Tibetan Treks - Tibet - page 453

From Shalu Monastery (3980m; N 29°07.625ʹ, E 088°59.590ʹ) walk the motorable road
south (up the valley). After 30 minutes from Shalu you will pass by the Ri-puk Hermit-
age , set on a hillside on the west side of the valley. If you wish to visit, cut across the
fields and head directly up to the hermitage - the way is not difficult and there are several
trails leading up to it.
About 45 minutes from Shalu the road forks: take the south fork. In the south, a conical-
shaped hill and a village at its base can be made out. If you struck out in Shalu, stay on the
road to this village, called Phunup , about a one-hour walk away - you may also find a
guide and pack animals here. Otherwise, there is a short cut that saves 2km of walking. A
few minutes from the fork in the road, look for the base of a long red ridge. Leave the road
and skirt the base of this ridge, going in a southerly direction. First cross a flood plain to
reach a rectangular red shrine and, beyond it, enter a plain bounded in the south by the red
ridge.
Gradually the trail climbs to a small white ridge blocking the route to the south. As you
approach you will see a line of white cairns marking its summit (4030m; N 29°06.011ʹ, E
088°59.590ʹ). Look for the trail that ascends to the cairns, a one-hour walk from the fork
in the road. From the ridge's summit, Phunup village is to the south and the Showa-la is to
the west. The pass is the obvious low point in the range at least one hour away. The trail
descends gradually to enter the stream bed coming from the Showa-la, 30 minutes from
the cairns. If you came via Phunup, your route will converge with the main trail here.
The climb up to the pass and the descent on the other side is through some heavily
eroded, waterless ravines and slopes. Bring plenty of drinking water from the trailhead.
From the stream bed the trail soon climbs back up the right side of the valley only to drop
back in and out of the stream bed in quick succession. Don't make the mistake of walking
up the stream bed as you will encounter ledges and other difficult terrain. After twice
briefly dropping into the narrow stream bed, be alert for a trail carving a route up the right
slope. It's situated just a few metres before a fork in the stream bed. The trail climbs
steeply to a group of ruins and then winds around to the pass in 30 minutes. The top is
marked by white cairns.
From the Showa-la (4170m; N 29°06.371ʹ, E 088°56.939ʹ), the second pass, the Char-
la, can be seen in the range of hills west of an intervening valley. It is the dip in the crest of
the range. The easy-to-follow trail descends from the pass along the south side of a ravine.
In one hour you will reach the valley floor. Leave the trail just before it crosses a small rise
marked with cairns and continue west towards a distant group of trees. Cross over the