Pangharchulla Trek

Joshimath to Joshimath trek of PANGHARCHULLA.

The trail for Pangarchulla and Kauri Pass remains the same up until the last day. As you are driving to Dhak which is the head trail for this astounding peak, you get an unobstructed view of Nanda Devi to your left and the crown of Pangarchulla to your right, sitting atop a dense forest thick with pine trees.

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¶ 6 Days     ♥ 47 Km     ♣ Max 15

MAX ALTITUDE                   4481MTS

Joshimath to Joshimath

4.3/5

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Brief Description

An amphitheater for the entire Garhwal Range, Pangarchulla, at an altitude of 4,590M, is perfect if you want to get a real taste for the high mountains at a comfortably low altitude. With the right amount of challenge and awe-inspiring views, it has to be one of the few peaks which introduces you to difficulties other than those that come with altitude in the Himalayas. With giants such as Nanda Devi – India’s second highest peak, Kamet – India’s third highest, Dhronagiri, Hathi Ghoda, Chowkhamba, Mana, Neelkanth (to name a few) standing guard like iron knights, is it any wonder it stands confident and so sure of itself – making climbers sweat?

Itinerary

DAY 1

Arrive in Joshimath. If you opt for transportation from us then we will assemble early morning in Dehradun ISBT by 7 AM and drive towards Joshimath. Overnight in guest house / hotel in Joshimath

DAY 2

Today is a short day. So, there is no need for a rushed morning. We leave after a warm breakfast. Please note that the breakfast for today is not included in the expense, so participants will need to arrange for their own meal. The city of Joshimath is a focal point for many places in the region, such as Valley of Flowers, Hemkund Sahib and even the temple of Badrinath. That is to say that it sees a lot of tourists and hence is not short of facilities.

After breakfast, we load up our packed rucksacks into a van which will take us to Dhak – the trail head for our trek. Remember to keep your sacks light and only carry what you require on the trek – you can store your extra luggage in the guest house. Dhak is roughly 10 kms from Joshimath and the drive takes not more than 30 minutes. The drive is short but picturesque. You are in the company of giants from the get-go. 20 minutes into the drive you start seeing an unobstructed view of Nanda Devi –India’s second highest peak after Kanchenjunga, to your left and the crown of Pangarchulla sitting atop a thick pine forest to your right. 

The scattered colours you see on the mountain sides are brightly painted house walls of the many mountain settlements that precariously stand on these fragile slopes. The trail passes through the villages of Kharchi, Lower Tugashi and Upper Tugashi giving you a glimpse into the many peculiarities of mountain living – from the structure of the houses designed to support their life style, to the many sources of livelihood and their close association with and dependence on nature. This is a popular route since the same route goes to Kauri Pass and a few other treks too. There are small food stalls in each of these villages. You will also find hydro-powered mills in the villages which is a perfect example of mountain people’s close association with the natural resources and their impeccable ability to coexist with other natural forms in the spirit of support instead of exploitation.

After crossing Upper Tugashi, we start to put a little distance between ourselves and any sign of civilization. We make an entry into the forest full of golden and black oak as well as pine and walnut trees. Ask your local guide to point out the tree whose bark is used to make butter tea – butter tea is supposed to keep the body warm and is a local relish in the winters – another example of using nature for survival. There is a gradual incline on the trail – it is the last stretch for today. You are now very close to the campsite, Guling. You should make it there just in time for hot lunch. Guling top is a massive open field with the best views of the Garhwal range. To witness the sun playing chase with these peaks twice every day, is quite an experience.  

The entire landscape works together to put you at ease. The reds, greens and yellows of the trees plus the five dozen shades of brown along with the white of the peaks and the sun teasing the skies, changing their color every second of the oncoming dusk.  

Rest for a bit after your hot lunch and feast your eyes on the marvels that unfold before you as the day comes to a close. Since we have gained quite a bit of altitude today, we go for a short acclimatization walk in the evening and return to camp before it gets dark.

DAY 3

Today is a short day of walking in the oak and pine forests that bordered our campsite the previous day. We enter the quiet of the forest right after breakfast so as to finish the day as early as possible. This is important as the summit push begins the same night and it’s vital that we rest our bodies before making our way out in the cold of the night.

We leave the campsite by 9 in the morning. It takes 5 minutes to enter the thick forest where suddenly you are in closed quarters after spending a night in open grounds. You receive patches of sunlight as gifts from the tall canopy of the forest, though. The drooping pine branches leaning in as if for a kiss, and the stern oak, the complete opposite – the many cascading streams adding movement to the otherwise still forest. You will also come across Himalayan Birch or Bhojpatras in this forest as well as the trees used to make butter tea. The only roadblocks on the way are the massive fallen trees on the trail you have to climb over. The terrain today has a gradual incline, not very tiring. The months of March and April might see the trail covered with snow from Khulara onwards and you might even have to camp in snow.

You should reach the campsite of Khulara within three hours. It is a massively open ground where the view of the peaks opens up further to accommodate many more mountains. The sunset here is absolutely awe-inspiring – like a conversation between the sun and the skies with slightest movement of the sun changing the colour of the skies and the mountains.

