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Title : Kuari Pass - Climbing the North Face
Category : Trek
Duration : 7 Days
Location : Uttaranchal
Season : Summer (mar - june)
Autumn (sep - nov)
Grade : Moderate
The views are simply breathtaking, facing north the vision
sweeps from the gorges of Trishul in the east to the peaks of
Kedarnath in the west - the Kedarnath, Chaukhamba, Nilkantha,
Kamet, Gauri Parbat, Hathi Parbat, Nandadevi, Bethartoli,
Dunagiri – (all high 6000m to 7000 m peaks) lined one after the
other in a magnificent arc ………
Day 1: Delhi to Camp Silver Sands (330m) 5-6 hrs
Board the morning Shatabdi Express departing New Delhi at 7am to
be in Hardwar by 11:30 am. Transfer to Camp Silver Sands by the
Ganges (50 kms away) to reach just in time for hot lunch. Option
of going on a 12-km rafting trip after lunch. Evening Campfire
and overnight at Camp.
Day 2: Drive Rishikesh to Joshimath (1560m) 8-9 hrs
The drive takes one into the rugged country of the Garhwal along
the Alaknanda river. Going past a few holy confluences the road
keeps ascending to the small township of Joshimath, which is the
base for the Indian Army and the Indian Tibet Border police for
this area.
Day 3: Joshimath - Tali (3310m) 5-6 hrs
Take the cable car up to the ski slopes of Auli (2750m). From
Auli one gets to see a distinct profile of Nanda Devi at the
head of the sanctuary. The walk takes one through the forests of
oak and rhododendron to reach meadows of Gorson. From here the
trail descends steepily down to the forest and we camp by a
small water body at Tali. Overnight Camp.
Day 4: Tali to Khulara (3395m) via the Kuari Pass 5-6 hrs
Today the trail ascends the ridge above Tali and cairns marks
our track. Just below the pass, the trail leads through a large
meadow affording spectacular views of the Himalayas. North of
Joshimath is the Chaukhamba range, Nilkanth (6596m) and Narayan
Parbat (5965m), while Mana peak (7272m),Kamet (7756m) and Abi
Gamin (7355m) extend to the Tibetan border. In the middle
foreground, the main Himalayan chain in the vicinity of the
Bhyundar valley and Hem Kund includes Nilgiri Parbat (6474m),
Rataban (6166m), Ghori Parbat (6708m) and Hathi Parbat (6727m).
Dunagairi (7066m) dominates the peaks to the north of the Nanda
Devi Sanctuary. The Kuari pass (3840m) is by no means demanding
– we have our lunch here and then descent an hour to the base
camp at Khulara.
Day 5: Rest Day at Khulara (3395m)
Have an easy start to day, post breakfast relax or amble around
camp. The more enthusiastic ones have the option of walking up 2
hrs towards the summit of Pangarchulla to glimpse the beautiful
sunrise on the snowcapped peaks. Hot lunch at camp, evening
campfire and overnight camp.
Day 6: Khulara – Tapovan (1905m) 4-5 hrs and drive to
Pipalkoti (1330m)
The last day of the climb is all the way down to the Tapovan.
It’s about 3 hours drive from here to the comforts of the hotel
in Pipalkoti.
Day 7: Pipalkoti – Delhi
After an early morning breakfast set out for the long 8 hr drive
to reach Hardwar in the evening to board the evening Shatabdi
Express leaving at 6:10 pm to be back in Delhi by 10:30 pm. Trip
ends !
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