Kuari Pass Trek - Day 03 | Khullara to Joshimath

I Continue From Here: Kuari Pass Trek - Day 02

Kuari Pass Trek

Highest Altitude: 3815m (12516 ft)

Location: Nanda Devi National Park, Chamoli District. 

State/Country: Uttarakhand/ India

Base Village: Tugashi/Joshimath

Trek Open: Year Round

Total Distance: 20km

Number of Days: 3

Difficulty Level: Easy - Moderate

Day 03: Khullara (3350m/11000ft) to Tugasi village (2450m/8000ft) 

Distance/ Time: 6km (4H)

Frozen

Next morning, when we opened the tent, there was around 1.5ft high snow outside. The entire place had turned white and it continued to snow. It was one of the most beautiful sights I have seen. 

We had breakfast at around 9AM. We were introduced to the kitchen staff. We tipped them and took some group pictures before beginning our descent at 10:30AM. 

The entire trail downhill was covered in snow and it felt like a dream. At places where snow was melting, it was slippery. Almost all of us fell at least once. At some places, it was easier to sit and slide down. 

While we were descending, hundreds of people were climbing. It was the Christmas weekend crowd. I was happy to have done this earlier. I also met Shivahul, my trek lead from Gaumukh Tapovan trek. 

I walked slowly during my return. I wanted to soak in all the views before returning to civilisation. 

We reached Tugasi around 2PM. At Joshimath, we headed to the dhaba but it was closed. So, we had food elsewhere. I bought some Pahadi rajma from the grocery store. After lunch, we freshened-up. 

Lovekush and I stepped at around 6:30pm to explore Joshimath. We walked to the Adi Shankaracharya temple. Then we headed to Shri Narsingh Mandir. During winter, Badrinath is closed and the pooja is offered to the deity here. The temple was closed. Lovekush and I had a good conversation during the walk. 

We then headed to the dhaba. Rudra and Shrishail joined us there. The dhaba was full as they have only three tables. We had to wait, which we did without hesitation. Meanwhile, we learnt that the head chef is called Kedar and the dhaba though has no official name, is popular among customers as Kedar dhaba. Upon request, he made us some plain paratha. It was delicious. We thanked him and left. 

Before heading back to the hotel, I had some local sweets - Gajak and chocolate/Bal Mithai. 

When we returned back to the hotel, we saw Jinal address a fresh batch who were beginning the same trek the next morning. I wondered if it made any great difference at all to her? - Leaving Corporate and working here. From one monotony, she was setting into another. Of course, it will make some difference with the nature of work but essentially, you are now converting your passion into a job. I have always been against this thought. According to me, one should never let one’s passion become their profession. 

Though this was not a long trek, it was an interesting one, thanks to all the snowfall we saw on the last day. With memories of the beautiful views witnessed earlier that day and the hope to enjoy my stay in Rishikesh the next day, I went to bed; fully satisfied. 

My Video On This Trek: