drawing the names of the Himalayan Peaks in my travel journal
Kuari Pass
last day of trekking
milky way at our third camp , just below the Kuari Pass
on the way up the Pangarchulla Peak
Uttarakhand , India . at the border of India-Tibet and India-Nepal
quite near to New Delhi
we took a flight from Bangalore to New Delhi , then train from New Delhi to Haridwar
mountain road along Ganges / Ganga River
from Haridwar to Auli ( our starting point of the trek )
itinerary : Kuari Pass Trek & Pangarchulla Peak 4550m | Uttarakhand , India
Indian Himalaya Trek
day 0 : - flight from Bangalore to New Delhi
- sightseeing in New Delhi
- night train from Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station , Delhi
to Haridwar , Uttarakhand ( 7 hours )
day 1-6 is the actual trekking trip , with day 2-5 is the trekking days ,
while day 1 and 6 was spent for the long journey
from Haridwar to Auli and vice versa.
trekking for 6-7 hours per day for 4 continuous days , rest at camp
in the evening and night. no night treks.
its a trekking plus camping trip.
..................................................................................................
day 1 : - Haridwar Train Station to Auli ( 11 hours Tempo ride )
- stay one night at Himalayan Eco-Lodge at Auli
day 2 : - trekking day
- Auli Ski resort to Chantrakath Camp ( camp 1 ) in the alpine forest
passing through meadows , alpine forests , Tali lake
- camping at Chantrakath camp in the alpine forest
day 3 : - trekking day
- Chantrakanth Camp to Kuari Pass
- camp at Camp 2 site just below the Kuari Pass
day 4 : - trekking day , summit day
- Camp 2 to Pangarchulla Peak 4550m
- camp at Khulara meadow ( camp 3 )
day 5 : - trekking day , descending day
- descend from Khulara Camp to Dhak Village
- drive from Dhak to Auli ( 15 min )
- 1 night stay at Himalayan Eco-Lodge , Auli
day 6 : - Auli to Haridwar drive
- end of trekking trip.
..................................................................................................
day 7 : - Haridwar , Har Ki Poudi , Gangga River
( day 7 is our extra day for sightseeing in Haridwar )
- night train from Haridwar to Delhi
day 8 : - Delhi
- Karim's Hotel , Chandni Chowk , Old Delhi
- flight New Delhi to Bangalore
the costs :
trekking cost : - Rs 8750 / person + rs2950 transport Haridwar-Auli-Haridwar
= Rs 11700 / person ( RM 650 )
this includes : - transport Haridwar-Auli-Haridwar
- meals ( dinner day 1 to breakfast day 6 )
- tents , sleeping bags , mountain guides
- accomodation in Himalayan Eco-Lodge in Auli
extra costs for trekking : - trekking pole Rs 50 per day ( Rs50 x 4 days = rs200 )
- mules to carry our bags Rs400 per day
( Rs400 x 4 days = Rs1600 )
we shared 1 mule for 4 of us
we took a package from GIO ( Great Indian Outdoors | click here )
the cheapest rate we could find , and the service is very good.
we took the ' fixed departure ' package , so the cost is significantly reduced.
the cost is higher if we choose our own dates.
Highly recommended.
logistics costs :
- flight : Bangalore-New Delhi-Bangalore : Rs15000
(expensive because we planned our trip a bit late )
-train : Delhi-Haridwar-Delhi : Rs 3250 for 2nd class non-AC 3 tier coach
- hotel in Haridwar : Rs1200 per room per night , 4 people in 1 room
Golden Haridwar Hotel , AC room , budget hotel ,
walking distance to Haridwar train station , and near Har Ki Poudi too.
