Mount Kailash is not the highest mountain in the Tibetan plateau, nor the hardest to reach, but no other peak in Asia carries the same weight. At 6,638 m, it is sacred to four religions, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and the older Tibetan faith of Bon, and it has never been climbed, by a mix of prohibition and respect. What people do instead is walk around it. The kora, a circuit of about 52 km with a pass of 5,630 m at its top, is one of the great pilgrimages of the world, and it is also, taken simply as a walk, one of the most striking three days we have spent at altitude. This is an account of the route in general terms, with the caveat that access to western Tibet depends on rules that change frequently.
A mountain at the centre of things
Kailash stands in the far west of the Tibet Autonomous Region of China, in the prefecture of Ngari, a high desert plateau at 4,500 m where four of Asia’s great rivers, the Indus, the Sutlej, the Brahmaputra and the Karnali, all rise within a hundred kilometres of the peak. That geography is part of its meaning. For Hindus it is the abode of Shiva; for Tibetan Buddhists the home of Demchok and the axis of the world; for Jains the place where the first of their teachers found liberation; for Bon followers the seat of their sky god. Below it lies Lake Manasarovar at about 4,590 m, whose water pilgrims carry home in bottles. The mountain itself is a distinctive shape, a pyramid of banded rock with a snow cap, standing apart from its neighbours, and the symmetry is what strikes you first across the plain.
Getting there
The kora begins and ends at Darchen, a small settlement at about 4,575 m on the mountain’s southern side. It is a long way from anywhere. From Lhasa the road journey west is more than 1,200 km and takes four to five days; from the Nepal border crossing north of Kathmandu it is two to three days by road. Indian pilgrims travel on organised routes across the passes from Uttarakhand and Sikkim. In every case the trip is arranged through an operator, because foreign visitors to Tibet must travel with a guide, a driver and a set of permits that include the standard Tibet entry permit, a travel permit for areas outside Lhasa and additional permission for the border regions of Ngari. We will not describe those documents in detail; they take weeks to obtain, are checked at frequent points along the road and have at times been suspended for whole seasons. What matters is that the approach itself is several days at over 4,000 m, which for the kora is both a difficulty and a help: by the time you reach Darchen, your body has had a week to adjust.
Day one: the western valley to Dirapuk
Most walkers follow the Buddhist and Hindu direction, clockwise. From Darchen the route heads west across the plain for an hour to Tarboche, a flat area with a tall flagpole that is replaced each year at the Saga Dawa festival in late spring or early summer, when thousands of Tibetans gather here. Beyond a small chorten gateway, the trail turns north into the Lha Chu valley and follows the river up between red cliffs, with the west face of Kailash appearing and disappearing behind the shoulders of the valley. The walking is easy, a gradual rise on a broad path shared with pilgrims, yaks and the occasional pony. After about 20 km the valley bends east and the day ends at Dirapuk, a monastery and a scatter of guesthouses at roughly 5,000 m, facing the sheer north face of the mountain. The view from here at sunset, with the wall of Kailash a kilometre above the valley floor, is the image most people take away.
Day two: Drolma La
The second day is the one that gives the kora its reputation. From Dirapuk the trail climbs steadily east and then south-east up a side valley, past the burial ground of Shiva Tsal, where pilgrims leave a piece of clothing or a strand of hair as a symbolic death, to the top of Drolma La at about 5,630 m. The climb is about 600 m and takes three to four hours at a pilgrim’s pace, which is slow, with many stops; the last section is steeper and, in early or late season, under snow. The pass is a great boulder wrapped in tens of thousands of prayer flags, and Tibetan pilgrims prostrate, circle the boulder and leave offerings before continuing. The descent is steep at first, past the small green lake of Gauri Kund, then long and stony down the eastern valley of the Lham Chu to Zutulpuk, a second monastery with guesthouses at about 4,790 m. It is a day of about 18 km and seven to nine hours, and the altitude makes it feel longer.
Day three and the question of pace
The last day is short: about 14 km down the eastern valley, through a gorge that narrows and then opens, back to the plain and Darchen in three to four hours. Many Tibetans walk the entire circuit in a single long day, starting before dawn and finishing after dark, and some devout pilgrims complete it by full-body prostration, which takes two to three weeks. For visitors, three days is normal and two is possible for the fit and well acclimatised. There are guesthouses at Dirapuk and Zutulpuk and simple food at tea tents along the way, so a tent is not necessary, although porters and ponies are available at Darchen for those who want to walk light. The season runs from May to mid-October; June and September are the most settled months, and July and August bring some rain and cloud from the monsoon that reaches even this far north.
Altitude, weather and respect
Nothing on the kora is technical, but nearly all of it is above 4,600 m and the pass is nearly as high as the summit of Elbrus, the highest point in Europe. Altitude illness is the real danger, and every year people are evacuated or worse. Arrive with at least a week of acclimatisation behind you, walk slowly, drink more than seems reasonable and treat a worsening headache or any confusion as a reason to turn back. The weather changes fast: snow can fall on Drolma La in any month, nights at Dirapuk are well below freezing even in summer, and the wind on the pass cuts through anything. Carry full winter layers, sun protection for the thin air and your own water treatment. And remember what the place is. The kora is a pilgrimage first and a walk second; walk clockwise unless you are Bon, keep to the left of chortens and mani walls, ask before photographing anyone at prayer and leave the offerings alone. We have rarely felt as much of a guest anywhere, and rarely been as glad to be one.