Kham Tibet straddles three provinces and one autonomous region in modern-day PRC: Sichuan, Qinghai, Yunnan, and the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). The region of Kham is very diverse geographically, containing large mountain ranges and vast grasslands. Four major rivers and six mountain ranges combine to make the scenery of this part of Tibet breathtaking. The headwaters of the Mekong, the Yangtse, the Yalong, and the Salween, flow out of Kham Tibet from the East and South-Eastern parts of the Tibetan plateau.
The people of Kham Tibet, known as the Khambas (or Khampas) live up to their reputation for bravery and horsemanship when they compete in summer “horse racing” festivals. However, they are also known for cheerfully enduring a beautiful yet sometimes harsh environment, especially in the winter months. The huge mountain ranges that form the valleys through which the rivers flow are responsible for the divergent cluster of dialects that have developed due to the relative seclusion of these communities throughout most of history.
The traditional occupations of nomadic pastoralism and agriculture are still the backbone of Kham society while increasing numbers find positions in the growing towns as government workers or employees in local small businesses. It’s not unusual in one family to find hard-working farmers who still depend on the land, monks or nuns committed to lifelong service in a monastery, and young people with college degrees.
Beginning in the Sichuan basin and ascending to the breath-taking heights of the Tibetan plateau, your lungs are conscious of breaking out of the sub-tropical soupy air of the lowlands to the invigorating cool and thin air that is home to one of the highest cultures in the world. Everything changes. Faces for starters: round and flat Chinese faces are replaced by the long and sharp-featured ones typical of Tibetans. High cheekbones tinted red by wind and sun, along with gold teeth, are emblematic of this people group comprised of a majority of farmers and nomads. Replacing modernity, temples and traditional homes dot the landscape and are often home to welcoming and friendly hosts. The landscape has surprising variance: tight narrow valleys with lush vegetation and steep ascents marked by countless switchbacks carry you to the vastness of the Tibetan plateau.
The Chinese cities of Chengdu, Xining, and Kunming are the main gateway cities to Kham Tibet. From these three cities, there is convenient access to a lot of the region via land or air. Public buses are more comfortable than most people think these days, and if you are traveling in a group it is very economical to hire a private vehicle. Your guesthouse or hotel should be able to assist with arranging your ground transport depending on your needs. Airports are also conveniently located in Kangding, Shangri-La, Daocheng, Yushu, and Chamdo.
Dartsendo (དར་རྩེ་མདོ། ) or Dardo (དར་མདོ། ) is a major gateway city on the eastern side of the Tibetan Plateau. Also known as Kangding (康定) in Chinese, it rises 2,600 meters above sea level and is the first Tibetan city you come to when traveling west from Chengdu. Kangding teeters on the Eastern edge of Tibet and, historically, has been a trading post between Tibetan and Han Chinese cultures.
Throughout its dozen or so centuries of history, the Dzongsar Monastery (རྫོང་སར་དགོན།) has seen expansion, transformation, utter destruction and ultimately, rebirth. While it may not have been restored to its former glory, what the monastery has seen and accomplished over the years is nonetheless remarkable.
On the border of Zayu, Zogang, and Deqen County in Yunnan lies Kawa Gabo(ཁ་བ་དཀར་པོ།), the highest peak along the Meili Xue Shan, or the “Mainri Snowy Range”. As a whole, this peak and range are a part of the much larger Hengduan Shan, which borders the eastern side of the Tibetan Plateau as well as western Sichuan.
A small, picturesque town located in the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of western Sichuan Province, Lhagang (ལྷ་སྒང་།) is home to scenic grasslands, devoted monks and Tibetan nomads with their thousands of thick-coated yaks.
On the eastern edges of the Tibetan plateau, in the Kham region south of Kangding and Xinduqiao, lies Mount Gongga (Minya Konka), the 7,556-meter sentinel of the Mount Gongga mountain range. The mountain is the third largest peak outside of the Himalayas.
Located near the border of Daofu County, Danba County, and Kangding County, of Ganzi Autonomous Prefecture, Yala Mountain (བཞག་བྲ།)is one of the most popular mountain treks in the Sichuan region.
Initially built in 1665, Palyul Monastery (དཔལ་ཡུལ་དགོན།), also known as Baiyu Monastery( 白玉寺） in Chinese sits above the many homes along the hillside, at the center of a small village in the Ganzi Prefecture in the western part of Sichuan province.
Known around the world as the largest school for Tibetan Buddhism, Sertar Larung Gar Tibetan Buddhist Institute and Monastery (གསེར་རྟ་བླ་རུང་དགོན་པ།) has caused the population of its surrounding town to grow exponentially in recent years. This monastic community is located in a remote and treeless valley of Garze Tibetan Autonomous Region, in Sichuan Province.
Hidden away in a remote valley between Garze (Ganzi) town and Baiyu town, Sichuan, is the isolated Yachen Monastery ( ཡ་ཆེན་དགོན་པ།). Established in 1985 by a Nyingma Rinpoche, the current population of this monastic community is approximately 17,000 monks and nuns, with nuns holding the majority.
