Kaal Taal Gorkha

  Kaal Taal Gorkha  

✔ It’s said that creation itself is ever-changing, and nothing is constant, nature itself is very diversified.

✔ Totally grasping this concept is an impossible feat nature reveals its magic beyond our wildest imagination and you can find all of this diversity in this journey of Kaal Taal Gorkha.

✔ Kaal Taal is situated at an altitude of 3,700 meters from sea level a large natural lake people don’t know much about this place until now.

✔ ‘Kaal’ simply means a long period ago apart from that, it’s believed we can win over Kaal (death) by worshipping there but we’re not allowed to litter or cause a nuisance in the area.

✔ If we perform puja and make an offering to the lake it’s also believed that we will get salt from the lake, if the diety is unsatisfied with us, we will get heavy rain, and people fall sick.

✔ We ascend up a steep climb on the first phase up to Kaaltaal, and after that, the geography slowly starts changing itself.

✔ In a mountainous region with an abundance of vegetation, you end up on beautiful plateaus without even realizing, that the more beautiful the surroundings get.

  1. Prok village  

✔ Prok Village lies within Tsumnubri municipal-4 Gorkha district, we should pass places like Aarughat, Machhikhola, Jagat, and Filim to get there.

✔ There’s a Shrine (Maney) a little above the village we have to follow the monastery’s rules after crossing the Maney till Kaaltaal.

✔ After crossing beyond the Shrine (Maney) we are prohibited from talking about financial issues or any conflicts violence in any form is not tolerated, if we harm any animals or plants, the Gumba’s will take action.

✔ This village is located a little higher than the Manaslu circuit, it is situated at around 2,400 meters the monastery is the center of faith in the region.

✔ The rules of the village are administrative, however, the monastery has its own rules for the village both sets of rules are intermingled without any conflict.

✔ Gumba’s land is farmed by the village of which a certain amount is provided to the monastery’s funds.

✔ Kaal Taal situated above Prok village, has a deep religious significance and is connected to the village itself Kaaltaal is worshipped as their ancestral deity.

✔ Kaaltaal is also considered a palace of Dakinis which is a pilgrimage site for the village from ancient times.

✔ Prok Village is unique in its own way, there is a river below Prok, and the village is situated right above the river, and there is a tall mountain right above the village.

  2. An unforgettable journey of Kaal Taal  

✔ There are signboards directing toward Kaaltaal along the way, the trail ascends right through the middle of the jungle.

✔ There was a place called Uum back in the day, and old folks lived there as time changed, the youngsters went down to go to school since there was no one to look after the old folks all of them were back in the village now.

✔ There is a place called Phaju Menang Waja which is 1,000 meters above from Prok Village.

✔ The word Phaju means shaman, and Menang means the resin collected from Juniper trees which is used for fire, and Waja means a place where it’s hidden.

✔ Traveling in a mountainous area is quite an interesting experience, you should be able to enjoy nature and should be able to walk.

✔ There is a place on top of the mountain called Gaunda, after reaching there we can see a different landscape of the mountains ahead we must have climbed around 1,200 meters from the village.

✔ The trail seems to be much leveled and easy we can see a different variety of vegetation, and the sights are unique a dense forest, it’s dark even in daylight.

✔ After crossing the forest the Himalayas are just in front, it’s a rocky area with massive boulders littered around.

✔ There is a lot of vegetation and forest, but limited places like these at 3,600 meters above sea level where we have this dense vegetation in such altitudes, there are more forested areas in higher altitudes.

✔ This view out there is absolutely captivating absolutely silent, quite a spooky area but absolutely beautiful trail indeed.

✔ We can find a very enjoyable region after climbing the main mountain, green forest, ground littered with wildflowers cool weather and it feels much easier to walk.

✔ It’s enjoyable to just keep walking at a moderate speed, everyone is joyful upon reaching there, and we can feel all the exhaustion of the climb disappear.

✔ We can see an abundance of Gurans in this area mostly white and a few pink ones but we haven’t seen any red ones yet.

✔ There is a shrine where we should pay our respects and offer some flowers before continuing and in a way, it resembles a Deurali. An old cattle shed was built right within a cave-like formation

✔ We should offer some incense in the Gumba and the lake as well, we can reach Kaaltaal after walking around 4 to 5 hours.

  3. About Kaal Taal  

✔ Such a beautiful and mesmerizing place, it’s called Kaalpachho in the Bhot language, Kaalpa meaning from ages and Chho meaning a lake.

✔ Situated at around 3,710 meters from the sea level the largest lake in the Gorkha District.

✔ A lake surrounded by a range of mountains a lake situated at a high altitude and the location of it is also very unusual.

✔ There is a smaller section of the lake over to the end as well and it also has its own belief, similarly above it there’s another lake up there.

✔ This incredible lake will definitely make everyone look absolutely captivating at first glance.

✔ This lake is indeed beautiful by itself, the trail that leads up to this lake and the views that can be seen from the trail is also very outstanding.

✔ If we are traveling on the Manaslu circuit or Larke Pass you could come to a place called Prok, it is ideal to come and visit this lake there.

✔ The lake is spread out over an area of around 22-23 hectares it would take 2 hours to walk around it.

✔ We can see the water of the lake has escaped from a small pond, there are beliefs and facts associated with the lake as well.

✔ According to old myths, salt can be found in this lake on special occasions, it’s said we can also hear the sounds of bells from the lake.

✔ The lake would be covered in the shadows of Himalayan peaks, it looks as if the mountains including Manaslu are swimming in the lake.

✔ We can see views up to Ganesh and Siringi Himal from up there, it’s best to stay a night back in Prok to visit this lake there are several homestays.

✔ Everyone should get a local guide to go there, the reason for getting a local guide is many people have been lost in these trails.

✔ There are animals such as Jharal, Snow Leopard, Danphe, bears, and other native species in the area where they roam and forage.

✔ The lake is considered a religious site for swimming or throwing stones in the lake, there aren’t any hotels around Kaaltaal but there is a Dharmashala or rest shelter there.

✔ There are blankets and utensils provided there you can contact a local guide at Prok before going there, they also have a horse ride service up to the lake.

✔ Chaitra-Baisakh or Bhadra-Ashoj could be an ideal time to visit the place, this place feels heavenly.

✔ This lake is much different than lakes in other regions, this place feels heavenly religiously important, and deeply revered.

✔ This place is a bit cold so you do need warm clothes you have to bring food supplies and water from the village you could spend the night at the Dharmashala there.

✔ It snows there during winter you would experience a different aspect of the lake during that time

✔ You can get direct vehicles from Kathmandu to Aarughat and Machhikhola you can get there in two days from Jagat or three days from Kathmandu