Mt. Amnye Machen Trek in Amdo

Day 1 Xining

Xining arrival, transfer to hotel.
Overnight: Xining

Day 2 Xining – Triga (B, L, D)

– the Kumbum Monastery (Ta’er Si) (one of the six most important monasteries in Tibet, a good introduction for outsiders to Tibetan culture, the birthplace of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Yellow Hat Sect , and the former home of the current Dalai Lama.)
– Chinese Confucian Temple (a place to offer sacrifices to Confucius, constructed by following the style of traditional Chinese architectural complex.)

Day 3 Triga – Machen (B, L, D)

– Ragya Monastery (240-year-old, located in the plateau of the Golok prefecture, at an altitude of 4.200 meters.)

Day 4 Machen – Sarlong (B, L, D)

– Ynima pass
– Tasnak Somdu
– Yongkhor-chu River ( the place where the monks or Tibetan traditional Medical practitioners receive the blessing from Naga (Water god) after collecting herbs.)

Day 5 Trek to Tamchok Gongkhar (B, L, D)

– Halong Langri-chu valley
– Tamchok Gongkha La Pass ( altitude 4800m, the highest pass on this trekking, where can see the local people offer incense and prayer flag to the holly mountain. )

Day 6 Trek to Shima Tongpul (B, L, D)

– Mowatowa (a valley of unusual rock formations, it’s said that the King Gesar also used to stay here and his one thousand stone heap offering still can be seen here. )

Day 7 Trek to Jomo langra (B, L, D)

– Deleni
– Goku Chenmo (it is said to mark the entrance to the “palace” of the protector Machen Pomra).

Day 8 Trek to Jiashinongke (B, L, D)

– the Qushian River ( visit Dolma Gur-chu spring and the spur where King Gesar was said to tie his horse.)

Day 9 Trek to Dadul (B, L, D)

– River Drakdar
– Guri Gonpa ( a branch of Dzongchen and Dodrub Chode of the Nyingma School)

Day 10 Trek to Chablong (B, L, D)

– Chablong

Day 11 Trek to Hanglong (B, L, D)

– Halong-chu valley
– the Drakdar Pass (Zhihede) ( altitude 4700m, the second highest pass on this trekking, view the scenery of Weigele Glacier. )

Day 12 Trek ends, driven to Machen (B, L, D)

– Chorten Karpo (White Pogoda) (A busy stupa on the west side of town. Worth a visit to join the locals in turning the circuit of prayer wheels.)
– Yichu River

Day 13 Machen – Tongren (B, L, D)

– Tongren (Repkong) (“Home of Tibetan Culture and Art”, one of the most famous centre of Tangkha painting as well as the making of applique Tangkha.)

Day 14 Tongren – Xiahe (B, L, D)

– Longwu Monastery (Rongwo Monastery) (the birthplace of Anduo Tibeten players, one of the six biggest monasteries of Tibetan Buddhism in Qinghai, a cultural relics site under the national level protection.)
– Wutun Village (home of the thangka, the center of Tibetan Regong-Art, which is a successful mixture of religion and folk art.)
– Xiahe ( a tiny bustling town nestles in a mountain valley at an elevation of 2,900m in Ganan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, southwest Gansu Province.)

Day 15 Xiahe – Lanzhou (B, L, D)

– Labrang Monastery (a scholastic monastery built in 1709, one of the Six Gelugpa Temples, home to the largest number of monks outside of the Tibet Autonomous Region. It has preserved the best Buddhism teaching system at present. )
– Bingling Grottoes ( a series of Buddhist caves, dated back to about 1,700 years ago during the Western Jin Dynasty, with well-preserved 183 niches, 694 vivid Buddha statues, 82 clay sculptures and about 900 square meters (about 1,076 square yards) of colorful murals.)

Day 16 Depart Lanzhou (B)

End the journey.