Gosainkunda Trek – See One Of Nepal’s Most Beautiful Lakes

You arrive in Kathmandu.

As your trek is prepared, you explore Kathmandu and the surrounding valley. Kathmandu overflows with attractions such as Durbar Square, whose temples date to the 12th century, Boudhanath Stupa, one of the largest in the world, and the Pashupatinath Temple, the most important Hindu temple in the country.

Your first move is a drive to Dhunche, which takes roughly eight hours by bus. As you go, there is a view of majestic mountains that include Ganesh Himal. Dhunche is a pleasing village containing large stone houses.

Your trek begins today. You start by walking up through forests of oak, fir and the beautiful rhododendrons. When you arrive in Sing Gompa, you find a monastery and a cheese factory that employs yak milk. You have a good view of Langtang Himal and Langtang Valley on the way.

You ascend up through forest once more, eventually arriving in Gosainkunda where you stay for the night. Visible are the mountains of Dorje Lakpa, Ganesh Himal, Langtang and Langtang Lirung.

The trail continues upwards. The path is quite rough and eroded. Moraines – patches of dirt and rock – are crossed. Laurebina La pass is also to be crossed. Next, you descend to Phedi. The path ascends once again before descending down among rocky hills and pine and rhododendron forest. You arrive in Ghopte where you stay for the night.

The trail now descends along a ridge, with forest to either side. You ascend to Tharepati, with a stream en route. Tharepati is in the lap of the mountain. You spend the night here.

You climb to a ridge above the village and enter a forest. You follow the Melamchi River and ascend to Melamchi Goan. You arrive in the village of Tarkeghyang where you stay the night.

After crossing a small forest, the trail leads to the small and beautiful village of Gangwal. There is a small monastery here. Your next stop is Sermanthang, another very pretty village.

It is a short way down to Malamchi Pul Bazaar. You board a vehicle to return to Kathmandu.

Prices range from $650 on the low end to $1,500 on the top end.

You require a Langtang National Park Entry Permit ($30) and Trekkers Information Management System registration ($10 through a company, $20 as an individual).

The best time is autumn, from mid-October to mid-December, while the next best is spring, from the beginning of March to mid-May. Laurebina Pass may remain closed until early May.

The Gosainkunda trek ascends to some high altitude points. At its highest point, Laurebina, you will reach an altitude of 4,610 meters (15,120 feet). There are steep section on this trek where you will ascend very rapidly, which increases your altitude sickness risk.

Therefore, it is important to have a solid understanding of the risks associated with high altitude trekking and how the body acclimatises to high altitude. We recommend you read our detailed article on Altitude Sickness and Acclimatisation.

The Gosainkunda Trek is considered moderately difficult and a good level of fitness is required. There are steep sections and you will be trekking for some miles each day.

Hiking the Gosainkunda trek requires a number of essential pieces of trekking gear. The Gosainkunda trek is long and moderately difficult. It exposes you to a range of altitudes where temperatures fluctuate dramatically between night and day.

Certain trekking gear can be rented or bought in Kathmandu, but we strongly suggest bringing the most important pieces of gear and equipment with you.

To help you plan and prepare for your trek we recommend reading our gear section.