Thursday, March 24 | Thimphu to Trongsa

After breakfast the next morning the pilgrimage caravan of 15 vehicles began the long drive to Trongsa. The road which is under massive reconstruction by the Bhutanese government climbed steeply through forests of pine, cedar, dwarf bamboo and hanging lichen. At the Dochula Pass (3,050 meters / 10,000 feet), against the backdrop of spectacular Himalayan views, Rinpoche and Umdze Tulku Ngawang Jigdral Kunga led the entire group in offering a sang. At the Pelela Pass (3,300 meters / 10,989 feet), considered the boundary between West and East Bhutan, a sang was again offered. During the final few miles one could glimpse the impressive Trongsa Dzong jutting out over the Mangde River. The oldest dzong in Bhutan (1647), the Trongsa Dzong currently houses administrative offices for the Trongsa District and a monastery of 200 monks.

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