Kathmandu Webcam – Watch the Dhobi Khola in Nepal’s Capital

The Kathmandu Webcam looks down on the Dhobi Khola in Buddhanagar, a walled river channel near the southern edge of Nepal’s capital, a short way upstream of where it flows into the Bagmati. A road runs along each bank, busy with cars, vans and a steady flow of motorbikes, and behind the far bank a small tree-filled park gives way to a row of pink and cream apartment blocks. At the right of the frame stands the white Bijulibazar arch bridge, with a tall white building beside it, while a line of hills on the valley rim closes the skyline. The camera streams around the clock. In the afternoon the sun comes from the left and glints off the water, and after dark the street lamps pick out both roads and the lit curve of the bridge.

About Kathmandu and the Dhobi Khola

The Dhobi Khola, also called the Rudramati, is an 18.2 kilometer (11.3 mile) river that rises on Shivapuri Hill and at Muhanpokhari, north of the Kathmandu Valley, and runs south through the city to meet the Bagmati at Bijuli Bazar, the area also known as Buddhanagar. The camera is mounted on the G.STAR building on the east bank, and the confluence lies less than 500 meters (1,640 feet) downstream, beyond the left edge of the picture. Along this stretch the river runs between straight embankment walls, and the road directly below the lens is Rudramati Marg.

The bridge at the right of the frame carries Madan Bhandari Path over the river about 300 meters (1,000 feet) upstream. It was Nepal’s first network arch bridge, 51.45 meters (169 feet) long and 12 meters (39 feet) wide, and work on it began in December 2014. The riverbank around the camera sits at about 1,290 meters (4,230 feet) above sea level, a little below the 1,324 meters (4,344 feet) usually given for the city as a whole.

Kathmandu had roughly 850,000 residents at the 2021 census, and about 4 million people live in the wider metropolitan area. The valley’s monuments joined the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 as seven sites, among them Kathmandu Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square, Pashupatinath, Boudhanath and Swayambhunath. None of them is in this view, which shows an everyday riverside neighborhood rather than a temple district. The stream comes from ZAZA Magazine Channel, a Japanese YouTube channel whose other cameras watch places in Shizuoka Prefecture, including Kakegawa Castle and the Omaezaki lighthouse.

Weather and Climate in Kathmandu

Kathmandu’s main weather station is at Tribhuvan International Airport, about 3.1 kilometers (1.9 miles) east of the camera. Its 1991 to 2020 averages describe a mild winter by day and a cold one by night: January afternoons reach about 19 C (67 F), while the average low is around 3 C (37 F). Spring warms quickly, and by April highs are close to 29 C (84 F) with lows near 12 C (54 F).

Summer is the monsoon season. July averages 29 C (84 F) by day and 20 C (68 F) at night, and July and August are the wettest months of a year that brings about 1,502 millimeters (59 inches) of rain, so the water in the channel can rise quickly after a downpour. After the monsoon, October highs settle around 27 C (81 F) with lows near 14 C (57 F). Snow normally stays on the surrounding hills; it has fallen in the city itself only a few times, most notably in 1945 and 2007.

Things to Do Near Buddhanagar

Patan Durbar Square, the old royal square of Lalitpur and one of the valley’s seven World Heritage sites, is only 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) south of the camera, across the Bagmati. Kathmandu Durbar Square, home of the Kasthamandap, the 16th-century wooden temple the city is named after, lies 2.8 kilometers (1.7 miles) to the north-west. Maitighar Mandala, the roundabout at Thapathali, is closer still at about 1.1 kilometers (0.7 miles).

To the north-east, the Hindu temple complex of Pashupatinath is 3.3 kilometers (2 miles) away, and the great Buddhist stupa at Boudhanath is about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the camera. Swayambhunath, the hilltop stupa often called the Monkey Temple, is 4.8 kilometers (3 miles) to the north-west. Thamel, the Garden of Dreams and the Narayanhiti Palace Museum are grouped together 3.2 to 3.6 kilometers (2 to 2.2 miles) north. All of these distances are measured in a straight line from the camera.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more of Nepal and other cities across southern Asia, try these cameras next.

• Annapurna Mountain Webcam
• New Delhi Webcam
• Bangkok Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is this camera in Kathmandu?

It is in Buddhanagar, near the southern edge of Kathmandu, Nepal. The camera is mounted on a building on the east bank of the Dhobi Khola, about 300 meters (1,000 feet) downstream of the Bijulibazar bridge and less than 500 meters (1,640 feet) above the river’s meeting with the Bagmati. Kathmandu Durbar Square is 2.8 kilometers (1.7 miles) to the north-west.

What can you see on the Kathmandu Webcam?

The camera looks roughly north-west across the walled Dhobi Khola channel. A road with cars and motorbikes runs below the lens, a second road with green railings follows the far bank, and behind it are trees, a small park and mid-rise apartment blocks. The white Bijulibazar arch bridge and a tall white building sit at the right edge, and hills line the horizon.

Does the Kathmandu Webcam show the airport?

No. Tribhuvan International Airport is about 3.1 kilometers (1.9 miles) east of the camera, behind and to the right of the lens, and no runway or aircraft is in view. The picture shows the Dhobi Khola and the streets on either side of it.

Can you see the Himalayas from this camera?

The operator says the camera faces toward the Himalaya, but the skyline you normally see is the line of hills around the Kathmandu Valley. The snow peaks are much farther away and do not show through haze.

What is the weather like in Kathmandu by month?

January averages highs of 19 C (67 F) and lows of 3 C (37 F). April reaches about 29 C (84 F). The monsoon peaks in July and August, when highs sit near 29 C (84 F) and nights stay around 20 C (68 F). October averages 27 C (81 F) by day and 14 C (57 F) at night.

Does it ever snow in Kathmandu?

Very rarely. Snow usually stays on the hills around the valley, and the city itself has had only a handful of snowfalls, the best known in 1945 and 2007.

What is the elevation of Kathmandu?

The city is usually given as 1,324 meters (4,344 feet) above sea level, and the airport weather station stands at 1,337 meters (4,386 feet). The riverbank in front of the camera is lower, at about 1,290 meters (4,230 feet).

What time is it in Kathmandu?

Nepal keeps Nepal Time, UTC+5:45. The date and time stamp in the bottom-left corner of the picture runs on local time, so the stream doubles as a Kathmandu clock.

Source: ZAZA Magazine Channel