Situated in western Tibet Mount Kailash, the holiest of all the holy mountains, is the spiritual junction for both Hindus and Buddhists. The pilgrimage tour to Mt. Kailash and Lake Mansarovar is a journey into a remote and secluded land where you seem to leave behind material attachments as you travel towards the mountain and holy lake.
We take a scenic drive into lush vegetation of conifer, rhododendron and oak trees via the semi deserted windswept landscape to the highest plateau in the world. You can see a number of isolated villages, nomads’ tents with flocks of sheep, domesticated mountain goats and yaks grazing in vast fields.
Lake Mansarovar, an expanse of sparkling blue water sprawling over several miles, is believed to be the seat of Brahma (the Creator of Universe) and the snow capped Mount Kailash is considered the abode of Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati. The entire Kailash circuit trek is the holiest of all Tibet’s pilgrimages, an oasis of peace and serenity and the beacon that draws many travelers to western Tibet every year. It is said that a single circumference erases the accumulated sins of a lifetime while 108 circumferences achieve Nirvana.
As with the 2010 trek, the focus of this trip with be the photographic workshop taught by Chris and Jon. In order to give every participant the opportunity to make the most of the workshop, we will be using Jeeps while sightseeing/acclimatizing, then porters and pack animals to carry the majority of our supplies, luggage and personal photography equipment while trekking. In other words, every participant will only be responsible for carrying a small daypack and whatever camera gear will be used on any given day. This way the trek will be filled with opportunities for improving your picture-taking skills, not your endurance under a heavy pack!
To keep the group as close together as possible, we will all be staying at the same hotels and guesthouses throughout the trip. Once we leave for the trek itself, we will be camping. Again, we’ve worked out all of the logistics with Mountain Tribes and there will only be two people per sleeping tent and guesthouse room. Single rooms will be provided while in Kathmandu before and after visiting Tibet. Single rooms are available for an extra charge while in Tibet. Contact us for more information. We will also have a mobile kitchen and dining tent with two head cooks and five kitchen assistants. Every effort is being made to facilitate the workshop and make the trekking experience as conducive to learning as possible.
The trek will require just less than a 3 week commitment (including roundtrip travel from/to home) from each participant. In order to achieve the best weather window for our adventure, everyone involved with the Workshop Trek will need to arrive in Kathmandu, Nepal no later than April 17th, 2011. From that date, the following itinerary will be followed (give or take a day):
We know this is the information that most people have been interested in. First off, it must be said that participation in all Himalayan Workshops Treks are limited to adults age 18 and older. We are pleased to offer this workshop at our most affordable price ever of $5999. This will be all inclusive once we leave Kathmandu for Tibet and will include lodging, two team dinners and all breakfast in Kathmandu. In addition to any workshop materials, the price will include:
The price does NOT include round-trip airfare to Kathmandu from your country of residence.
The scheduled dates for the workshop will be from Sunday, April 17th, 2011 to Tuesday, May 3rd, 2011.
Due to the large demand for the workshop and the fact that we are limiting the number of participants to 15 (fifteen), we will be conducting registration through this website. To cut down on casual registrations, this year we are implementing a $25 registration fee. The fee will be fully refundable in the event you will not be joining us.Please see the Registration page for all of the details.
Registration is now open. Every completed registration form will be time- and date-stamped which will determine the order in which we will be offering positions on the workshop. If for any reason a name is removed from the list, all registrants below that name will be moved up one position.
Once we determine the registration order, you will receive an email from info@himalayanworkshops.com informing you that you are on the participant list. After that, we will require a 50% deposit ($3000) to secure your place on the trek.
To encourage early registration and to firm up the participant list as quickly as possible we will apply an “early bird” discount of $500 for anyone who pays their 50% deposit within 14 days of registration bringing the overall price down to $5499. Since the discount will be applied to the full price immediately, only a deposit of $2750 will be required to secure your place on the participant list.
The deposit is NON-REFUNDABLE and must be paid no later than 10 days from the date of registration.
The remaining 50% balance (minus registration fee) will need to be paid no later than April 1st, 2011.
Information on payment forms and methods will be included in your registration email.
Thanks again for your interest in the 2011 Kailash Workshop Trek.
We’re making every effort to ensure that this trip will be the experience of a lifetime. The goal here is to provide an adventurous, safe learning environment to empower you to take the kinds of photographs and video you’ve only dreamed of taking.
And because Chris and Jon and Monika are podcasters, the entire trip will be documented with1080p HD video. They will be using this trek to generate months of content for their shows–and you’ll be part of it!
This workshop will also be used as the premier content for a new podcast to be produced by Jon entitled “Himalayan Workshops”. This show will go on the cover all future workshops and treks we offer.
This is an amazing opportunity to not only enjoy the adventure of a lifetime, but to have it professionally captured in photos and video and fully produced to be shared with the world.