Kauri Pass 8 Days Trek

We start our trip with an early morning drive to Ghat and then to Chefna (the starting point of the trek). We will have lunch on the way. There are many scenic place on the way where we can stop and take pictures as we follow the ganga valley upstream. On arrival we set up our camp for the night by the river and freshly cooked dinner will be served by our Chef and overnight stay in tent.

After breakfast, we start our trek to Ghuni. It’s a nice walk next to the river followed by an ascent through farming land. The walk takes us to a village called Ghuni (2550m) just little before we reach our camping. It is a typical Garhwal village with friendly people and attractive houses with heavy slate roofs and paved alleys surrounded by fertile fields. It has a solar-powered electricity scheme. After dinner overnight stay in camp at Ghuni.

Morning after breakfast from the campsite, we climb steeply for 1,000ft/300m on a good zigzagging track to emerge on an open grassy grazing meadows. Snow peaks begin to emerge above the forest to the north. The path continues up through forests of rhododendron, pines and oak with more pastures for summer grazing with shepherds huts. You may meet flocks of sheep and goats moving along the track. The highest point is reached in 2¼ hours from the camp, at 3,064m/10,053ft, is the Ramni Pass, also called Binayak Top. From now on there may be a chance to see the multi-coloured monal pheasant but they are very shy, being hunted by the locals for the pot. You then trek gently down across more pastures and open glades, then into lovely forests of horse chestnuts and walnut trees with waterfalls. From here, the trek is a zigzag descent to Camping place. After dinner overnight stay in camp at Semkherk. 

Day starts with a descent to the colorful village of Jhinjhi. The trail passes small farms through woods to the spectacular suspension bridge at 1,840m/6,037ft across the Birehi Gorge, currently inhabited by a large number of monkeys. From here it’s a very steep climb back to 7,382ft/2,250m, where the track eases after a one and a half-hour ascent. From here the path is almost flat passing through fine rhododendron forest with long-tailed magpies flitting about. If you look down to the deep gorge below you can see the landslide and the Gauna Lake, which burst and flooded the whole of the Ganga Valley down to Rishikesh in 1898. After going round the head of a horseshoe valley you reach two lovely rivers cascading down under the path. From here there is a short climb to a spot called Kaliaghat, which is a good campsite near the village of Pana. After dinner overnight stay in camp at Panarani.

This is another long, but spectacular day. The route traverses above the village and then starts a steep climb up into a rhododendron forest with many zig-zag. It is a broad, well-made track and after a number of small summits, a Col is reached at 3,000m. The path now descends gently, traversing along the valley to open meadows with views across to the Kauri Pass. The track then traverses down around the side of the valley, across several streams. 

At the bottom, you will see that the river has cut through a deep rocky, dramatic gorge to the right. This is wild country and there are no settlements where blue sheep and the Himalayan black bear are said to be roaming. From the river, it is a very steep climb of about 3,000 feet (900 m) with a small break about half the way up to cross a large stream. A final climb brings you above the tree-line to the campsite on the large pastures where sheep and goats graze in summer, with the Kauri Pass towering above. After dinner we stay overnight in tent at Dhakauni. 

Morning after breakfast we start trek to Tali, It is not a big day but altitude can slow you down, so we take lots of breaks on the way to pass and enjoy the spectacular views after getting over the pass. We aim to cross the pass so that you will have the benefit of the clear early morning the following day. The climb up to the pass is made on a zigzag track to the top. You make a traverse along the high ridge past a shrine to Shiva before dropping down to your camp at Khulara. This is the name given to a clearing amongst the Rhododendrons about half an hour and 500ft/150m below Shiva's shrine. Here we await the spectacular views of the morning. We mostly try to go to camping at Tali as there is beautiful view of Nanda Devi (second highest peak of India) from the camp. Overnight camp at Tali. 

Most of summer treks finish in Auli and early summer/early winter treks finish in Tapovan because of the icy conditions on the trail to Auli. It is a 3-4-hr walk to either place. It is a gradual descent to Auli down through woods and pastures and we meet our driver waiting for us at Auli & drive us to Joshimath which, although having none of the elegance of its sister hill resorts, does have a charm and beauty of its own. It is the site where the famous Adiguru Shankaracharya attained enlightenment before beginning his campaign for the unification of India and the revitalization of Hinduism. There is a temple here called the Na Singh where the statue of Na Singh involves a legend that when the arm of the idol finally breaks, the road to Badrinath will be blocked. The arm gets smaller every year! It is the centre of the Indian ski scene, and the cable car up to the resort of Auli starts in the middle of Joshimath. Overnight in the Hotel in Joshimath.

Morning After breakfast from Joshimath is a 10 hrs drive to Rishikesh. Lunch is on the way. Trip ends at arrival in Rishikesh.