Feast for Thought

The Inner Kora of Mt Kailash parikrama involves trekking for about 28 km. Not all the K-M yAtris attempt this parikrama. (This is simply a digital attempt, courtesy Google Earth) Closer view of Mt Kailash Schematic of the KM routes (Source: National Geographic Adventure magazine) Inner kora  Here's a description of the Inner Kora ( Source  Update: not available as of Jun 2014) "Inner Kora - Ganesh Ling / Atma Ling ... the last day of our yatra we go back to Astapad. We will next visit the base of Mt Kailash and touch the Lords feet. We will also visit a place called Saptarishi caves inside Kailash and later complete a parikrama of Nandi parvat. This segment of the yatra is also referred to as Inner Kora. We have to do this trek only on foot. This journey s extremely special. We get a changing darshan of the lord as we get closer and closer to him. Just the feeling that we are nearing the Lord generates a great energy in us. The experience of thi...

During the 14-day long trip from Kathmandu to Kailash and back, we (a group of 18 women, ranging in age from 21 to 60) crossed magnificent mountains, sacred lakes, deep gorges, virgin waterfalls and lush green canyons. We climbed to over 18500 ft height. This trek is one of the more difficult in Asia and physically challenging due to dry, cold Tibetan terrain and difficulties faced at high altitude. Many of us felt unwell often. There were many uncertainties on the way – Our chinese guide didn’t reach border on time, sudden landslides or boulders on the roads, the tyres of the bus got mired on the banks of Brahmaputra. Neither horses nor porters were available during the days of the parikrama. Accommodation and food are very basic, one is far away from (conventional notions of) civilization. At every step many wished to abandon the trip and return home, yet decide to keep going, determined to complete the trek solely because of team mates, accompanying Sherpas and the sight of oth...