Pastoralism and Rangeland Management on the Tibetan Plateau in ...

Lakes just a few kilometers distant. Cho La Pass has become a commonly used
pass, because during peak season 40 to 50 people cross from Gokyo to Everest
Base Camp <strong>and</strong> from base camp to Gokyo. The difficulty is similar to Kongma
La Pass <strong>and</strong> Cho La Pass, on to the western side of pass, from the top (Gokyo
Side) is a hard ascent for approx 200 m. Renjo La pass is much majestic than
other passes, the north ridge <strong>and</strong> south ridge of Mt. Everest is clearly displayed.
You can shoot pictures from Renjo Pass of Gokyo village with a charming blue
lake, huge glacier, ChoLa Pass in the Lap of Everest <strong>and</strong> Mt. Makalu in one shot
including numerous other mountains. After crossing the pass, we come across
the amazing remote valley. We view to the west more mountains than can be
seen from Gokyo <strong>and</strong> Everest Base Camp.
5 Regionalisation <strong>and</strong> the Great Himalayan Trail
Taking a regional approach to tourism marketing by combining promotional
efforts is now widely acknowledged as providing economies of scale, added
value <strong>and</strong> sharing power unattainable by individual destinations. Advantages
include the stretching of budgets, faster growth in destination awareness,
greater media exposure, earlier product positioning, more effective br<strong>and</strong>ing
<strong>and</strong> allegiance building, <strong>and</strong> more rapid penetration into target markets. Opportunities
for regional cooperation provided by Nepal’s linkages with Tibet
<strong>and</strong> SAARC members, <strong>and</strong> the Quadrangle (Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh <strong>and</strong>
India) should be enthusiastically embraced.
The ‘Great Himalayan Trail’ concept has emerged from discussions with the
industry as having merit with both a marketing <strong>and</strong> development rationale.
The idea of a cross Nepal trail (<strong>and</strong> indeed stretching on into neighbouring
countries) linking the popular trek areas like a ‘string of beads’ could encourage
visitation, provide a market focus to remote valleys, <strong>and</strong> bring tourism income
to neglected valleys between link the current popular trek areas. There is no
obvious one <strong>and</strong> only Great Himalayan Trail; rather market forces will decide
what are the preferred options between the easiest middle hills route, the more
challenging alpine route <strong>and</strong> the extreme mountaineering route.
Launch of the Great Himalayan Trail concept is expected to broaden the
trek product in Nepal <strong>and</strong>, particularly to establish the improved trek areas
of Humla, Dolpa, Makalu Barun <strong>and</strong> Kanchenjunga, <strong>and</strong> eventually linking
these mountainous regions with broadening sections of neighbouring countries,
most importantly Tibetan Plateau Region (TPR) <strong>and</strong> India. Great Himalayan
Trail, the longest <strong>and</strong> highest alpine walking track in the world is scheduled to
be inaugurated on 14 January 2011 in Kathm<strong>and</strong>u.
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