"It's like you finally find what you really want after going around a big circle," he says. "Tibet is where I grew up and I've grown used to its cuisine and languages."

To date, Luo says his team's biodiversity studies have covered about 90 percent of the northern slope of the Himalayas. "We've shot images that have added up to dozens of terabytes," he says.

"When I can no longer walk, I will organize these treasures and donate them to the country and to professional institutions around the world that study this area."

Luo plans to continue on to the south of the mountain range, which involves visiting Nepal, Bhutan, India and Pakistan.

"It will be a huge project, but I will stick to it as long as I can," Luo says.