- sightseeing in New Delhi on day 0 :
hired taxi ( Toyota Innova )
Rs2366 per car for 8 hours / 80Km
( Rs2400 / 4 = Rs600 per person )
- prepaid taxi from ITDC counter
( Indian Tourism Development Corp )
at New Delhi Terminal 3 Airport
- we hired this taxi to to Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway
Station from Delhi Airport , en-route we went to
DLF Promenade Mall New Delhi for lunch and movie
before catching train at night
Delhi Metro from New Delhi Railway Station to Airport : Rs150
..................................................................................................
quick tips :
- Uttarakhand offers a lot of beautiful Himalayan Treks. Kuari Pass , Chopta - Tugnath ,
source of Ganga , Valley of flowers , Roopkund
( high altitude lake with mysterious human skeleton ) just to name a few.
there's a range from winter , summer to monsoon treks , from easy to difficult treks.
my trek Kuari Pass is moderate , with Pangarchulla Peak more toward difficult trek.
- i think Uttarakhand treks is most beutiful in monsoon ( july-September) ,
with flowers in full bloom. but there is high probability of trekking in the rain and
view of mountains obstructed by clouds.
trek in winter , and its all snow , while in summer , less snow , but clear sky
and flowers are still starting to bloom. so choose either :
- winter ( Dec-Feb ) :
a chance to ski as the Auli Ski Resort opens
- monsoon ( July-Sept ) :
most beutiful with full bloom flowers after the first monsoon showers
but trekking under the rain ,
and mountain view obstructed by clouds.
- summer ( April - June ) :
less flowers
clear sky , dry trek
i choose to trek in early June ( towards the end of Summer , starting of monsoon )
so i still get snow at the peak , dry trek with minimal rain and some flowers blooming
- Uttarakhand is more easily accessible than Kashmir ( Kashmir's security is too strict )
millions of Hindus / Sikhs pilgrims come every year for Maha Khumb Mela
to take bath in Ganga river.
my previous Kahsmir trip : click here
- in summer , Delhi and Haridwar is very hot. 40'C in daytime.
however is Auli ( mountain areas ) is cooler at around 15-20'C .
- from what I've seen in the journey from Haridwar to Auli , there's a lot of
constructions going on along the route. there are hydroelectric dam projects ,
and repairing works for the badly damaged roads and bridges affected by the major
natural disaster during monsoon last year. the road is a dangerous hilly road with risks
of landslide and rock fall.
for this reason , travelling in Uttarakhand
during peak of Monsoon is NOT A GOOD IDEA.
( my personal opinion )
even in a good day , the long journey from Haridwar to Auli is quite rough.
- get train to travel from Delhi to Haridwar and vice versa.
trains are comfortable.
there is bus also to go from Delhi to Haridwar , but it's non-AC , looks not
very comfortable , and road conditions is not so good.
otherwise there is flight to Jolly Grant Airport in Dehradun too.
- rainfall is common in Uttarakhand treks, so be prepared with poncho / raincoat
- Haridwar is holy city for Hindus . the foods in the city is all vegetarian.
i got chicken at Pentagon Mall , next to Radisson Blu Hotel ,
about 15km outside Haridwar City
- grab a chance to visit Har Ki Poudi , the Ganga River when visiting Haridwar.
- the trek is high altitude trek ( from 3000m above sea level and more ) ,
so there's a risk of altitude sickness.
be prepared with cardiovascular exercise , legs workout for trekking , some hand and
shoulder workout for long hours of carrying backpacks and
prophylaxis Acetazolamide ( DIAMOX ) before trekking.
- to bring one bottle of water during trekking is enough.
there is plenty of fresh springs along the trek providing drinking water.
- grab sugar sachets in hotels / restaurants before trekking.
its a convenient and cheap alternative for chocalates
for instant energy when trekking.
- On the way back from Haridwar , we took a train from Haridwar to Delhi.
we stopped at Old Delhi train station.
Old Delhi station is near Jama' Masjid , Chandni Chowk and the famous
Karim's Biriyani ( a must eat when visiting Delhi )
then we took Metro train from New Delhi Railway Station ( NDLS ) ,
also near to Old Delhi Station , to Delhi Airport.
the service is very good , punctual , cheap and convenient as the Yellow Line Metro
goes directly from NDLS to Terminal 3 Delhi Airport.
instagram : #KuariPassTrek2014
Hi,
Just wanted to ask something.We are planning to go to Pangarchulla on the 3rd Week of OCtober. Is it a good time for this? Please let me know. It will be pretty helpful if you do.
You can mail me @ ayandas1990@gmail.com