PHOKSUNDO LAKE - DOLPA | S02E04 | 4K
[Intro] Most Nepalese have seen Phoksundo either in the photos or in a movie named Caravan. It was the same for us. Although the number of domestic tourists has increased to some extent recently, [Intro again] Guys, Good morning!! Today is Phoksundo day. Morning Morning. Its 5 AM in the morning, and I'm waiting for the team. Welcome to yet another episode of Heaven is Myth, Nepal is real.
This time we're going to Phoksundo. Today our destination is Chitwan. We have Sonam, Amir, Prasanna and Prem and me.
and we will be joined by Thup ten in Dunai. He is a local of Dolpa. As always, our journey started from the busy streets of Kathmandu . It is our old habit to travel for a while, rest a little and start the journey again after tea and lunch. t is like a habit inherited from childhood. How far from Muglin? Today we're having our lunch in Amir's home.
which is 7 kms away from Muglin towards Gorkha. After our lunch, as we made our way down the Prithivi highway, our minds were constantly rejoicing by the imagination of the blue waters of Phoksundo. If we knew magic, we would appear on the shores of Phoksundo in an instant, , but the journey is necessary before reaching the destination In a sense, Journey is a part of the destination and there is no option apart from welcoming it with an open heart. We're going to Amir's house in Gorkha which is 7 kms away from here. His family members invited us for lunch over there.
It's really nice to meet the family of the team members. Then after lunch, we will move towards our destination, chitwan. After driving the road from Muglin to Pokhara for a while, we reached our friend Amir's home in Gorkha. The hospitality we received at the house gave us extra motivation for the trip.
We're at Amir's house, in Gorkha. This is my first time in Gorkha. We took a little detour.
Amir's Mom and dad, sister in law brother How you doin? All good bro. My daughter. [cute aggression] I'm having my lunch in Gorkha, after this we'll be heading towards Chitwan. These momos are for us to have while on the way. The food was really good, special thanks to Amir's family. Our destination for the day first day was the Tharu Community Lodge in Chitwan.
on the way, sipped a couple of tea in the rainy weather, sat in the car and breathed the fresh air of the Terai, wandered the green fields of the Terai and kept the journey alive. Welcome to Tharu Community Lodge The scene wasn't so nice after sunset. Tomorrow might be a good day for view. Tell them about the rooms in this place. The rooms are based on all the local women in the community.
Like we have Ganga, Ratoui We are going in Ganga whenever you are here don't forget to visit this place. [background lekali music] Only after reaching the Tharu Community Lodge did our journey comes to a halt. The stay at the Tharu Community Lodge was a very comfortable one The next morning we got up, loaded the luggage and cameras in the car, and left for the land of Buddha, Lumbini. On the way, we saw a few boys bathing in the river some boys waiting for the bus to go to school, and a boy watching the city from his father's shoulders Seeing those kids, we went back to our childhood memories and spent the journey to Lumbini recalling those childhood memories. We are about to reach Daunne.
It's gonna get really dusty now. [XR self start] [Drone Crash] I think it's still up there. Amir, Can you climb that tree? I'll climb Just now, Prem crashed the drone. we're searching the guys are up there searching for the drone. Found it yet? [distant discussions] All the propellers are broken.
One of the arms also cracked. Done Drone crashes are bound to happen. It's never easy to shoot travel videos. To find that perfect shot, we need to constantly shoot which can cause crashes. We just had our lunch at Daunne and we're heading towards Lumbini. It's raining.
But Sonam Gears is here to rescue. We are at Bhumahi and if you take a left you can reach Bhairahawa, Lumbini. If you go straight, you'll reach Butwal. We'll be taking left to Lumbini. How near is Lumbini if we go from this road? You'll save around 20 kms worth of distance. After the drone crash, we're flying it again after applying superglue.
Traveling through the wide plain lands of Terai, we felt at peace As we were about to step into the land of buddha so the peace was inevitable. We reached our hotel Buddhamaya garden late in the evening. We've reached Buddha Maya Garden by KGH in Lumbini. It's such a lovely place, luxurious. It's my first time in Lumbini. and they've arranged a welcome program for us.
So this is the welcome drink. Such a lovely place. Cheers. Wake up. Good morning, the guys are taking pictures back there. This place is so natural.
The photos look so aesthetic. Now we're about to have our breakfast in poolside. After breakfast, we'll be exploring Lumbini. We'll be going to Mayadevi temple, the birthplace of Lord Buddha. We're at gate no. 9 Now we know, we need gate passes to get inside.
