The Vagabond Hiker

Hiking, trekking, and climbing the world

Trekking India’s Kumaon Himalaya

The little-known region of Kumaon, comprising the eastern portion of the Indian state of  Uttarakhand, is arguably the centerpiece of the Indian Himalaya, dominated by the awe-inspiring Nanda Devi and Nanda Devi East. Often overlooked by trekkers, it offers wild unspoiled landscapes far removed from the pilgrimage hordes and most mechanized traffic. The trekking route we took is located close to the border of western Nepal and Tibet, following an ancient trade route to the latter in a remote corner of Kumaon.

Starting in the village of Munsyari, our Exodus Travels group of 12 clients, two guides, three camp support staff, and four muleteers  trekked through small settlements and pristine forests following the Gori Ganga River to the historic settlement of Milam. Milam was a thriving village trading with Tibet before the war with China in 1962. We then trekked up to the Pachu Glacier with its spectacular views of Nanda Devi and Nanda Devi East.  At 7,816 meters, the former is the highest mountain completely within India (Kanchenjunga, the third highest mountain in the world, is on the border with Nepal).  Enjoy the photos I took on this remote and spectacular 11 day trek.

Day 1. Munsyari hotel view of the Kamaon Himalaya (also referred to as the Eastern Gharwal Himalaya). This town, 1.5 days driving from the Kathgodam railhead, was the starting point of our 11 day trek.
Day 1. At these lower elevations, though it was late in the season, goats were still to be seen.
Day 1. An orchid which I have not attempted to identify.
Day 1.  A Kashmir Rock Agama. We saw quite a few of these 6-8 inch long lizards at the lower elevations (under 3000 meters).
Day 1. Some of our donkeys crossing a stream. We had around 15 donkeys to carry much of our personal equipment, our food, tents, etc. Early on the muleteers were drunk and lazy, which led to delays in setting up camp several nights.
Day 1. A rather bold Neptis hylas (unknown subspecies) seen at our lunch break.
Day 1. A partial rainbow at Lilam camp where we stayed on the first night. At only 1850 meters, it was still warm in this cramped hillside camp.
Day 2. The Gori Ganga. We would follow this river, sometimes hundreds of feet above its deep gorge, for much of the trek.
Day 3. A white-capped water red-start (Phoenicurus leucocephalus). I thought at first it was a wagtail because of its behavior.
Day 3. A side stream into the Gori Ganga. Numerous side streams and waterfalls punctuated our journey.
Day 3. A spectacular waterfall into the Gori Ganga with four Exodus clients.
Day 3. The Gori Ganga valley at a point where it had opened up somewhat. The trail (actually a jeep track here) is clearly visible on the left hand side above the valley.
Day 3. Some of our group crossing a side stream of the Gori Ganga.
Day 3. A scree descent. Numerous landslides during the last monsoon created some challenging footing on the trek.
Day 4. The Gori Ganga valley above Railkot. Absolutely spectacular.
Day 5. The Milam glacier overlook. This day was an aberration from the generally good post-monsoon weather. This was the first of three optional day hikes where we stayed at the same camp for two consecutive nights.  A great chance to catch up on laundry!
Day 5. The outskirts of Milam, the furthest north village towards Tibet. The red shrubs are barberry. Trading has historically made the inhabitants relatively wealthy, but that all changed in 1962 after the Chinese attacked an unprepared India. The passes beyond Milam have been closed since ever since.
Day 6. Part of the Milam border post with a view towards Tibet. Photography was forbidden, but I sneaked a couple of pics anyway.
Day 6. Our Milam campsite. The clients had eight tents (the yellow ones were shared, the green ones for single travelers) and, importantly, two lavatory tents.  There was also a cook tent and a smallish mess tent that we crammed into for breakfast and dinner.
Day 6. Tirsuli (r) and Hardeol (l), two 7000 meter peaks to the North.
Day 6. Some flowers in deserted Pachu village. The villages we past were mostly abandoned, though a few locals still farm and have summer grazing pastures.
Day 6. Our first view of Nanda Devi East. The trees are birches, already changing color at this elevation (about 3400 meters).
Day 6. One of our donkeys with Nanda Devi behind in clouds.
Day 7. Morning alpenglow on Nanda Devi (r) and Nanda Devi East (l). The ridge connecting them is about 2 kilometers long. I took an untold number of photos of these two mountains during the several days they were in view.
Day 7. The Vagabond Hiker at Pachu Glacier with Nanda Devi  (in clouds) and Nanda Devi East behind.
Day 7. Here I was at the high point (est. 4500 m) above Pachu Glacier. Nanda Devi is in clouds this late in the day. Only one other client made this snow ascent during our lunch stop on this optional day hike.
Day 9. Trail side Himalayan gentians.
Day 9. The Shalang Valley towards Nanda Kot (6861 meters, far right in the background). Because of a new bridge, we were able to condense two days and gain an optional day hike around Martoli Peak.  Even our guide Rajeev, had not been this far before.
Day 9. “Elephant Peak” to our SE (zoom) from the northern flanks of Martoli Peak.
Day 10. The Gori Ganga, here at river level.
Day 11. A beautiful gorge along the Gori Ganga.
Day 11. On our final day trekking back to the road-head.  Munsyari is highlighted in the distance on this rainy day. We took a different, spectacular high level route back to our first river crossing.

I have been enjoying an autumn break in the UK this past week. Next week I will fly to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.  During my month there I expect to fully explore the hiking opportunities on this volcanic island off the west coast of Morocco.  Until my next post, happy trails.

The Vagabond Hiker

 

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