Through The Snowy Trails and Crystal-Clear Skies: Brahmatal and Kuari Pass Trek

 Each year I challenge myself to take up at least two treks, and this year, the Brahmatal Trek and the Kuari Pass Trek had to be on my bucket list. Both of the treks I undertook this year were fruitful and the journey was just the best!

On My Way to the Brahmatal Trek

My Brahmatal trek journey started with landing in Dehradun and then a drive from Dehradun to Lohajung. Along the drive from Haridwar to Lohajung, we passed through Devprayag, Srinagar, and Rudraprayag with pretty sceneries everywhere.From Devprayag, we made our journey to Srinagar and then an hour we reached Rudraprayag which was around 33 kilometres from Devprayag. The way to Kedarnath started from Rudraprayag. A further drive of 120 kilometres will took us to Lohajung. Once we reached Lohajung, we could see the mesmerizing Nanda Ghunti peak.

On the second day we advanced to Bekaltaland it took around 5 hours to reach the Bekaltal campsite. The complete trek distance from Lohajung campsite to Bekaltal campsite was around 6.3 Kilometres. There were snow-peaked mountains which were just so pretty. The trail during the trek was really admirable. We reached the Bekaltal campsite soon and then tents were put and tasty hot lunch was served. Our day ended with a light walk.

On the third day, we trekked from Bekaltal to Brahmatal. The mountain vegetation was quite beautiful and we had an overnight stay at Brahmatal. We also witnessed the Shivalik range as well as the Greater Himalayas from there. After reaching the Brahmatal campsite, we took a rest and, in the evening, we went to visit Brahmatal Lake which was at a distance of 500 meters from the campsite.

The fourth day was all about conquering the Brahmatal and then descending back to the Brahmatal campsite. It took approximately 6 hours to complete the day’s journey. The day was long but I enjoyed it thoroughly throughout the whole journey. We had an overnight stay at tent with a delicious dinner which brought us to the end of the tiring yet beautiful day.

On day five we set out for the next trail to Lohajung village. The schedule was to go from Brahmatal base camp to Lohajung. It took 7 hours to complete the journey. We reached Lohajung by evening and went to explore the village and markets nearby. The good time was then followed by a sound sleep.

On the final day of the trek, we drove back to Dehradun from Lohajung village. We reached Dehradun by 7:30 pm and with this myheavenly journey to the Brahmatal Trek ended. The six-day Brahmatal Trek was just as fantastic as I thought. The place really worth-going to!

The Serene And Breath-taking Kuari Pass Trek

On the first day our journey to the Kuari Pass Trek, we travelled from Dehradun to Joshimath which was around 260 kms journey which took around 10 hours to reach Joshimath via road. We crossed a lot of places while our drive from Dehradun to Joshimath. We broke the thrilling journey into 6 parts. The first one was a drive from Dehradun to Rishikesh, then Devprayag, then towards Srinagar, following Rudraprayag, Kedarnath, Karnaprayag and finally Joshimath. Once we reached, we took rest and stayed overnight.

On the second day of our trek, we drove to Dhak village. The actual trek via foot started from Dhak village. We started our trek from Dhak Village to Guilng Top Campsite which was our destination for day 2. The whole trek from Dhak village to the campsite had delightful surroundings comprising of variety of forests. Once we reached the campsite we stayed there overnight.

On the third day, we advanced to Tali Top. It took around 5 hours to reach the Tali Top forest campsite. The complete trek distance from Guling top campsite to Tali Top forest campsite was around 6 Kilometres with mesmerizing scenes of the hills and then after reaching Forest Hut, towards Tali Top the distance was around 2 kilometres. We also witnessed a bunch of snowy mountains peaks from here. A walk of few lead us to the Tali Top forest campsite. After reaching we stayed there for the night enjoying some fun activities with the group.

The fourth day was the toughest day of the whole trek. We trekked to the Kuari Pass which was at an elevation of 12,763 feet from the mean sea level. The total trek distance was around 15 kilometres and it took 11 hours to complete the task of the day. The first step was a trek from Tali Top to Khullara Top. We reached the top of Khullara with some moderately ascending trek. A walk of 2.5 km advanced us to a broken bridge comprising of a frozen stream. From there, we went through some snow-covered patches to reach the Kuari Pass. A climb of 1.5 km took us to the Kuari Pass. The view from the top was breathing, refreshing, serene, soul satisfying and just wondrous. After this, wemade our way back to the Tali base camp and this marked the end of the longest day of our trek.

On the fifth day, after having breakfast we trekked down alongside Rishi Ganga river. A descent of 1 kilometre took us to Tali Lake which was serene and beautiful. From here, a descent of 3.5 kilometres will took us to Gurson Bugyal which was situated at an altitude of 11,150 feet. Another 3.5 kilometres of descent advanced us to Auli, which is known to be the ski capital of India. The breath-taking lake at Auli was clear and serene. A drive distance of 13 kilometres from Auli lead us to Joshimath and rest was followed for the day.

On the last day of the journey, we drove you from Joshimath to Dehradun. The distance of the whole journey from Joshimath to Dehradun was around 293 km and it took approximately 10 hours to reach Joshimath via road. We followed the same route as we followed to reach Joshimath. We passed Karnaprayag, Srinagar, Devprayag, Rudraprayag, Rishikesh and finally reach Dehradun in the evening. This marked the end of our marvellous Kuari Pass Trek. The whole trek which I took with 2 of my friends was so amazing that I would like to come here again and again, so to challenge myself to reach the top of the summit to witness the magical views that this trek gifts us with.