The Mountain Company only organises the complete Lunana Snowman trek from Paro to Bumthang whereas these days many other operators are walking the shorter 24 day version of the "Snowman" trek start in Punakha and others Lunana via the Nikka Chu valley. In fact in our group we had two people who had already done this shorter version of Snowman and came back again to Bhutan to do it properly! It was very interesting to hear their views on the differences between the two Snowman treks, they both confirmed that the longer Snowman to Bumthang is far better and this last section includes the best days of the entire trek such as Tshorim Lake, Gophu La, Phorang La & Saga La, Dur Tsachu hot springs and the Djule La pass.
Our dates worked well as we experienced good weather throughout most of the trek however had some days of light snow towards the end and it is likely the high passes would have been blocked by winter snows shortly after our passage. In fact I recently heard from one person who trekked the Snowman with another group starting a week later and she explained how they had several tough days crossing Gophu la and other exit passes in blizzard conditions.
In terms of logistics the crux for organising the Lunana Snowman trek is to arrange the animal transport in advance and work with reliable contractors. We had four changeovers of pack animals: first from Paro to Chomolhari BC; then to Laya; then to Thanza and finally at Dur Tsachu to Minchugang.
Lunana Snowman is one of the most challenging treks in Himalaya due to the logistics involved, it is also one of the most beautiful trek visiting a remote area rarely seen by other trekking groups especially if you follow the longer exit from Lunana to Bumthang. Of course Lunana Snowman is a long trek and expensive to join however it is a very special place to visit summarised well by Mark one of the members of our 2011 Lunana Snowman trek- see his comments below:
"The Lunana Snowman trek in Bhutan was for me a dream fulfilled that transcended the magical. Yes - it was long and challenging but now indelibly etched on my mind as the most beautiful place I have been privileged to visit. The highlights were....Karchung La....the rest day in Thanza......Tshorim Lakes....Saga la (surprisingly for me)....simply stunning... and inevitably the Swiss Guest House! Superb leadership by Roland; a master logistician and outdoorsman.....an absolute gentleman." Mark Simmonds 2011 Lunana Snowman trek
Photo: on summit of Karchung la
I have copied links below to read more information on our Snowman 2011 on The Mountain Company’s blog:
Trip report for Lunana Snowman (Bhutan) led by Roland Hunter in September/ October 2011
Selected photos of Lunana Snowman trek in Bhutan (September 2011)
The Mountain Company is planning to organise our Lunana Snowman trek in September/ October 2012 (dates: September 21st to October 26th 2012), please get in touch soon if you are interested in joining this group.
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