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 […]
Spotting Snow Leopards Of Kibber (in Spiti Valley)
It was a sunny, yet blistering cold day, with temperatures around -15 degrees Celsius. We had spotted a male snow leopard across the valley, sleeping in a shallow cave in […]
Parang La Pass (Trekking From Kibber To Tso-moriri)
Despite nearly losing one hiking boot to its flow just minutes before, crossing the thigh-high fast currents of the Pare Chu River at Norbu Sumdo felt strangely exciting. After all, […]
Auden’s Col Trek Photolog
What comes to your mind when I say Planet Earth? For me, it’s the grandeur, the massive scale of our planet. Specially when in the high mountains, it’s a realization […]
Borasu Pass Trek Log (Har-ki-Dun to Chitkul Traverse)
On June 30th Kamal and I took a bus from Mussoorie to reach Sankri. We reached Sankri by 4PM. No jeep was available to Taluka village — the last village […]
Uber Charming Chitkul Village of Himachal Pradesh
I wonder why people who plan to explore the most scenic state of Himachal Pradesh only end up visiting Shimla or Manali? What a lost opportunity to experience the real […]
Parang-La Pass Trek Log
On my return to Mud village of Spiti valley (from the Pin-Parvati trek), I was surprised to find Simon, a traveller from the UK (Birmingham), still staying at Mud. He […]
Manirang Pass Trek Log
Manirang Pass Trek Itinerary Day 1: Mud Village to Mane. Mane village to Manirang base camp 2nd of August Took a bus from Mud village to Mane village. Trekked to […]
Guest Post Guidelines | Write For Raacho Trekkers
We are currently accepting the guest posts. We accept guest posts from travel bloggers or from someone who has actually visited the place. We prefer a true experience and good […]
Crossing the Himalayas: From Leh To Kathmandu
The 28-year-old French adventurer Eliott Schonfeld, winner of the GEO Adventure contest, crossed the Himalayan chains on foot and on horseback from August to December 2017. After four and a […]
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.
