“As a passionate hiker, I used to love going to Tibet,” John Ackerly declared, “not just for the wonderful mountains, but to be in a place where hiking and trekking is such a part of the national culture. Much of Tibetans’ trekking has a deep spiritual component—they walk as part of a pilgrimage. The destination for many pilgrims is Lhasa.”
For devout Buddhists and adventurers alike, Lhasa (which translates into English as “country of the gods”) has long held a revered place in the imagination. The city, the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, rests in a valley on the north bank of the Lhasa River at an elevation of nearly 12,000 feet. Lhasa was established in the seventh century AD, and by the 1500s had risen to prominence as the center of Tibetan Buddhism and the seat of government. It was the traditional home of the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s secular and religious head, until the fourteenth (current) Dalai Lama fled Lhasa for India in 1959, soon after the start of the Chinese occupation of the country. (The Dalai Lama continues to live in exile in Dharamsala in northern India, where he presides over the Tibetan government-in-exile.) Some of Tibetan Buddhism’s most sacred temples and monasteries are in Lhasa, including the Potala, the palace of the Dalai Lama, which has an imprint on the city’s landscape that rivals that of the surrounding massifs.
For many Tibetan trekkers, Lhasa may be a staging area for an expedition or a oneday stopover on a larger tour. John has come to see it as a hiking destination itself. “All of the monasteries and temples have circumambulation paths where devotees perform kora—a form of prayer or meditation. Some of the faithful chant or spin while circling the sacred structure, others are quietly contemplative. During some of my early visits to Tibet, I discovered that hiking up to the monasteries was a great workout, and provided wonderful views of the city below, as well as of the surrounding mountains. Some of the circumambulations took just an hour door-to-door, others were a half-day or more. They all provided a chance to experience an important aspect of Tibetan culture.” How John happened to discover the hiking possibilities in the hills above Lhasa is worth further explanation. “Many people in the international community who were concerned about humanrights violations in Tibet insisted that there were prisons around Lhasa,” John continued, “but there was some skepticism as well. And back in 1987, no photos of the prisons existed. One of the reasons I first traveled there was to get some photos that would prove the prisons’ existence. I started hiking the hills so I could get a better idea of where they were located and figure out the best angles for shooting pictures. Someone pointed out that going out into the hills as a hiker would provide a good cover if the authorities asked what I was up to. After all, the scenery gives you a pretty good reason to be hiking around.”
You needn’t wander more than a few blocks from downtown Lhasa to find your first pilgrimage walk, the Lingkor. This circumambulation—around the perimeter of the old (and holy) city of Lhasa—can begin near the Potala. It takes you past the Lukhang (temple of the serpent spirits), the blue visage of Menlha (the Medicine Buddha) on the side of Chakpori hill, and concludes near Norbulingka, which was constructed in the mid-1700s by the seventh and eighth Dalai Lamas, and used as a summer retreat. Once your legs are stretched a bit and your lungs acclimatized to the altitude, you can tackle the Sera Monastery circuit, a bit north of Lhasa. This first kora here circles the complex of temples and colleges within the monastery, and continues past a series of special rocks that pilgrims touch or circle, brightly colored rock paintings, and resident dogs. (Writer Gary McCue points out that some Tibetans believe these dogs are fallen monks; food offerings for the canines are encouraged.) Next, you can head further uphill past Choding Gon Temple to the Sera Tse Hermitage, set in a grove of trees directly above the monastery. Views across the Lhasa Valley from the hermitage are inspiring.
One of John’s most memorable experiences around Lhasa came at a nunnery called Michungri, a large white-washed structure a few miles north of the city. “My sense is that hardly anyone goes up to Michungri,” John said. “It’s a stiff hike up a steep hill, and I expect that this loop may only get a few dozen tourists a year. I went up there with my wife once, and we were treated to tea. The nuns were very excited that we were there, and interested in us as Americans; Tibetans generally love the American people. I was also struck by how playful they were, especially knowing the hardships they’d endured at the hands of the Chinese government. We spent hours ‘talking’ with our hands. We almost spent the night up at Michungri, but it was ultimately decided that having outsiders staying over might be too politically sensitive. The nuns fed us a meal in their lofty citadel, high above Lhasa. You feel like you’re very far away from town, though it’s only a few miles.”
John has not visited Tibet since 2000. He’s unable to get a visa, due to his efforts to document human rights abuses there. “I knew that one of the hazards of my job with the International Campaign for Tibet was that I might be barred from going to Tibet. But each time I went, I felt blessed. Hopefully I will one day be able to return with my young son.”
JOHN ACKERLY is president of the Alliance for Green Heat, which promotes high-efficiency wood combustion as a carbon-neutral, sustainable, local, and affordable heating solution. He formerly served as the president of the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT). He has written many reports on Tibet, including: “Forbidden Freedom: Beijing’s Control of Religion in Tibet,” “The Suppression of a People: Accounts of Torture and Imprisonment in Tibet,” “Nuclear Tibet: Nuclear Weapons and Nuclear Waste on the Tibetan Plateau,” “A Season to Purge: Religious Repression in Tibet,” and “Jampa: The Story of Racism in Tibet.” He has worked closely with the U.S. Congress and United Nations bodies to address the crisis in Tibet and has conducted five fact-finding trips to investigate conditions. John attended Dartmouth College and the Washington College of Law. Prior to joining ICT, John practiced civil-rights law in a private firm in Mississippi.
► Getting There: Lhasa, Tibet, is reached via Beijing and Chengdu, China, via China Airlines (800-227-5118; www.china-airlines.com).
► Best Time to Visit: Despite its high altitude, Lhasa has clement weather much of the year. You can enjoy the walks described above from April through October. Gary McCue’s book, Trekking in Tibet, offers directions to many of the day hikes around Lhasa.
► Accommodations: The Lhasa Hotel (+86 0891 6824509; www.lhasahotel.com.cn) was formerly operated as a Holiday Inn, and will meet most travelers’ standards.