All About Rolwaling Valley
Rolwaling Valley: The Sacred Beyul and Remote Himalayan Paradise

The Rolwaling Valley, nestled in the lap of Mount Jomo Tseringma (Gaurishankar) and Dolma Kang, sacred mountains for Buddhists and Hindus and long-life divinities, is a Beyul and holy place visited and blessed by Guru Rinpoche, also called Padmasambhava. Rolwaling Valley is a remote mountain valley in northeast Nepal, at an altitude of 4000 meters, bordering the Everest Region on one side and Tibet on the other. Rolwaling Valley is rich in natural resources, with Mount Jomo Tseringma (Gaurishankar), several high mountains, including Melungtse (7,181m), unclimbed virgin Peaks, and two enormous lakes: Tso Rolpa and Omi Tso. Fed by the lakes, snow, and ice, the valley is crisscrossed by beautiful streams and waterfalls that flow over steep slopes into the Tama Koshi River. Visitors to Rolwaling are greeted by tall trees draped in hanging moss, a forest of bamboo and rhododendrons along the southern slope, and beautiful valleys, lakes, and high Himalayan Peaks rimming the horizon. Rolwaling is spectacular and unique; rivers flow by you, and high mountains soar in all directions, creating a sacred, heavenly landscape that gives you a strong spiritual feeling and peace of mind and body. Rolwaling is also home to some of Nepal’s best Sherpa climbing guides, a small paradise on earth, the great deities Mount Jomo Tseringma and Dolma Kang, and a Beyul, a sacred treasure concealed by Guru Rinpoche.

Beyul

Guru Rinpoche, or Padmasambhava, the founder of Tantric Buddhism in Tibet, is said to have passed through this valley as he journeyed toward Tibet around the beginning of the 8th century; this remains under research. Rolwaling is among the holy sites where Guru Rinpoche meditated on Vajra Kilaya and concealed the sacred texts called Khando-Dhakyik in the uninhabited area. Guru Rinpoche’s book, the ‘Pema Kathak’, states that Rolwaling is a Beyul. During his visit, Guru Rinpoche consecrated many natural sites and monuments still scattered throughout the valley, and you can visit sacred places such as Tseku-Nasa, Urgyen Jyusa, Urgyen Dupkhang, and Tsebum. Therefore, Rolwaling is considered a significant Beyul, the hidden treasure. Guru Rinpoche established them to preserve the sites as places of refuge in the hardest of the cycle, or the most unfortunate time. Visitors can visit the sacred cave site while resting and acclimatizing in Na village, the summer village of the Rolwaling People.

 Access to and from Rolwaling

It is a day’s drive from Kathmandu to Gongar Khola, followed by a beautiful three-day walk to Beding. The trek is impressive, with many valleys and high mountains. The third day to Beding and beyond opens up the valley, offering a movie-like, alluring landscape. It is an exceptionally ideal place for trekking if you want something different and to get lost in nature for several days. If you don’t want to take the same path as everyone else, you can enter and exit through several trails, including a three-day walk from Namche to Thame in the Khumbu Valley. Another option is a 3- to 4-day walk via Phik-Phire to Thupten Chholing, at Solu. Another trail crosses the Yarlung-Ri pass and reaches Jiri on a 4-day walk. So there are plenty of choices.

 Fauna and Flora

Despite the high altitude, the fauna and flora of the Rolwaling Valley are surprisingly varied. Among the 300 species listed, about 80 are edible plants, medicinal plants, and other remarkable species, such as rhododendron incense plants. The region’s entire natural boundary is protected under Gaurishankar National Park. The Park is home to some endangered plant and wildlife species.

 Rolwaling, a paradise of mountaineers

Rolwaling offers many challenging mountaineering peaks. Trekkers arriving in the Rolwaling region climb Ramdung Peak and Pachermo Peak on their way to Khumbu. But for climbers, options are available at one station in Na Village or in Beding Village itself. Rolwaling provides quality ice and beautiful cliffs for Ice and Rock Climbing. The region’s altitude and mountain formations give the ice exceptional quality. The Rolwaling ice is even among the best in the world for mountaineers. Rolwaling has the ideal characteristics to meet the needs of mountaineers or mountaineering students. During the dry season, you can reach the ice-climbing area just 45 minutes from Na or Beding village. Then, in 35 minutes, you can reach the rock-climbing site. If the weather is not suitable for rock climbing, for example, if it is snowing, you can go ice climbing and return to Na the same evening. Elsewhere, it often takes 2-3 days of walking to reach the climbing area, and you may choose only ice, only rock, or a mix.

The Sherpas of Rolwaling

By nature and by the religion they practice, Buddhism, the Sherpas deeply respect nature. Usually, Sherpa villages forbid cutting trees, killing animals, and hunting, and Rolwaling is the one that forbids it throughout the valley. No one has killed an animal at Rolwaling for generations. Even the Dalai Lama sent “Freed” 108 sheep here, promising not to slaughter them. Lama Zopa Rinpoche of Kapan monastery in Kathmandu also freed 108 yaks in the Rolwaling Himalayas.

 History says Rolwaling was populated only after 1870. The Sherpas came from Tibet to the Khumbu region and Rolwaling and settled there. The Sherpas of Rolwaling first settled in caves; later, other families joined and built permanent houses. The Sherpas of Rolwaling still lead a nomadic life, moving between winter, intermediate, and summer places in the higher lands. They live in Na village and higher up until August; afterward, they descend with their herds into the jungle below.

 In winter, they reside in several small villages near the Jomo Tseringma (Gauri Shankar) mountain. The winter villages are Ngimare, Ramding, Syapluk, Chhumigolcho, Changmi Kha, and Dongang. Temperatures in these winter villages are milder, with less snow and full vegetation for their herds. Beding village is the main village of Rolwaling and the central intermediate village that connects its summer and winter villages for movement and supplies. Na is the summer residence and sits on a gently sloping plateau, surrounded by mountains on three sides. The pleasant and mild climate of Rolwaling allows them to stay at Na and above for about six months during the summer and autumn.

Livelihood

In the past, the Sherpas of Rolwaling wove and knitted their traditional dress, blankets, mats, clothes, made leather shoes, and everything needed for the life cycle. Until recently, they wove bamboo baskets, one of their main occupations, and sold or exchanged them for grains or other needs in the lower valleys, but this has now disappeared. Today’s main seasonal activities are potato cultivation, yak breeding, fodder harvesting, and collecting dry leaves and wood. Potatoes are the primary cash crop; people from the lower valley come with grains to Rolwaling to exchange or buy.

 Tourism

Besides traditional pastoral and agricultural activities, tourism has become the new and primary source of income. Several tea houses and lodges already operate in Beding and Na villages, creating work opportunities for residents. In addition, younger generations work as trekking and mountaineering guides. Some even own trekking agencies and organize trekking and alpine expeditions throughout Nepal, Tibet, India, and Pakistan. The growing tourism movement in the region has improved villagers’ financial security and modernized local life. However, despite the appeal of modernization and the lack of essential health and education infrastructure, most young people migrate to and settle in major cities such as Kathmandu.

Climate

The climate of Rolwaling Valley is not as harsh as in other Himalayan valleys or on the neighboring Tibetan plateau, just a few kilometers behind Rolwaling. This is likely due to its proximity to the Tama Koshi River, which brings milder air, and the valley’s east-west orientation, which results in a weaker monsoon. As a result, the weather is relatively sunny in the winter, from November to March, the best season for Rolwaling. Between winter and the monsoon period, mornings are generally sunny and cheerful, but afternoons are humid because of persistent fog rising from the Tama Koshi River.