These tickets are available at buspark. It costs around 300 rs for a car whereas for bike you dont need to pay. Lumbini is a famous religious site for Buddhists.
Thousands of tourists visit this place every year. As the birthplace of Lord Buddha, this place has a special religious significance. Lumbini is located in a place called Tilaurakot in the Kapilvastu district. We're exploring Lumbini, there are alot of gumbas to explore.
which wont be possible to visit in a single day. We're exploring major places and Shanti Deep is one of em. Now we'll be heading towards Mayadevi. Is this your first time in Lumbini? Most of the time I'm here. I was here in 2016. How old are you? I am 14.
Do you want to convey any message to people who haven't been to Lumbini? Lumbini is the birthplace of Lord Buddha. So i want everyone to come here and worship. You'll get to see different monasteries and ponds where Buddha used to swim. So without any delay I want everyone watching this video to explore Lumbini. This kid speaks so well.
Boating is also available in front of Shanti Deep. It takes 100rs for a two way trip for the boat. KONICHIWA [speaks Japanese] Ni Hao [speaks chinese] We also have someone from Nigeria [giggles] [uvuvwevwevwe] [giggles] Now i know why you guys were making sounds. I'm feeling like I'm in Bangkok right now. Because of these prayer flags. Thailand is one of the major places rich in Buddhism.
The water is also the same, not clean nor dirty. 20 rs. Where are you from? We are 6 people from Kathmandu.
We just bought tickets, one camera costs Rs.100. You need to walk barefoot so we stored our shoes there. As you can see, Mayadevi. Everytime I saw it in photos, now seeing it for the first time with my very own eyes.
Do you watch our videos? Recently I watched Sandakpur. I watch your videos frequently. The Asoka Pillar, built by the Maurya king Asoka in 248 BC, the place where Lord Buddha was born, and many other things that hold importance in the buddha's life are found to be preserved at this place. Lumbini is such a holy land that has made Nepal and Nepalis known all around the world. The day trip to Lumbini added different energy to us.
we consider ourselves lucky that we got an opportunity to take the blessings of Lord Buddha before we set out on the trek to Lake Phoksundo. [sponsered segment] We still had a long way to go before we reached Phoksundo. To reach Nepalgunj from Lumbini, we had to cover a distance of about 250 kilometers. After 45 minutes of ride, we are here at Gorusinghe.
You can travel Arghakhachi from here. And straight from here, you reach Kohalpur to Nepalgunj. we heard Gorusinghe is famous for it Lassi, so we're gonna try it.
We crossed lamahi and heading towards Nepalgunj and its really hot. I think nepalgunj is around 70 kms from here. The guys are inside the car. Can I ride the bike from here? How you doin? I'm getting rashes from the heat. You got a driving licence? yeah HONDA XR The nearer we were to Nepalgunj the more the temperature was rising. On reaching Kohalpur one could guess how hot it would be in Nepalgunj.
We are here at Nepalgunj Siddhartha Hotel. We were lucky it rained just as we entered the hotel. There are so many people to welcome us here. We are heading towards our rooms, Im so excited to be here. More excited because tomorrow we are starting our Phoksundo trek tomorrow.
How are you feeling Laxman Dai? Till now our journey is going really very well. From tomorrow onwards we'll be departing. These are friends of Amir, Bibash and Bibek. They're here to help us discover local foods of Nepalgunj. We are at Tribhuvan chowk, and we are about to have Biryani and Lassi.
The vibe here is totally different. The streets are really noisy and vibrant as well. The rooftop is really chill place to hangout.
It was so hot in the daytime, but now it has cooled down. [cabin crew announcement] We had to catch the morning flight of Summit Air to reach Juphal. Our trek from Juphal to Phoksundo was about to begin from Juphal. Flying us in the heights of mountain ranges Summit Air finally dropped us at Juphal Airport.
Juphal Airport was a different kind of attraction in itself Our minds were rejoicing when we saw that airport located in the lap of the mountains. We are taking our luggages to the jeep station. We'll be heading to Dunai for a while, we will meet Thup Tsang there. We'll eat and start walking then. We're really very lucky to witness such an awesome view.
The view was awesome. I couldn't blink for a second. How could you sleep amidst that awesomeness? I haven't slept properly for a couple of days. We are travelling in this jeep which costs 350rs per head. We are loading our stuffs onto the vehicle. The landscape is so awesome.
