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Mt Kailash and Lake Manasarovar Travel Guide

Mount Kailash (Tibetan: Kangrinboqê or Gang Rinpoche; Sanskrit: Kail Parvata;) is a peak in the Gangdise Mountains, which are part of the Himalayas in Tibet. It lies near the source of some of the longest rivers in Asia: the Indus River, the Sutlej River (a major tributary of the Indus River), the Brahmaputra River, and the Karnali River (a tributary of the Ganges River). It is considered a sacred place in four religions: Bön, Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism. In Hinduism, it is considered to be the abode of Lord Shiva and a place of eternal bliss. The mountain lies near Lake Manasarowar and Lake Rakshastal in Tibet.
There have been no recorded attempts to climb Mount Kailash; it is considered off limits to climbers in deference to Buddhist and Hindu beliefs. It is the most significant peak in the world that has not seen any known climbing attempts.


Read more via the Kailash Trekking Maps.

Lake Manasarovar, Mapam Yumco, Mapam Yum Co, Mapham Yu Tso (Tibetan: Mapam Yumco), or Manasa Sarovar/Lake Manas, is a fresh-water lake in Tibet Autonomous Region of China approximately 800 kilometres (500 mi) from Lhasa. To the west of Lake Manasa Sarovar is Lake Rakshastal and towards the north is Mount Kailash. It is the highest body of freshwater in the world.

Manasarovar Geography

Lake Manasarovar lies at 4,556 m (14947.5 ft) above mean sea level, making it the highest freshwater lake in the world. It is relatively round in shape with a circumference of 88 kilometres (55 mi). Its depth is 90 m (300 ft) and its surface area is 320 square kilometres (120 sq mi). The lake freezes in winter and melts only in the spring. It is connected to nearby Lake Rakshastal by the natural Ganga Chhu channel. Manasarovar is the source of the Sutlej River which is the easternmost large tributary of the Indus. Nearby are the sources of the Brahmaputra River, the Indus River, and the Karnali River (Ghaghara) which is an important tributary of the Ganges River, so this region is the hydrographic nexus of the Himalaya.




According to Hindu religion, the lake was first created in the mind of the Lord Brahma after which it manifested on Earth. Hence, in Sanskrit it is called "Manas sarovara", which is a combination of the words manas (mind) and sarovara (lake). The lake, in Hindu religious belief, is also supposed to be the summer abode of Hamsa goose. Considered to be sacred, the Hamsa is an important element in the symbology of the subcontinent, representing wisdom and beauty.


Special note: we have thousands of high resolution Kailash tour photos which we collected during the past years and without permission, any pictures of those on our websites can not be reused.

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