Golok Holy Mountain Tour

Golok Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture is located in southeastern Qinghai province, in the Amdo region of Tibet. Over 90% of the 125,000 people who live in Golok are Tibetan. Most of the people in Golok are nomadic with many of them living in traditional style Tibetan tents. Most of Golok is well above 4000m / 13,120 feet so summers are short and winters are long and cold. Golok is famous across the Tibetan Plateau as being the home of Amnye Machen, one of the 4  main holy mountains of Tibet. Each year, thousands of pilgrims make their way to Amnye Machen (pictured above) to make a pilgrimage around the mountain. The trek around the mountain takes about 5 or 6 days. Amnye Machen rises 6282m / 20,605 feet and is the highest mountain in Amdo.

Another famous holy mountain in Golok is Nyenbo Yurtse. Nyenbo Yurtse is located in the remote far eastern corner of Golok prefecture and stand 5369m / 17,611 feet high. This mountain sees very few foreign travelers, but is possibly the most beautiful place in all of the northern Tibetan Plateau. A deep fresh water lake sits at the base of the mountain. Several rivers run into the lake. The area around Nyenbo Yurtse (pictured above) is excellent for hiking.

A tour to these 2 holy mountains takes between 9 and 11 days leaving from Xining. Here is a sample itinerary for this trip.

Day 1: Drive 110kms from Xining to Kumbum monastery and then to Guide (pictured above). Kumbum is one of the most famous monasteries in the Amdo region. Guide sits along the banks of the Yellow River and is surrounded by red earth mountains which are excellent for hiking.

Day 2: Drive 250kms from Guide to the monastery town of Rabgya (pictured below). Rabgya is a large Gelukpa sect monastery along the Yellow River. The monastery has around 500 monks and sits at the bottom of a mountain.

Day 3: Drive 75kms from Rabgya to the town of Machen (Dawu in Chinese). Machen is the capital town of Golok prefecture and is the starting point in going to Amnye Machen.

Day 4: Drive 90kms from Machen to the base camp of Amnye Machen at the small town of Xueshan (pictured below). This is the starting point for the pilgrimage around the holy mountain. You can camp for a night or two here if you want.

Day 5: Drive 250kms from Xueshan to Darlag. Darlag is a small town along the Yellow River. Along the way from Xueshan to Darlag, you pass through large grasslands full of nomads and yaks.

Day 6: Drive 220kms from Darlag to Nyenbo Yurtse base camp. Along the way you will pass several monasteries including Tarthang Monastery (pictured above). Camp at base camp.

Day 7: Spend the day hiking around Nyenbo Yurtse. Camp at base camp.

Day 8: Drive 480kms from Nyenbo Yurtse to Huashixia in western Golok prefecture. You will cross over several sections of the Yellow River (pictured below) as well as several nomad camps.

Day 9: Drive 330kms from Huashixia to Qinghai Lake, the largest lake in China.

Day 10: Drive from Qinghai Lake back to Xining.

This is just an example itinerary for this route. It can be modified in any way.

If you have any questions about this or any other tour in Tibet, please email us at info@tibetanconnections.com. Look here for more pictures from this trip.

Comments

[Marian C Ghilea]

Nice photos. I hope to gather enough time and money to go there in 2 years. Is it expensive? Which language is more useful to know, Tibetan or Chinese for the area?

[Marian C Ghilea]

Nice photos. I hope to gather enough time and money to go there in 2 years. Is it expensive? Which language is more useful to know, Tibetan or Chinese for the area?

[Buddha Statues]

I love your blog. These images are amazing and it makes me feel as I would be part of it. Keep it up and thank you for sharing them.