The hills, the clouds, the fog. The road from Jufal to Dunai was not so easy but due to the experience of the drivers there, It was not a big issue. We didn't know when an hour passed as we were talking and staring at the beautiful view outside the window. This much will suffice. We just reached Dunai after an hour long ride. [excited] I was going insane waiting for you guys.
Are you a vlogger? Just a beginner. We recently shared a closeup picture of a snowleopeard on our Instagram so he's the guy. How was the experience? It was okay.
Wasn;t it scary? It was close enough, I didn't have a zoom lens. i had a 55mm. 55mm is impressive. We got these Baring bags from Explore Dolpo all because of ThupTsang. Our gears wil be safe inside while loading it on the horse.
Now we'll be packing our stuffs. After lunch, we loaded our equipment on the horseback and set off on the journey to Phoksundo. Our first-day trek was to Chhepka. The desire to reach Phoksundo was on one side and on the other side was the beautiful geography seen on the way which we did not want to leave.
After 30 minutes of walk, we've reached Suligadh. We'll be heading towards Chhepka after crossing that suspension bridge. For fast pacers, Phoksundo is a 2 day trek. For us, it will take around 3 days.
The wooden bridges built over the river, the gurgling river below horses carrying heavy loads, the trekking path of the clean forest, and the determination to reach Phoksundo were the company of our journey. What is this? This is a Black. (instant weed) The horse is leaving alone. Can we drink water? My teeth have all fallen, why should I smile? There was a different energy in the wind of Phoksundo, The water there had an unmatchable power to quench our thirst and there was a different kind of intimacy in the people found. We were experiencing a strange world. Finally reached Kageni.
ThupTsang is the fastest walker. He was here half an hour ago. ThupTsang and I came together. Who is 3rd? We just got served fresh organic chillies.
There are leaves as well. We'll leave as soon as we finish eating. We were planning for Chhepka, but we might be staying in Shyangta He is our guide.
These are organic plums, they're really very tasty. Thupsang told us that we could only reach Syangta that day. We will reach Swagat hotel in 37 minutes. Where are we staying at tomorrow. Jharana Hotel.
are we walking from here to there? The distance looks massively long. We've just entered in Shey Phoksundo VDC. We're really tired, now we're going to rest. Namaste. Can we enter wearing shoes? Is this our room? Is there electricity? Is this solar or electricity? Its solar.
We've reached Shyangta and this is our hotel. Today we walked about 16.89 kms which is around 26772 steps. This whiskey is made from Yarsagumba which you guys hunt for. Alcohol [laughing] Had you seen this before? Never seen a whiskey of it. this is a product of your turf. the raw materials are from Dolpa Is this made in Kathmandu? Yes the factories are in Kathmandu.
People here only know how to hunt. Here taste this. tastes like Rum [laughing] Is dinner ready? Lets start eating now. we are enjoying the food which is amazingly hot in this cold weather. We are lucky to have this delicacy in Dolpa We'll go to bed after eating and start our journey tomorrow. On the first night of the trek, we stayed at Syangta.
Syangta was covered by fog the next morning, and after a while, it slowly opened. There, in the lap of the mountain, we got to experience the pleasure of listening to the melodious sound of the flowing river and waking up to it. How is the travel with the team of N8W going on? Till now, I've been walking on a really fast pace.
that way I cant observe the surrounding around me. Travelling with you guys has made me notice smaller things. which is a good thing the guys are shooting timelapse and taking drone shots What is this water for? For toilet [inaudible voice] [laughing] There's an important message I want to deliver There is no Internet, network nor electricity The electricity has been down since 8 days. But Nepal Telecom has provided telephone services here. As you can see, yesterday I contacted my close ones.
This wire is connected to the antenna above This is CDMA phone. This is chargeable through solar 1 minute of call costs 10 rs. I called my beloved ones.
and let them know I am safe and sound. All thanks to NTC Since NTC is available in remote places of Nepal, I really do agree on their tagline. Goodmorning everyone, we are in Shyangta. Since we reached here at night yesterday. Today we found out green apples at the backyard.
This is how you pluck apples from trees and take a bite. Damn this tastes good. Looks raw but is really juicy Today we'll be reaching Jharana Hotel which is around 2 hours before Phoksundo lake. We had to leave Syangta and reach Jharna Hotel that day.