We also take some time in the evening to distribute necessary gears required for the summit push along with a short tutorial on how to use them effectively to aid your climb.

DAY 4

The day starts before break of dawn. We gear up and leave our campsite in the dead of the night, at 3AM. There are no water sources on the way and it is an extremely long day, so remember to carry sufficient water.

Considering it is summit day, it will be the longest and toughest day of the trek. We eat something and top our bottles before we leave for the night. The trek starts by crossing the open ground of Khulara which starts to climb onto a rocky terrain with a gradual incline. The nights tend to get extremely cold. So, do not forget to layer up adequately.

After an hour of incline on the uneven land, you will hit the meadows. If it is a clear sky, look up to see the wonders of the night – the sky, the stars and the quiet of the meadows bordered by trees is enough to take your breath away if the climb up until now hadn’t done so already. An hour more from here on a gradual incline and you reach the top of the ridge line. There is a small stone temple on top which is where the route for Kuari Pass and Pangarchulla separate. To summit our peak, we take a left from the temple and start to walk the long and steep walk up the ridge of the mountain. There are three ridgelines we will walk before we hit the next section on the trail. The walk on the ridgeline is especially challenging because it is completely exposed and hence extremely windy, with no way to protect yourself or guard against the chilly winds. There are a few small sections of descend on this patch which is a welcome change after steep inclines going up. The peaks appear to be ghost-mountains with their faint greyish outlines fogged out in the mist of the night.

Once off the ridge, the sun starts to make an appearance by around 6AM. The changing colours of the sky and the way the majestic peaks react to the sun’s movements is something you don’t want to miss. Three and a half hours into the climb, we hit the hardest part of the entire summit push. Remember, we are climbing a total of close to 1,200M today and are expecting to reach the summit latest by 11 am.

By 0730 AM we reach the boulder section of the climb – the hardest bit. The rocks here are very stable so once you learn how to use them to move forward, it gets much easier. It will take close to an hour and a half to get from the start of this section to the bottom of the peak. This is relatively flat but requires extreme caution for the boulders have massive gaps between them which could cause a lot of damage in the case of a slightest misstep.

Note: The terrain is very different in both seasons.  During March and April, this section of the climb receives a thick sheet of snow making it a flat and massive snow field which is much easier to navigate and is likely to be faster to cross. During Oct-Dec, the snows melts away exposing the boulders underneath.

From the bottom of the peak, it is a steep climb up all the way to the summit. This, too, is rife with boulders which makes the climb slower in winters. During peak season (march and april), however, it might be a bit faster for snow is relatively easier to walk on. Based on the speed of the climbers, this last section up is likely to take anywhere between 2-3 hours. It is demanding and requires a lot of internal motivation. Expect to reach the summit by 11AM.

The tiny parts that were previously hidden are now completely open and you can see the entire Garhwal Range from where you stand. The force of the mountains surrounding you has the power to fill you up with energy, if you feel drained at all from this arduous climb. After a short prayer on the temple at the summit, prepare to start your descend. This is going to take really long too, and you might want to cross the most precarious sections before the sun starts to make the snow unstable.

We follow our footsteps back down the mountain. The climb down might seem endless because it takes a lot of effort to descend these almost blindingly steep slopes. Expect to reach the end of the boulder section at the mark of three hours. And three more hours to get to Khulara.

DAY 5

Today is very easy. We just have to follow our footsteps back to Joshimath. After resting off the weariness from the previous day, we finish breakfast by 8 and aim to leave by 9 AM. An hour and a half into our descent through the forests, we make it to our first campsite. An hour and a half more and we have reached Dhak from where we board our vehicle and head on to Joshimath. There is a lot to explore within and around this holy town. We spend the nights at the guest house.

DAY 6

The trip ends today. Prepare to checkout of the guest house and board your vehicles back to Dehradun. We are likely to reach Dehradun by late evening. If you plan on traveling the same night, please book transportation that leaves between 11pm and 12am to account for any unexpected delays on the road.

  • Food as per menu on the trek (Starting Lunch on Day 2)
  • Forest Permits/Camping Charges , if any
  • Tents, Sleeping bags, mats,Technical equipment
  • Safety Equipments.
  • Trek guide, cook, helpers, porters & mules for carrying common luggage.
  • Services of a Trek Leader.
  • 2 Nights Hotel stay in Joshimath.
  • Meals during road journeys
  • Meals during hotel stay
  • Any expense of personal nature
  • Any expense not specified in the inclusion list
  • Transportation from Dehradun to Joshimath and back to Dehradun.

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Why Trek with us?

There are several companies and agencies, which will offer same services that we offer. Some of them are from Uttarakhand some are from outside Uttarakhand. But we from this region. From Joshimath, from Valley. We have lived our whole life in this part of Himalayas.

We are a team of certified and well trained professionals. 

7+ Years Experience

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“Valley of Flower's trekking team is a group of well professionals. They organize our trek for Kuari Pass. And now i feel that we choose a well experience agency for this. Thankyou Valley of Flower.”

Rohit Sharma, New Delhi

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"I visited Joshimath in the last weel of April. I joined a festival called RAMMAN in Saoor-Dungra village with valley of flower's team. That was amazing day. "

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