Treks in Kinnaur, Spiti Valley and Garhwal

Kinnaur and Spiti valley are two of the most fascinating regions of India fringing the Tibetan plateau. The general state of knowledge about these regions, occupying the northeastern quarter of Himachal Pradesh, can at best be described as scanty.
Their geographical inaccessibility has resulted in their attracting the sporadic attention of only the most tenacious of travelers who love to tread on relatively less explored trails like Lamkhaga pass, Mangsu pass, Kinner-Kailash Parikrama and Nalgan pass trek.
Lesser explored treks in Kinnaur-Spiti & Garhwal Region
- Lamkhaga Pass Trek: Chitkul to Harsil in Gangotri.
- Chotakhaga Pass Trek: Chitkul village to Gangotri (a shorter route).
- Nelang/Nelong Pass Trek: Chitkul to Nelong valley in Gangotri.
- Charang-La (Kinnaur Kailash Parikrama Trek): Charang to Chitkul.
- Mangsu Pass Trek: Charang to Chitkul (on a different route).
- Larsa We pass Trek: Asrang village to Kaza in Spiti valley.
- Listigarang-Kashang Pass Trek: Bhaba valley to Pangi village.
- Manirang Pass Trek : Mane in Spiti to Ropa village in Kinnaur.
- Temso Lake Trek: Lippa village to Temso lake.
- Haran Ghati Pass Trek: Barang village to Sangla valley
- Khimloga Pass Trek: Chitkul village to Sankri in Uttarakhand.
Read our trek/travel stories
Snow Leopard Photo Tour in Spiti Valley (Kibber WLS)
It might strike you as both bizarre (and equally fascinating) to drive to Spiti valley and Kinnaur during wintertime. Though for solitude seekers and wildlife photographers — with a goal […]
HRTC Baggage Policy & Terms Decoded (Tips & Fee Chart)
HRTC (Himachal Road Transport Corporation) is well known for its drivers driving buses through vertiginous landscapes of Himachal Pradesh. However, a few people know that HRTC — though established in […]
Spiti Valley’s Icy Embrace: Climbers Tale of 3 Frozen Waterfalls
Once I reached the top, there was a small rock surrounded by dry grass. Snow had sloughed off the surface due to the steepness and sunshine. I was in a meditative state as I was all alone at that point without any noise except the faint soothing sound of the river flowing much below me…
Beauty And Hardships Of Living in Kinnaur & Spiti Valley During Wintertime
I arrived at a hotel in Narkanda following the one of the most challenging journeys of my life in recent years. It was a nice hotel, and the owner and […]
Temso – A High Altitude Sacred Lake in Kinnaur
Temso (also spelled as Tem Tso) is a sacred glacier fed lake located high (4979 meters) above Lippa and Labrang villages of Kinnaur. Each year, on 20 bhado, a flower […]
Inner Line Permit (ILP) for Kinnaur & Spiti Valley (Step-by-Step Guide)
Inner line permit is an official travel document that allows an Indian citizen to travel to restricted/protected borders areas of India. Prior to August 2021, such areas extended from Ladakh […]
Top Photo Spots on Spiti Valley (Circuit) Road Trip
Wrapping up my series on the best photo spots from my trip to the Kinnaur and Spiti valley of Himachal Pradesh! Escaping the daily grind, we started on a week-long […]
Tso Moriri – Hiking Shores of Ladakh’s Azure Lake
Sitting alone in silence on a mound overlooking the staggering blue waters of Tso Moriri, while the cold mountain winds froze my face in the searing afternoon heat of high […]
Backpacking & hiking in Spiti (Tabo, Dhankar & Lhalung)
“Spiti valley backpacking & hiking (Tabo, Dhankar and Lhalung) ‘You mean to say we are walking between villages in Spiti?’, I asked, making a puzzling face. ‘Yes, as much as […]
Dangerous Trek Routes in India (Cases of Avoidable Accidents & Deaths)
I made a lot of mistakes and tempted fate when I started chasing my passion for the mountains. Fortunately, I am still alive to tell the tale. However, one of […]
Unexplored Kinnaur – Rusklang village of Ropa Valley
Kinnaur in northeast Himachal, surrounded by Tibet in the east, is the least explored and the second least populous district, after Lahaul & Spiti, in Himachal Pradesh, India. The old […]
Lamkhaga Pass Trek

Lamkhaga pass trek is a fairly remote trek and is now regarded as the classic route from Chitkul to Gangotri, which was first crossed by Marco Pallis in 1933. The trek is also known as Chitkul village to Gangotri trek or Harsil to Chitkul trek. It can be done from either side.
The beautiful route takes you through some of the most remote areas of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, like the Jalandhari valley that is covered with flowers post-monsoon. The snow in the early season could impede your progress.
Harsil is famous for Wilson’s Cottage built-in 1864. Gangotri is a short drive from Harsil, while Chitkul is the last village in the Baspa valley Though the difficulty is a relative term, the Lamkhaga pass trek is considered the most difficult in Kinnaur-Garhwal Himalayas. Lamkhaga pass trek offers a diverse landscape that includes Ranikanda meadows, boulder-strewn terrain, Baspa glacier zone, Baspa Glacier Snout and Meadows, and small glacial lakes of Kyarkoti in Harsil valley.
3-Pass Trek [Auden’s Col-Mayali-Patangini Dhar]

Auden’s Col is a pass connecting Rudugaira valley and Bhilangna valley, named after John Bicknell Auden, a British Geographical Survey officer, who first discovered it in 1935 and crossed it in 1939.
The pass is at 5490 m altitude and connects the ridge coming from Gangotri III (6580 m) peak on the north-west and the ridge coming from Jogin I (6465 m) on the east, and also binds a glacier coming from Jogin I, on the north side of Rudugaira valley, Auden’s Col & infamous Khatling glacier on the south side of Bhilangna valley.
Snow Leopard Photograhpy Tour in Spiti

A century ago, Rudyard Kipling in his novel “Kim” described Spiti as “a world within a world” and a “place where the god lives”. Things have hardly changed since then. In the depths of winter, this primeval & harsh land is often cut off from the rest of the world, and the elusive wild cat descends from the high peaks & ridges into the valleys to hunt for Bharal (Blue Sheep), Ibex and livestock of native Spitian.
The snow leopard is generally found in Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary and Pin Valley National park of Spiti valley. The snow leopard has also been spotted by locals around Lippa – Asrang Sanctuary. The Kibber Snow leopard Expedition will take you to far faraway and incredibly beautiful regions of Himachal Pradesh, into the very heart of the Western Himalayas.
