Kuari Pass Trek (5 Nights / 6 Days)

After breakfast we drive from Joshimath to Dhak towards the road to Tapovan. The trek begins at Dhak. The trail goes uphill towards our right away from the road. Over half of the path is open and without shade. We pass two villages on the way. We enter a forest about a kilometer before reaching the campsite of Guling. The camp has views towards the peak of Dunagiri.

The trail today has a gradual slope up. We walk among oak, rhododendron and pine forests. Khullara is an open meadow with a view of surrounding peaks like Dunagiri, Hathi and Ghodi.

We have an early breakfast and start walking uphill towards the pass. We reach a ridge, cross it and take a left. The path leads us away and towards our right to the pass. We spend some time here and then head back along the same way till we reach the ridge again. From here instead of heading down towards Khullara, we walk along the ridge towards Taali. We reach a small hillock with flag, named Chitrakantha. From here we get This spot has stunning panoramic views. We can see the peaks including Chaukhambha, Neelkanth, Mana, Hathi, Ghodi and Dunagiri. We walk down the other side and proceed towards our campsite. Taali is located inside the forest and is closed from all sides.

On this day, the walk is easy. The forest clears away soon. We pass by Taali lake, which is often frozen in winter. As we keep traversing towards Auli, the view of Nanda Devi peak becomes clearer towards our back. After crossing Gorson Bugyal, a large meadow, we enter a forest. A short walk further, the skiing destination of Auli presents itself. A vehicle takes us back to Joshimath from here.

We leave from Joshimath and reach Dehradun by early evening.