Amdo and Kham Overland

The heartlands of Kham feature ranges of snow mountains, virgin forests, verdant grasslands, and ancient tribes of Tibetan warriors. On this trip, visit remote monasteries and fields of blooming flowers along the shores of turquoise lakes. Travel to a distant Khampa town where an enormous pile of stone carvings featuring Buddhist prayers draws pilgrims from all over the plateau. Barter with nomads in the local market, watch traditional scripture printing at the parkhang, and taste traditional food in the fortress-like homes of the Gyarong Tibetans.

On the trip, we discover the cultural and natural highlights of the Tibetan area Amdo-Kham in provinces Qinghai and Sichuan. Firstly, we come to Qinghai Province, visiting the culture center in the Tibetan area Amdo and visiting Kumbum, which is one of the six major monasteries of the Gelugpa Sect of Tibetan Buddhism in Qinghai, and which is also known as the "Tibetan Academy of the World". Qinghai Lake is one of the largest salty lake in Tibet Plateau. We will travel at the upstream of the Yellow River, and meet Ngolok Tibetan, and pay religious homage to holly mountain Amnye Machen range and source of Yellow river are the best places to witness wildlife. Yushu is the Tibetan Area Kham of Qinghai Province. The Yushu Horse Racing Festival that begins on July 25 every year is the largest traditional folk festival in Qinghai Province. We continue to the north along the Tibet Ancient Tea Path.

The landscape of the Tibetan area Kham and Amdo is characterized by over 6000 m high mountain ranges, plateaus and deep gorges of mighty streams. Farmers and nomads live in the mountainous Kham. Monasteries with shiny gold roofs and castle-like houses with defensive towers, mani stones with colorful prayer flags fluttering in the wind and the unmistakable black yak hair tents are scattered across the expanse of wild plateaus where snow-covered peaks surmount. Flower-strewn alpine meadows, forests, crystal-clear rivers and lakes give the mighty scenery a soft appearance. White clouds float in the deep blue sky and submerge the landscape in soft shadows.

The Tibetan cultural areas are divided into three parts: Tibet Autonomous Region/ Xizang, Amdo in the northeast (large part of the provinces of Qinghai, south Gansu and northwest Sichuan) and Kham in the southeast (Chamdo Prefecture of Tibet, Yushu Prefecture of Qinghai, west Sichuan and northwest Yunnan). This discovery tour takes you through the Tibetan areas Amdo and Kham in western Sichuan which includes the Aba (Ngawa) Autonomous Prefecture of Tibetan and Qiang Minority and the Ganzi  (Garze) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. This area is characterized by many green mountains and extensive pastures. Lush plants thrive here and numerous wild animals live here, many of which are rare specimens such as Panda, Snub-nosed Monkey and David Deer. There are also a number of medicinal plants and mineral resources. And the area is particularly rich in water resources. In this area you will feel different religious atmosphere from Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), because both Nyingmapa Sect and Jonangpa Sect of Tibetan Buddhism dominate in this area.

On this trip we would like to recommend the hidden cultural and natural highlights in the Tibetan areas Amdo and Kham in western Sichuan:

Highlights;
• Qinghai Lake, the biggest lake in Tibet Plateau

•  Discover east Tibetan Area Amdo and Kham

• Holy Mountain Amnye Machen Range and Glacier
• Holy Lakes Jyarang & Ngorang lakes
• World’s largest Mani stone piles
• Derge traditional Tibetan printing house
• Mountain meditation caves
• Dzongsar authentic Tibetan skills and Kham culture
• Ancient Monasteries, virgin forests, snow capped mountains
• Gyarong authentic Tibetan stone houses and great towers

Details
• 17-day trip begins in Xining Qinghai Province and ends in Chengdu, Sichuan.
• 15 nights in hotels and guesthouses
• Average altitude of 3300 meters
• Highest pass during this trip is over 5000 meters