Cho Oyu
- Kathmandu airport, Nepal
- Active & Adventure
| from $18,500* per person | 45 Days | August |
| Luxury accommodations | Exertion level: 3 | |
| Operator: Mountain Madness | 12 people max | |
Our Cho Oyu expedition will fly to the ancient capital city of Tibet, Lhasa, once home to the 14th Dalai Lama who fled to India in 1959 due to the Chinese Invasion. While acclimatizing, our group will tour many of the Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and palaces as we journey to Cho Oyu base camp. We will take an alternative overland route back to Kathmandu via Zhangmu.
First summitted in 1954 by a small Austrian/Tibetan expedition, Cho Oyu is technically easier than most other “8000ers,” making it a great first 8000-meter peak for climbers with previous high altitude climbing experience. We will climb Cho Oyu via the West Ridge/West Face, which has two short technical sections. Advanced Base Camp (ABC) will be established at 5800 meters (19,024 feet), Camp I at 6500 meters, Camp II at 7100 meters (23,288 feet), and Camp III at 7400 meters (24,272 feet).
The Tibetan folktale of Cho Oyu (meaning Turquoise God) is that he fell in love with the Goddess Chomolungma (Everest), who later married her closer neighbor to the southeast, Makalu. Cho Oyu never married and he now faces the opposite way of Chomolungma.
The expedition will start in Kathmandu, Nepal. We will meet at our Nepal office to get our paperwork together, organize our gear, and enjoy the local customs & culture of Kathmandu before flying to Lhasa. We take a spectacular route from Lhasa to the village of Tingri, our final rugged and rural village before Cho Oyu base camp. We spend two nights at base camp before we hire yaks to transport our expedition supplies to ABC. On this two day journey we will cross rivers, and hike over rocky moraine before we arrive at ABC, “our base camp” for 4 weeks.
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Locations visited/nearby
Nepal, Asia
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3 testimonials about the provider, Mountain Madness:
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Reviewer: Bill Alorets, Glacier Mountaineering Course
“Great trip! Lots of training and summit day was incredible. Lead and assistant guide was always available and incredible patient. I highly recommend Mountain Madness to anyone!”
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Reviewer: Vince Colletti, Basic Rock Course
“I had one of the most amazing weekends of my life and our guide was responsible for that. I can’t say enough words of praise for him, or the staff of Mountain Madness. You definitely have a return customer!”
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Reviewer: Angelina Trujillo, Mt. Baker Slow boat climb
“Thank you! This trip was very successful due to our guides and their support. My limited experience and older age was taken into account on how they managed our group which was the reason for all of our success!”
Itinerary
Day 1-3Arrive in Kathmandu
Travel from your home port to Kathmandu. All flights cross the date line and consequently a day is lost. Mountain Madness representatives will meet you at the airport and transport you to your hotel. Optional sightseeing of Kathmandu. Overnight at the hotel.
Day 4
Kathmandu
We finalize last minute paperwork with the Nepal and Tibet governments. You will have a casual day shopping for souvenirs in the streets of Kathmandu, with abundant photo opportunities along the way. Visit the palaces, Durbar Square, Hindu temples, shrines, and Buddhist stupas or just relax at the hotel.
Day 5
Lhasa
We fly to Lhasa and the fascinating world of Tibet. We transfer to our hotel downtown. Elevation at Lhasa is over 12,000 feet, so we use this opportunity to begin acclimatizing.
Day 6-7
Sightseeing in Lhasa
We have an opportunity to visit the popular and awe inspiring Potala Palace, Lhasa’s most renowned landmark. Since its construction in 1694, the Potala has been the home of each of the successive Dalai Lamas until 1959 and the final resting place of many of them. In the afternoon we will visit the Jokhang Temple, the most revered religious structure in Tibet. We may visit Norbulingka Palace, which was the summer home of the Dalai Lamas, and Drepung monastery, once the world’s largest.
Day 8
Drive to Shigatse and visit the Tashilhunpo Monastery
We travel by 4x4 across the Tibetan plateau. We arrive in Shigatse, the second largest city of Tibet, in the afternoon. There, we tour Tashilhunpo Monastery. Built in 1447, this imposing complex is the residence of the Panchen Lama, the second most important religious figure in Tibet.
Day 9
Drive to New Tingri
Today will be a long travel day. Lunch stop will be in the town of Lhatse at 4000 meters. Our afternoon drive will take us over two passes above 5000 meters before arriving at the village of New Tingri.
Day 10-11
Cho Oyu Base Camp
We drive through the scenic countryside to base camp. The next morning we will take an acclimatization hike to 18,000 feet. After lunch we spend some time sorting gear before we head to Advanced Base Camp (ABC) the next day.
Day 12-13
Trek to Advance Base Camp
After breakfast we will depart on our two-day journey to Cho Oyu ABC. We will forge through the ice cold Ra Chhu River and set up intermediate camp. The following morning we trek to ABC and camp next to the Nangpa La. Camp will be at 5800 meters.
Day 14-40
Climb of Cho Oyu
Our strategy is to place two more camps at 6500 meters and 7100 meters while we acclimatize for our summit attempt. This includes spending a night at 7100 meters before descending back to ABC. We rest at ABC for approximately 4 days depending on weather and the strength of the team. On our summit push we climb to Camp 1, then Camp 2 and then establish Camp 3 at 7400 meters. On summit day we leave at 2 a.m. Depending on the strength of the team we should summit between 9-11 a.m. We will descend to our high camp or Camp 2 for the night. The next day we will descend to ABC.
Day 41
Descend to Cho Oyu Base Camp
Our yaks will arrive in the morning. We trek down to base camp and arrive late in the day.
Day 42
Drive to Zhangmu
In the morning we will have a quick clean-up of the base camp area before the trucks pick us up there. We then make the adventurous drive to Zhangmu on the border of Tibet and Nepal.
Day 43
Drive to Kathmandu
After checking through with the Chinese border patrol and customs, we drive through the lush country of Nepal. The countryside is filled with warm and friendly people, beautiful waterfalls and terraced hillsides.
Day 44
Extra Day in Kathmandu
We have the day to linger around the city and visit the monasteries or hang out at a rooftop cafe.
Day 45
Fly home
Note on Itinerary: Although we do our best to follow the schedule listed, this itinerary is subject to change for numerous reasons beyond our control.
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