After walking for a while, we came to a place called Chhepka. We reached Chhepka, now I'm unloading the gears and have some lunch This is Yak wool This is used to make thread. I dont know the exact way to make it though. [tunga music playing] There we ate our lunch listening to the melody of Tungna played by Thupsang and then advanced for the journey to Jharna Hotel. For those who come to visit Phoksundo, River will be like a friend who will never leave you Wherever we walked, the river flowed with us. When we asked the natives there, we found out that the river we were following was flowing through Phoksundo Lake.
Even though we were not at the lake, we could feel that we touched Phoksundo when we touched the clear water of the river Beautiful clear blue sky, beautiful suspension bridge in the middle of the blue river flowing below, and some us walking in the on the bridge. It was as if we were living the most beautiful moment of our lives. We felt so lucky that we couldn't even describe it in words even if we wanted to Even today, we have not forgotten the taste of those walnuts we ate sitting on the side of the river flowing nearby. He knows that the distance he traveled brings the destination closer. He knows that every step he takes salutes the beauty of nature.
He knows the time he has lived decorates the memories for the future. So a trekker knows a lot even though he doesn't think he knows it. So we met Karma who watches all our videos. I travel alot just because of you guys I dont have a big group, I just carry my camera and travel on the go.
I thought someday you guys might come to phoksundo Im glad I met you guys The best video so far is Winter In Manang Just cant get enough of it. I'll keep the link of Winter in Manang above. Is this a mule? Where are you coming from? From the lake See you tomorrow The trail is too damn steep I've been asking for too long. This is raw maize.
its too damn tasty. Our snacks for today, steamed potatoes. As it gets darker, its getting colder. We're wearing Sonam Gears.
Do you why this tree is scraped? So the carriages dont get stroked This path is too damn narrow. The loads that mules carry are too wide From this point you get Nepal Telecom coverage for calling. It was already night when we reached Jharna Hotel at Chunuwar After staying there for one night, we decided to reach Phoksundo the next day. Starting our trek from Dunai, there was no electricity. But you get electricity in this hotel The rooms are cozy.
Its been 2 days since we havent backed up our footages. You get charging facilities in this hotel today we're at jharana hotel and phoksundo river is flowing below. we refueled ourselves and also our gears. It looks like its about to rain. Just woke up The water is too damn cold You cant withstand it for too long Its about to rain lets see what happens This place has so many solar panels This is converted to DC current All these equipements was brought here on a helicopter. Dont we get millet here? We cant grow millet here sir, we have to bring it from villages below.
Do local tourists come more often or international? Give or take, its the same number This year, local tourists are being seen more. After having our breakfast at Jharna Hotel in the morning, we started our journey towards Phoksundo. After about 3 hours walk from Jharna Hotel, we would reach Phoksundo that day. You can stay here because you can charge here. If you walk slowly it takes 3 hours, normally its 2 and half hours We dont need to take photographs so we reach there sooner than normal The fact that we will reach Phokksundo that evening added great excitement to our journey. After a few moments of rest, we set off on our way to Phoksundo letting the horses carry the heavy loads.
We reached here after an hour of walking Bimal dai and me have reached here, but the guys are still down below. The landscape here is awesome We're walking and the landscape looks amazing. it us 15 minutes to reach here from that blue thing. The view is unimaginable Landscape is amazing Guys wait for me [laughing & panting] Hemanta dai is too tired to walk come fast We were feeling very tired when we had to climb the steep hill, but as we moved forward, a new geography was appearing in front of us so the tiredness was fading away in front of that beauty of Phoksundo.
Trekking is a unique journey that tires the body but not the mind. Picking fruits on the way, drinking cold water from the river and resting for a while, we headed towards Phoksundo again. It's written that Upper Dolpo starts from here. We'll explore the village for a while and go see lake in the evening.
What is your name? - Rin Jin Lhak Sang He is Lhak Tsang, this is Thup Tsang You can charge and also get wifi in this place. Far over there I can see the lake This is our room Arriving at Rigmo, we ate our lunch that added some energy to our body and we headed to see the sunset at Lake Phoksundo. [childish gibberish] Phoksundo was a dream come true for our entire team When we reached Rigmo, we had a small experience of realizing that dream.
