara lake. It is situated in the Mugu district of Karnali zone with an altitude of 2990m covering an area of 10.8 km. It is also locally known as Mahendra Taal, or Queen of lakes. The lake is surrounded by green hills and is also home to more than 500 species of flowers, 20 species of mammals, and 214 species of birds.

The snow-capped Himalayas featuring Dhaulagiri, Dolpo, Kanjirowa and the Tibetan Himalayas is starkly different from that of the rest of Nepal and for those looking for an “off the beaten path” trek that allows for an unique and authentic Nepal trekking experience, Rara Lake Trek might be the right fit for you. 

One can enjoy boating in clear water, hiking to nearby hills with breathtaking views of beautiful hills and mountains. Situated at a high altitude, you can find the lake surrounded by Rara National Park with pine, spruce, and juniper forest. The trek begins with a flight to Jumla (over an hour flight from Kathmandu) or from the nearest Nepalgunj. Going along the mountain path and some villages one can reach the bank of Rara. Or Rara lake can also be traveled via Jeep.

Major attractions of Rara Lake

  • Rara National Park

  • Himalayan Black Bear, musk deer, goral, Himalayan Thar and wild boar

  • Rara lake itself

  • Patmara, Chautha Jhyari; a thakuri village

Best season to visit Rara Lake

The most favorable time to visit Rara Lake is during September/ October and April to May. From December to March the temperature goes to its lowest and heavy snowfall occurs which is why it is hard to travel during winter as the snow blocks the way to Rara.

Itinerary

We will arrive in Kathmandu and do some sightseeing.

Today, we will be taking a flight from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj with a great view of Annapurna all around.

The next day we will be taking an early morning flight from Nepalgunj to Jumla and exploring Jumla. Overnight at Jumla.

So our trek starts today. We will start our trek after having early morning breakfast. The trail goes along with the Tila Khola and passes through fields and pine forest. The ascending trail leads towards Padmara valley and finally, we arrive in the last village of Patmara after a 5 to 6 hours of walk.

After having early morning breakfast, we will start our trek from Patmara following the steep trail through forests of fir, birches, walnuts, and bamboo and reach Chautha after a walk of approximately 6 hours.

Today’s trail leads towards the stream uphill, crossing it as the wooden valley becomes narrower. We will have to cross a bulbul where we will have to enter our permit and follow the treeless path and climb to an assortment of Chhoertens, cairns, and prayer flags atop the Ghurchi Lagna with a view of Mugu Karnali river and snowy peaks bordering Tibet. And finally, reach Jhyari after 5 to 6 hours of walk and overnight stay in a homestay or lodge.

After having early morning breakfast we will start our trek, so today's destination is Rara lake. To reach Rara lake we will have to cross the stream and climb towards Thakuri village of Jhyari and follow the path of cedar forest and reach rara lake walking for approximately 3 to 4 hours of hike. Overnight stay at Rara.

So it will be our exploration day today. We will be taking a tour around Rara lake and its environment. We can visit Rara National Park headquarter and climb up the wooden observation tower for a better view of Rara Lake. Second night stay at Lake.

We will be leaving Rara lake today after having early morning breakfast. We will be following the Khatyar Khola River and climb up a small trail surrounded by spruce and rhododendron forest and reach Gorusinha walking approximately for 7 to 8 hours.

Our destination today is Sinha valley which used to be the capital of the Malla dynasty that ruled western Nepal from the 12th to 14th century. So our tail leads towards the Ghatta valley following the Sinja Khola river.

From Sinja valley we will be crossing the wooden bridge and after that following the trail covered with pine forest, birch and oak, and fields of barley and corn, and reach Jaljala Chaur after walking for 5- 6 hours.

So today will be our final trek day, we will be returning to Jumla from Jaljala Chaur and spending the night at Jumla.

Early in the morning, we will catch a flight to Nepalgunj and then take a second flight to Kathmandu valley.

INCLUDES

  • First aid
  • Sharing twin/double bedrooms in 3-star hotels or tea house lodges
  • All necessary trekking permits and governmental documents
  • Accommodation, food, salary, equipment for your guide and porters
  • All applicable tax, vat and office service charge
  • Necessary insurance for a guide
  • 3 meals during a trek, breakfast, lunch, and dinner
  • Local licensed friendly trekking guide

EXCLUDES

  • Tips for guide and porters
  • Laundry, phone calls, internet charges
  • Personal trekking equipment
  • Travel insurance, Nepal tourist visa fees, personal items, and expenses
  • Bar drinks and beverages including mineral water
  • Fees and entrance fees during sightseeing in Kathmandu
  • Airport shuttles, lodging, and meals in Kathmandu except for breakfast

FAQs

Trek to rara lake is a once-in-a-lifetime experience to explore the western part of Nepal.

It takes 12 to 13 days to complete the trek but it depends upon the availability of time you have so if you are willing to stay in Nepal for several days then you can extend the trek as per your will.

The tickets for a flight to Nepalgunj and Jumla from Kathmandu and back to Kathmandu from Jumla and Nepalgunj can be booked by us at the same price if you book through us or directly. If we arrange your flight it will be easy to rearrange your flight if the flight gets canceled.

The trek to Rara Lake is moderate, neither that hard nor so easy. But for beginners, it might be quite difficult as it is a long duration trek.

Natural spring water is available. You can either drink water by putting on a water purifying tablet or it is also possible to buy boiled filter water. We can also find mineral bottled water but it might be costly and at the same time plastic bottles are quite a threat to the environment.

Yes, there is electricity in the region and wifi in most of the tea houses but the speed of wifi is not so good but is okay to stay connected with friends and family.

So most of the accommodations are tree houses, some of the tea houses have attached bathrooms which are not available in every tea house.

There are two best times to do the Rara Lake Trek: 1. September and October: To enjoy the cool, breezy climate and pleasant misty views. 2. April and May: During the summer months, the weather is nice and sunny, and makes for the perfect trekking environment

To book a trek, you can kindly either contact us directly or email us at info@shivalayaholidays.com.

You may choose according to your convenience, you may either bank transfer, credit card, western union, or other options.

There are no banks or atm or money exchange to the higher points of the trek. If you want to carry extra cash for extra expenses then you can either withdraw or change from Kathmandu or Nepalgunj.

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