HIMACHAL PRADESH -With mountain ranges such as Dhauladhar, Pirpanchal, and Great Himalayas with peaks ranging over 6000 meters while the glaciated passes including the Kangla and Shingola are over 5000 meters, offers very attractive opportunity for Trekking and Mountaineering.The popular trek bases are Kulu, Lahul, Spiti, Kinnaur and Chamba Valleys.
 

Detail Itinerary
 

DAY 01.   ARRIVE DELHI                                                                                                      Morning arrive Delhi and transfer to hotel. Afternoon combined guided tour of Old and New Delhi includes Jammia Masjid Mosque, Cycle rickshaw ride through Chandni chowk, Red Fort, drive through India Gate and Parliament house. And finally explore Qutab Minar and Humayuns Tomb.

DAY 02.   DELHI – PARWANOO                    Drive 275 km (via Chandigarh) 6 Hrs.                 Morning depart and drive to Parwanoo nestling cozily on the lap of the Shivalik range, surrounded by wooded hills, above the Kaushalaya river, is the gateway for Himachal Pradesh. A cable car across the Kaushalaya river, covering a distance of 1.8 km in about eight minutes and climbing about  601  Mt. takes us to Timber Trail for overnight stay.  Arrive and check in at Timber Trail. Late afternoon explore Parwanoo.  

DAY 03.   PARWANOO  - SHIMLA                                      Drive 70 Km 2 Hrs.                      Morning a short drive to Shimla, the queen of the hill resorts. At an altitude of 2130 Mt. The town of Shimla is a quaint and delightful place. It straddles a steep ridge, with settlements sloping down on both sides. Winding roads criss-cross the hillsides, making for a great many walks. Arrive and check in at hotel. Rest of the day to explore this summer capital of British Raj.

DAY 04.   SHIMLA – SARHAN                                           Drive 183 Km 6 Hrs.                    Morning depart and drive through lush green forests and apple orchards, to small village on Hindustan - Tibet road "Sarahan" via Narkanda (2895 Mt.). Arrive and check in at bungalow / camp.    

DAY 05.   SARHAN - KALPA                                                Drive 110 Km 4 Hrs.               Morning visit Bhimkali temple, which is a mixture of Hindu and Buddhist architecture and drive on to Kalpa, a district headquarter of Kinnaur via Recongpeo, situated at the height of 2,759 Mt., once a favorite haunt of Lord Dalhousie. Arrive and camp for overnight.

DAY 06.   KALPA – THANGI                                 Drive 50 Km 3 Hrs.                                 Morning drive to Thangi, an incredibly beautiful place, situated high above a deep gorge, with the old village perched even higher and looking extremely picturesque. Arrive and camp for overnight. Rest of the day at leisure for acclimatization.

DAY 07 - 10.   TREK                                                                                                                 The large village of Thangi has a medieval tower fortress and small Buddhist monastery. The trail from Thangi gradually ascends for the first 4 to 5 hours before a steep descend through coniferous forest to a large meadow beyond here, the gorge begins to widen and the granite walls still rise about 700 Mt. Above the valley floor. Finally we camp around Lambar (2890 Mt). several kilometers above Lamabr the trail enters a narrow gorge, continuous to twist and turn before emerging near some ancient cliff dwelling that are now deserted. Continuing our trek up the main valley we reach village of Charang (3500 Mt.), from this hamlet after exploring a small monastery, we ascend and then descend into Lalanti (4420 Mt.). Continuing our trek and pass through series of glacial lakes, the trail become progressively steeper towards the pass and the last stretch of about 200 Mt. Is strenuous. From Charang La (5260 Mt.), there are spectacular views across the Kinnaur Kailash ranges, while to the south there are equally impressive views of the range separating the Sangla and Har Ki Dun valleys. From the pass there is a steep descend over the scree slopes to an extensive boulder field. Finally we descend steeply down to Chitkul in the Sangla valley and this is our last day of the trek. This village consist of about 25 houses and a police check post.