Sometimes when we come to such places, it seems that we have got a beautiful life. The first thing is that our country has given us so many natural beauties that cannot be described in words Sometimes we think that if we ask for more, maybe God will be angry at us What more could God give? W'll be staying till sunset I think this place is where Phoksundo river starts I think this river is starting point for waterfall and river which we saw while starting our trek Watching the water of the lake disturbed by the small gust of wind , the pieces of clouds playing hide and seek above the lake. It was as if there was a celebration on Lake Phoksundo that day an anonymous celebration of happiness.
[extreme moan] Everyone is busy because of Wi-Fi after 3 days of no Wi-Fi Not just Wi-Fi, we have Fone pay, hot shower, cold shower We have good yet not so inexpensive rooms that cost 1000-1500 per room after freshening up, we'll be having breakfast beside the lake The weather is chillier and I'm feeling really nice coming to Phoksundo Above the hills somewhere was a place where clouds moved teasing the mountains, where friends. like horses and yaks enjoyed the cool wind breeze, where childhood was just childhood that was not affected by anything, where there was a roof of a clear blue sky above our head, where there was a sky like lake on the land, where there was a culture of a different type and was a beauty which was unique and irreplaceable It was one in a world and many in one in itself. The place was our beloved Phoksundo. Today is the birthday of our team member Prem.
Phoksundo like a rug was lying in front of us. Seeing it we wanted to travel a place far away passing through it. That day, we came to know Phoksundo has the power to create an optical illusion.
There are waste and garbage beside the lake We did eat beside but packed our waste back with us. Please carry your waste with yourself because these types of activities ruins the beauty. After having tea and biscuits on the shores of PHoksundo, we headed for the Thasung Choling Monastery.
When we reached the monastery, we bowed our heads to the religious faith of the Monastery. We just had our lunch and we're moving towards the view point. The weather is too cloudy and its raining so we returned back to hotel We'll move as soon as the rain stops Guys the rain has stopped The viewpoint can be reached in about a 3-hour walk from the hotel where we stayed. On the way to the viewpoint, passing the road that surrounds the lake, we could feel that we were embracing Phoksundo from all sides. Blue lake, Amazing I am speechless, you have to be here to see this As we approached the viewpoint, we began to see Phoksundo a few meters below us We had seen a body dancing many times but it was the first time that we experienced the dance of the heart.
Everyone is wearing Sonam gears raincoat because its raining. Its sunny while sometimes its cloudy here. We need to walk for one and half hour more to reach the view point Rain stopped Our minds were dancing with joy when we reached Phoksundo View Point Due to the bad weather, we were only able to reach the first viewpoint Above from here, its raining heavily. but we still made it Every journey has a different significance in human life This season we traveled to places like Manang, Mustang, Bardia, Sandakpur All of these journeys were equally important to us, , but once we stood at Phoksundo's viewpoint and saw the beauty of Phoksundo Lake, a different kind of feeling was born in us. we don't know what is so special about Phoksundo, but we believe that after washing the eyes with Foksundo's water, we start seeing better dreams. One of the main reasons for coming to Phoksundo is Sonam He kept on nagging me to come here.
How's the feeling? All the fatigue of walking for this may days have faded away After spending time around Phoksundo for a while, the mind begins to recognize peace. After walking the path of Phoksundo, life begins to see a new path. All these are the feelings of the trekker overjoyed to see Phoksundo in front of their eyes. Todays his birthday in Phoksundo Speechless I told him about planning the trip to make it on my birthday We cant find cake here, so we've ordered pancake The whiskey made from Yarsagumba from our Dolpa.
Nima dai is going to try the whiskey for the first time [acting] so damn good [loud crackling] [speaking tibetan] The lake is called Phoksundo now but it was called PHUK-SHUM-DHO Phuk means cave Shum translates to three Dho means junction. The place where three riverscollide to form is called Shum Dho It is called Phuk because there is still a hidden cave Hence PHUK SHUM DHO So actual Phoksundo is PHUK SHUM DHO!? YES She fed us well, the facilities in this hotel is very good. She made pancakes for us to celebrate. Nima dai is here. Thank you very much and welcome a souvenier from Phoksundo [clapping] We are not stating that everyone feels the same when they see Phoksundo.
Phoksundo can give you a different thing than what we experienced and there is only one way to know that. And we don't have to tell you what that way is Someone might have thought of asking for leave in the office Someone may have thought that I will ask for my parent's permission this time. Someone may have decided to break his piggy bank.
Someone may have even seen his bank balance. Someone may have created a group on messenger named Phoksundo Trek We won't say anything, do whatever comes to mind, Phoksundo is always waiting. [The End]
2021-11-16 22:48
