Bumpari

Overview

This peak is located just outside Lhasa. The twin rocky summits can be easily spotted from town if you look south. Beyond Bumpari the highest summit in the Lhasa prefecture, Mindruk Tsari (5450) can be seen. Just like Gyaphelri, Bumpari is frequently climbed by the locals. This is evidenced by an overwhelming display of devotional relics all over the mountain. The climb is straightforward to the false summit. Beoynd that, the route can be tricky and exposed if you stray off the main route, which is easy to do as there are dozens of small paths and use trails.

Getting There

From Lhasa center walk or catch a taxi (20 yuan) south and cross the river on the Lhasa bridge. The main trail up Bumpari can be seen as you walk or drive across the bridge. There is a military post on each end of the bridge. I did not have any issues, but I heard that the military sometimes prevents foreigners from climbing Bumpari. From the end of the bridge walk down and across an open area to the left of the concrete building (I think this is a military compound). The trail switchbacks up a ridge spur and reaches a false summit after about an hour of walking. From here you can see the twin summits decorated with prayer flags. It may appear that there is no easy way to the top. Continue south on a good trail down to a saddle. From here it gets more tricky, as there are many braided trails. Stay on the right and traverse around the north summit until you get to a gully on climbers left that leads to the saddle between the two summits. Scramble up the gully ducking under the multitude of prayer flags to reach the saddle. From here scramble to the south (higher) summit. Return via the same route. Pay close attention as many paths lead you away from the main route. The climb will take about 4.5 hours from the bridge if you are acclimated.

Red Tape

None once you are in Tibet, but the Chinese military have been known to prevent people from going up Bumpari. To get into Tibet, a special visa is required in addition to the Chinese visa. A Chinese visa is easily obtainable through any Chinese Consulate. For detailed entry/exit requirements see: Consular Information Sheet I would recommend working with a local (Tibetan) travel agency to obtain a Tibetan group visa. Without a group visa no airline would sell you a ticket to Lhasa. Our group visas were scrutinized several times during our stay in Tibet. Mountaineering in Tibet is a beuracratic maze. Yet another permit must be obtained from the TMA (Tibetan Mountaineering Association). No permit is required however for peaks under 6000m unless they are located in an area closed to foreigners. Finding information on climbing in Tibet is another challenge. Most of the smaller (under 6000) peaks are unnamed and unclimbed.

Camping

Camping is possible but not advisable as this is a busy area and foreigners (and their expensive gear) stand out like sore thumbs.

External Links

Good trekking book: Trekking in Tibet by Gary McCue Online maps of Tibet: Tibet maps

Additions and CorrectionsPost an Addition or Correction

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WildKid - Apr 9, 2008 11:57 am - Hasn't voted

Easier route?

The way I went was to walk about 1.5 km right along the road from the bridge and then turn left on the gravel road. After another kilometer or so there is an open meadow (with tractor tracks) leading to a prow of Bumpari. Follow the small path along the right side of the prow till it vanishes, then simply scramble up the side of the prow to the ridge line, which leads to the col between the two summits. As far as access issues go: I wasn't stopped walking across the bridge, but I was definitely looked at by the sentry. It shouldn't be necessary to say this, but perhaps it is: do NOT take photos from or near the bridge unless you want to spend your vacation in a jail cell. There are public buses between central Lhasa and the turnoff onto the gravel road, and these are not stopped by the military. There's also a hole-in-the-wall snack and drink stand at the turnoff. This walk is HOT - South facing slope - so bring at least 2 liters of water per person. There's a description of the walk at http://lojongmindtraining.com/kailas/bumpari.aspx

gimpilator - Nov 29, 2015 1:16 pm - Hasn't voted

Coordinates Glitch

I just stumbled onto a strange glitch which corrupted the location of numerous pages and listed them all at the same point in southern AZ, USA. Please fix the lat/lon coordinates of this page and I'll be happy to remove my "needs updates" vote. Thanks!

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