India (October-November 2019): Trek from Kudung to Thongleng via Thangafay (2/2)

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Reminder: The itinerary of this trek is drawn in blue in both the map and the aerial image above. To see the aerial image in more detail click here to download the trek-ap.kmz file and open this file in Google Earth. The yellow pins (marked #9 to #12) point to the locations of the 4 successive camps of this trek. The other pins indicate other locations (two villages between Kudung and Thongleng, the town of Tawang, and the gompa of Tawang). Thangafay is located at Camp #10.

On our way to Thangafay from Camp #9.

First glimpse over one the lakes at Thangafay.

There are three lakes below the gompa of Thangafay. From west to east, they are called Metchang, Barchang, and Totchang. Met, Bar, and Tot mean lower, central, and upper, respectively.

Views of Barchang (in the front) and Metchang (in the back), as they successively appeared while hiking toward the gompa. The lakes are surrounded by rhododendrons whose green leaves tend to shine grey when they reflect sunlight.

View of Totchang and the mountain range behind it. The gompa is barely visible at the base of the white rock cliff on the left side of the photo.

The gompa and the pilgrim housing facilities at Thangafay. The gompa stands below the white rock cliff on the right of the photo. The three housing facilities are aligned along a diagonal of the photo. We set our Camp #11 (our third camp on this trek, elevation: 4000m) just behind the gompa in a cavity of the rock cliff.

On the shore of Totchang.

Light play in the water of Totchang.

Barchang (first photo) and Metchang (second photo) seen from the gompa.

Views of the gompa.

Sign (written in both English and Tibetan-script Monpa language) posted on the outside walls of the gompa. It approximately reads: ″Anyone who come to this sacred place we request you do not take and cut onion and garlic. Also who have contact with dead body should not.″

Inside the gompa. The name of the main god worshiped here is Ginsangey Wangpu, who is represented on a horse in the rightmost statue below. This god is also the main god worshipped by the inhabitants of the villages of Thongleng and Sakpet, who share the property of the site of Thangafay.

Successive views of the three lakes from the gompa between late afternoon and dusk.

Other views at dusk.

The ″old lady″ cleaning butter lamps that she used during a morning puja. She melts and removes butter by heating up the cups.

Bird enjoying the morning sun and food remains (of which it seems to have taken the colors!).

In the morning, before heading down toward Thongleng, Lobsang, Sonam Dawa, and I hiked above the gompa toward the north and reached a ridge that gave us great views over mountain ranges north of Tawang.

Successive views over the gompa, Totchang, and Barchang during the initial part of the ascent. Our tents under the cliff are visible in the first photo.

We soon reached another lake, not as beautiful as the three lakes below, but perhaps more important religiously. The large number of stacks of rocks indicates that it is a primary destination for pilgrims to make offerings. The name of the lake, Plarchang, stands for ″Lake of the Gods″.

More lakes further up.

View over a mountain range that, I believe, is located on the border between Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan, to the west of the town of Zemithang.

Two views of a mountain range located to the north of the town of Tawang.

View from the northernmost ridge reached during our side-hike from the gompa. We then returned to Thangafay.

After returning to Thangafay we packed our bags and headed toward Thongleng.

Along the way we initially saw the Metchang lake, the lower lake of Thangafay, under new viewpoints.

After crossing a small pass, we met some heavily loaded pilgrims heading to Thangafay.

We then traversed a beautiful conifer forest.

Great view over the upper portion of the ridge that we had climbed during the previous two days.

Stone hut.

Small stupa and mani wall further down.

Spectacular sunset.

As it quickly became very dark we set our last camp of the trek (Camp #12, elevation: 2545m) near a gompa, about an hour walk from the village of Thongleng.

The gompa on the following morning.

Reaching the village of Thongleng. The 14th Dalai Lama spent one night in the village′s gompa (visible in the top left corner of the photo) in 1959 after escaping from Tibet, on his way to Tawang.

Someone brought Lobsang′s car that had been left in the Kudung village at the start of the trek. Lobsang then drove Sonam Dawa and me to the village of Lumla, which boasts a 30m statue of the White Tara goddess (see here). Following this short visit we drove back to Tawang.

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