News

Recce trip to Panchpokhari concludes

A team of Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN) along with a number of organizations recently completed reconnaissance trek to Panchpokhari area in Sindhupalchowk district. Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), UNDP/MEDEP and Sindhupalchowk-Panchpokhari Tourism Development.

Committee (SPTDC) were the other partners of the trek. The team had left Kathmandu on June 4.

Paanchpokhari (literally means Five Ponds), which falls in the Langtang National Park, is formed by melting glaciers and all the lakes are considered sacred. There is also a Hindu temple nearby dedicated to Lord Shiva. Paanchpokhari is also among the nine highest altitude wetlands in the world. The sacred place wears a festive look during Janai Purnima festival (which is celebrated in July-August). Pilgrims from nearby villages and all over the country visit the place for to offer prayers. The festival runs for 15 days.

The 13-member team led by Mahendra Singh Thapa, second vice president of TAAN, has developed and suggested nine-day itinerary to Panchpokhari. The first day’s trek takes us to a beautiful village named Haveli after a drive of seven and half hours via Sankhu and Melamchi and a light trek of two hours. The second day takes trekkers to Tapkharka through dense forests and difficult trail in five hours. The third day’s trek is relatively shorter and ends at a place called Nosyampati. Thoughout the trek, one can enjoy pristine views of Pancpokhari Lake – literally five lakes – and snowcapped mountains. Trek from Nosyampati to Panchpokhari, which takes about three and a half hours, on the fourth day is a semi-rigorous hike. But you get rewarded with the magnificent views of all the five lakes and snowcapped mountains.

The fifth day begins with a hike to the highest point near the lake from where one can get stupendous views of the Yangri, Jugal, Dorje Lakpa, Gauri Shankar and Langtang Himalayan ranges. After lunch at Panchpokhari, the trek progresses back to Nosyampati which is a walk of three and a half hours. The trek on the sixth day is a bit long (seven hours approximately) and it begins from Nosyampati and concludes at Tembathang via Sukpa Kharka. Tembathang is a beautiful village of Sherpas and also the base camp of Jugal Himal. On the seventh day, the trek (approximately six hours) progresses to Gumba Tamang village where we get opportunity to enjoy Tamang culture. The trek on the eight day takes us to Pangtang village (1730m) which is inhabited by Tamang and Newar population. A three and a half hour trek on the ninth day takes us to Chanaute from where a drive of around three hours takes to Kathmandu. Along with suggested itineraries, the team will also prepare promotional collaterals of the trek very soon.

Govt employees to attempt Mt Everest

A team of 20 government employees, including a woman, led by secretary at the Prime Minister’s Office and the Cabinet Leelamani Poudyal is preparing to climb Mt Everest – the tallest peak on earth – next season.

Poudel made up his mind to climb Mt Everest while he was working with Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation two years ago.

The team will take basic and advance mountaineering training this year and the coming year and organize an expedition to Everest in spring next year.

The employees have already taken climbing training at the artificial climbing wall of Pasang Lhamu Mountaineering Federation and rock climbing at Nagarjun. They left for Rasuwa district in the third week of June to climb Yala Peak (5,550m).

A total of 49 government employees had applied at the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation to climb Everest. Under secretary Baburam Bhandari said they had selected 20 employees through different tests.

The team led by Poudel has joint secretary Laxman Prasad Bhattarai, Durga Prasad Bhattarai, section officer Muktiram Rijal and office assistant Rukmini Gurung, among others.

The government has exempted permit fee for the expedition and is also bearing all expenses of the expedition. He said the government will allocate a budget of Rs 30 million for the expedition in the upcoming budget.

Zimba Zangbu elected NMA president

Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA) has elected Zimba Zangbu Sherpa as its new president. Sherpa received 443 of the 851 votes cast, edging his competitor Bhumi Lal Lama by 63 votes.

Similarly, Nima Nuru Sherpa and Santabir Lama have been elected as first and second vice president respectively. Sherpa defeated Da Gombu Sherpa while Lama edged Thakur Raj Pandey. Dibas Bikram Shah, Dibas Pokharel and Asha Gurung have been elected as general secretary, secretary and treasurer respectively.

Similarly, Dawa Steven Sherpa, Sonam Chhiring Sherpa, Maya Sherpa, Rajendra Man Shrestha, Ang Dawa Sherpa, Om Man Shrestha Pasang Sherpa, Thaman Singh Tamang and Usha Bista have been elected as the members.

According to NMA statute, 1024 general members can elect six office-bearers and nine members, while mountaineers can elect two members in the executive committee. Similarly, nine institutional members can elect a member in the executive committee.

Bil Bahadur Thapa and Lhakpa Norbu Sherpa have been elected in the executive committee as members from among the mountaineers, while Ngawang Ngima Sherpa of Nepal Mountaineering Instructors’ Association has been elected into the executive committee from amongst the institutional members.

Two panels led by Zimba Zangbu Sherpa and Bhumi Lal Lama had contested in the election. Eleven members of Sherpa’s panel and four, including second vice president and general secretary, from Lama’s panel were elected.

The executive committee will perform its responsibility for a two-year tenure.

Lazimpat Tourism Development Board holds AGM

Lazimpat Tourism Development Board (LTDB) recently held its first annual general meeting (AGM) in Kathmandu. LTDB is a forum of tourism entrepreneurs based in and around Lazimpat.

Speaking on the occasion, newly elected President Govinda Singh Dangol said the LTDB will do its best to develop Lazimpat as a popular tourism hub in the Kathmandu Valley. “We will also develop home-stay facilities in Lazimpat to achieve the target of one million visitors during the Nepal Tourism Year 2011. We will encourage people in the area to allocate at least one room in every home for tourists,” he added.

The AGM elected Jagat Man Lama as vice president, Dr Raghab Kishor Bhattarai as secretary and Ram Prasad Shrestha as treasurer.

Meanwhile, LTDB has also floated a concept of developing Lazimpat area as a ‘Nice Walking Zone’. It plans to improve traffic management in the area, maintain pavements, manage street lights, implement waste management programmes effectively, and improve security situation to develope the area as a walking zone. The total cost of developing Lazimpat area as a ‘Nice Walking Zone’ has been estimated at Rs 1,435,000.

Clean-up campaign in Fewa Lake

Local administration organized a massive campaign in the first week of June to get rid of water hyacinth that has infested Fewa Lake, one of the major tourist attractions in Kaski district.

About 200 personnel of Nepal Army, Armed Police Force and Nepal Police along with local boat entrepreneur actively participated in the campaign. Tourism entrepreneurs’ and local mother groups also participated in the campaign.

The team collected over 10 truckloads of fast spreading water hyacinth on a single day.

Kaski CDO Sambhu Koirala said the clean-up campaign was organized to preserve Fewa Lake which has been infested by water hyacinth. “We will organize similar clear-up campaigns to preserve the beauty of this lake city,” Koirala added.

Every year stakeholders in Pokhara has been organizing clean-up campaign on Fewa Lake to great rid of the fast spreading water plant. It had already covered almost half of the lake.