Drive Lhasa - Namtso

Journey to the sacred lake

Petr Liška
Wrote 2420 articles and follows him / her 243 travelers
Inserted: 06.03.2014
© gigaplaces.com

More than two hundred kilometers long journey from Lhasa to the sacred lake Namtso leads mainly in river valleys along the southern foothills of Nyenchen Tangla. The path leads mostly higher than in four thousand meters above sea level and culminates by crossing the pass Laken la (5 190 m asl). Along the way you will be able to enjoy picturesque barren landscape of Tibet and grazing shaggy yaks.

The road through the valley along Tibet

After you leave Lhasa, you will go almost all the way along the road G109 leading right next to the new traffic miracle – trans Tibet railway.

Author: Jiří Klečák © gigaplaces.com

Suspension bridges over the river

Along the road you will see a lot of decrepit bridges for local nomads and they make accessible fertile places right next to the river.

Author: Jiří Klečák © gigaplaces.com

Nyenchen Tanglha

The first official stop is at the outlook point of the highest mountain bearing the same name as the mountain range Nyenchen Tanglha (sometimes written as Nyainqentanglha), but it is mostly hidden behind the clouds. But more interesting is perhaps watching locals playing their games and parking their popular motorcycles, which are the ideal means of transport in the Tibetan plains.

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The encampment of nomads

Another interesting stop is at the nomadic tents – it is not certain whether they are really here or just for tourists. Anyway, the area is quite interesting and there are also herds of yaks, so this stop is not bad at all.

Author: Jiří Klečák © gigaplaces.com

Yaks

Yaks – one of the most typical animals not only in Tibet, but also in Bhutan and the Himalayan part of Nepal.

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Yaks on pasture

Green meadows and gentle slopes of the mountains near the Tibetan rivers, high altitude and cold climate – all this suits shaggy yaks.

Author: Jiří Klečák © gigaplaces.com

Damxung

Damxung (4 290 m asl) is the only major town on the way between Lhasa and Namtso lake. It is an ideal place for lunch and a short rest on the long way to the lake. The town is basically just a series of buildings surrounding the main road.

Author: Jiří Klečák © gigaplaces.com

Road to Laken la

In Damxung leaves our path the main road and rises up directly through the valley into the mountains. With increasing height is the outside world increasingly arid. Asphalt road surface is absolutely perfect considering that it rises higher than to five thousand meters above the sea.

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Laken la

From the Laken la pass (5 190 m asl) you can already see in the distance through prayer flags the destination of this journey – the sacred lake Namtso.

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The path above the pass

If you want to leave the “crowds” in the pass, you can walk a few hundred meters above the pass in the direction of the rocky mountain and enjoy the views in complete silence.

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View of the pass

From the outlook point above the pass are clearly visible the crowds of tourists.

Now only remain the last 30 kilometers along the upland plain to the lake.

Author: © gigaplaces.com
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Article: Trip to lake Namtso

Very nice two days trip from Lhasa leads to, for Tibetan sacred, lake Namtso surrounded by six thousand meters high mountains. If… continue reading