DAY 11.   CHITKUL – NAKO                                                Drive 91 Km 3 Hrs.                  Morning after breakfast we bid goodbye to our caravan team and continue our journey through sangla valley down to highway connecting some kilometers before Recongpeo. Now through this mountainous highway we drive once again through Riba and Morang then on to spectacular villages of Speelo, Pho, Khabo and Kah until we reach Nako. Nako village is 7 km from the main road, built around small lake, it contains four Buddhist monasteries with stucco images and murals. Arrive and camp / guesthouse for overnight. 

DAY 12.   NAKO – TABO                                                      Drive 65 Km                             Morning depart and drive through number of interesting villages to Tabo, an ancient village, situated at 3050 Mt. above sea level on the left bank of river Spiti. Flanked on either side by lofty brown and sunburnt hills. It is the largest monastic complex in Spiti, old section has nine temples, 23 chortens, monks and nuns chamber. It is known as Ajanta of the Himalayas. It has recently celebrated a millennium of its glorious existence and his holiness the Dalai Lama conducted a ‘Kalachakra’ ceremony on the occasion. Arrive and camp / Guest house for overnight.

DAY 13.   TABO - KAZA                                                        Drive 47 Km 2 Hrs.                    Morning, depart and drive towards Kaza (3660 Mt.), the sub divisional headquarters of Spiti district, en-route from Tabo, visit Dhankar Gompa (3870 Mt., 7 km by a side road from Schiling). Situated high over the valley and is a stupendous example of local architecture. It is regarded to have once been a fort and was also the residence of the rulers of Spiti – the Nono. Dhankar is a repository of Buddhist scriptures in the Bhoti script. Arrive Kaza and camp / guest house for overnight. 

DAY 14.   IN KAZA                                                                                                                 After breakfast drive a short distance of about 12 Km to explore the Ki monastery (4116 Mt.). This centuries – old Gompa is a labyrinth of rooms and corridor – and at one time this also acted as a fort. It houses valuable Thankas and offers panoramic view of the area. Kiber gompa (4205 M), at a short distance from Ki has the distinction of being the highest permanently inhabited village of the region. 

DAY 15.   KAZA - CHANDRA RIVER CAMP                       Drive 88 Km                                     Drive on to Chandra river camp via Kunzum pass (4572 Mt.), we camp on the other side of Kunzum Pass around Batal.

Morning depart from Kaza, and drive through Spiti valley and then begin the long climb up the Spiti River to Kunzum La, which marks the border between Lahul and Spiti. As we approach the pass, numerous snow peaks come into view, the Karcha group to the south being the most prominent. A steep descent brings us down to the Chandra river and we camp around Batal for overnight.

DAY 16.   CHANDRA RIVER CAMP – MANALI                  Drive 115 Km                             Morning depart and drive to Grampho, here we connect to Leh – Manali highway, continuing our journey through Lahul valley we ascend to Rothang pass (3980 Mt.), from here we descend down to Manali, situated on the banks of river Beas in the lush green Kullu valley. Arrive and check in at hotel.

DAY 17.   IN MANALI                                                                                                                Full day to explore this picturesque town surrounded by lush green forests with snow Capped mountain peaks. This important fruit growing valley district produces apples, apricots, cherries, pears, peaches and plums. Craftwork here includes shawls, Kulu caps, jewelry and home spun tweed garments. Manali itself is in a lovely position, surrounded by dense forests and mountains.

DAY 18.   MANALI – CHANDIGARH                                    Drive 370 Km 11 Hrs.                       After breakfast day long drive to Chandigarh. We leave behind the mountainous high altitude area and descend into Chandigarh, a well laid city designed by a team of famous French architect Le Corbusier assisted by his cousin, Jeanneret and an English couple, Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew. Arrive and check in at hotel.  

DAY 19.   CHANDIGARH - DELHI                                         Drive 245 Km 5 Hrs.                           Morning depart and drive to Delhi, via plains of Punjab and Harayana. Arrive Delhi and check-in at hotel for overnight stay. Remainder of the day at leisure.

DAY 20.  DEPARTURE                                                                                                       Morning transfer to airport for homeward flight.

  JAGATSUKH - BASE DEOTIBA    NAGAR - PARBATI VALLEY   BATAL - CHANDERTAL    UDAIPUR - PADUM    CHAMBA VALLEY