The shelter has a capacity to accommodate around 20 people and aims to provide safe overnight facilities for trekkers and visitors.

Taraa Garbuja Pun said the shelter was constructed to address the long-standing problem faced by tourists and guests who previously had no option but to stay in caves. “For now, visitors can use the shelter freely, and we have reached an understanding with the ward office to operate a restaurant there in the long run,” she said, adding that preparations are also underway to test paragliding from Sobang Dhuri.

Sobang Dhuri lies along the Dhaulagiri Icefall trekking route that connects Myagdi and Mustang. One of its main attractions is the panoramic view of Mount Dhaulagiri (8,167 metres), the world’s seventh-highest peak, from its base to the summit.

Visitors can also enjoy sunrise views and observe mountain ranges including Gurja, Annapurna, Nilgiri, Manapathi, Tukuche, Machhapuchhre and Manaslu.

From the viewpoint, trekkers can see Baglung Bazaar, Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve, Poon Hill, Mohare Danda, Mulde, Khopra and Todke, along with rural settlements of Myagdi and Parbat districts and their diverse hilly landscapes.

The forest along the trail to Sobang Dhuri is home to wildlife such as ghoral and deer, as well as medicinal herbs including Panchaule and Seto Chini.

The trekking trail to Sobang Dhuri was identified two years ago by the Mandali Youth Club of Chimkhola. The route links Chimkhola with Pathlekhet, Jaslang, Sijikhola, Sijikharka, Thamkharka, Kholakharka, Sisarka, Tallo Mela, Uplo Mela, Alekharka and Nepane before reaching Sobang Dhuri.

From Sobang Dhuri, routes extend to Begkhola of Raghuganga Rural Municipality, Dowa, Bhurung Tatopani and Dana of Annapurna Rural Municipality, and Lete in Mustang. The destination can be reached in a single day on foot from Chimkhola, or in two days with a relaxed walk.

Until the previous generation, locals from Chimkhola used to take cattle, buffaloes, sheep and goats to Sobang Dhuri for grazing during the monsoon season and descend to the lower fields near the village in winter.

With the identification of the new trekking route and growing tourism potential, a viewpoint has been established to promote Sobang Dhuri.

Taraa Garbuja Pun and her brother Gopin Pun, originally from Chimkhola and currently residing in Pokhara, have installed two water drums of 500-litre capacity each near a camping site about 200 metres below Sobang Dhuri.

The ward office has added two more drums.

These collect melted snow and rainwater, providing water facilities for tourists and herders. On the ward office’s proposal, the rural municipality also constructed a public toilet at Sobang Dhuri last year.

As there are no hotels or restaurants in the area, visitors are required to carry essential supplies.

The Dhaulagiri Icefall trekking route was first studied in 2068 BS under the leadership of the Tourism Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN), Western Regional Chapter, and the then District Development Committee.

The trail connects Galeshwar–Rakhubhagwati of Myagdi and passes through high ridges of Pipley, Bhagwati, Begkhola, Dagnam, Chimkhola and Kuinemangale in Raghuganga Rural Municipality; Doba, Bhurung Tatopani and Dana in Annapurna Rural Municipality; before reaching Lete in Mustang.