Rupin Pass Trek

The trail continues along the true right of the valley. The trail is fairly gradual, going past the two large but remote villages of Dodra and Kuar. This region has recently been connected by road from Rohru (Shimla Region). The road is being extended till Jakha. We cross the bridge below Kuar village and take the path climbing up to the village. This path will join the trail on the true right below Jiskun village. From here the trail steeply climbs to Jiskun, which is located high above the confluence of Rupin and Narkund Khad. Jiskun has a small forest rest house. Continuing along the path, we descend steeply to a side tributary and after a short and steep ascent reach Jakha.

It is a beautiful walk through blue pine and maple forests. After a while the trail starts to descend to the river. There is a small bridge taking the trail to the true left of the valley. We camp overnight beside the river beside a spot frequented by shepherds.

The forest changes to silver Birch and rhododendron leading to alpine meadows. In season, the area looks spectacular with wild flowers and blue poppies. We walk on the large meadow surrounded by mountains and waterfalls. There is a huge and impressive waterfall in the middle of the valley leading up to the pass.

We start early today to make it to the Base camp of the Rupin pass by afternoon. We start our journey towards the Waterfall and after traversing the steep sections we reach the Upper Waterfall campsite, which is majestic. We spend some time here enjoying the views and have our packed lunch. It seems an ideal campsite but we approach the base camp as it will reduce our ascent to the pass and offer a very different camping experience. The base camp is covered in snow till late June and thus camping in snow from the winters, is a vivid summer experience, with the entire campsite largely to ourselves as we leave most of the groups behind. In the evening we can go climb up the nearby ridges to get panoramic views of the landscape covered in snow.

There are excellent views of the hanging glaciers and snow fields on the way to the pass. It is a fairly narrow and steep path through the boulders; in case of snow a rope maybe used. From the pass, one can witness great views of the Kinnaur Kailash range. We descend to the alpine meadows with lots of camping options.

Today is a beautiful short trek through blue pine, deodar and oak forest overlooking the Sangla valley. It is a fairly steep descent. Sangla valley is known for growing one of the best quality apples in the world. It is also one of the starting points of the famous Kinnaur Kailash trek. Sangla is connected by road to Shimla. One can get public or private transport from Sangla to Shimla.