A week long homestay hiking option in Western Himalayas

homestay-trek-in-darhwal-western-himalayas-india

I would like to ask if you have any recommendations for a 5 to 7 day hike between 11 and 18 April for four persons in Uttarakhand or Himachal Pradesh.

We would come from Delhi on 10 April and return to Delhi on 19 April

Before suggesting trail(s) we would like to know the following:

1) Do you prefer to have a private tour or join any of our fixed departure? Prior will have more route choice, like adding or modifying an itinerary as per your need. Pricing depends primarily on the number of persons and the chosen route.

2) Are you experienced hikers? We would like to hear about your prior hiking experience(s), in case any.

3) Mid of April will probably have a lot of snow around ~ 4000 m/13000 ft. Himachal seems difficult for a multi-day camping trek, and Uttarakhand seems a better destination in our opinion.

Please feel free to revert for any queries or any inputs which you may like to share.

Thank you for your quick response. We have experience with multiple day hikes camping in the Alps, Pyrenees in Europe and in Ladakh. We are interested in a private tour wherever possible. Thank you very much.

It’s great to hear that you have considerable experience of hiking. It will certainly give you more options to explore the possibilities.

During mid April, you may consider all the winter/spring trek routes like KedarkanthaHar Ki DunWinter Kuari Pass and few others. Note that these are popular routes and may have other groups visiting around the same time. Campsites are limited even if you are on a private tour.

Alternatively, you may consider Bedni Bugyal trek or Dodital trek (possible to add with Dayara Bugyal) which are less frequent during your travel time.

All of the above treks are of camping in nature and requires heavy logistics arrangements, when arranged for 2 persons.

You may also be interested in this budget friendly Eco tour to Osla and Har Ki Dun in homestay that we have designed.

Hope this gives you a fair idea about the possibilities. Please feel free to revert for any queries or suggestions which you may need.

Reading your email below, we found the Osla and Har Ki Dun homestay tour appealing for mid of April. However we would like to spend more time in the area and possibly hike some more before returning to Dehra Dun. Would it be possible to prolong this tour with a few extra days?
Hope to hear from you soon, regards.

Yes, we can certainly increase the itinerary for couple of days, hiking and staying in homestays, expanding to 8/9 days, Dehradun to Dehradun. Osla to Har Ki Dun and return will be your only strenuous day of the hike.

Note that the homestays are simple, serving local diets, daal, chawal, sabji, chapati meals or paratha in breakfast.

Guide for the trip will be a local person, having understanding of basic English sentences and words. He will definitely have a sound understanding and knowledge of the area. Note that we don’t send English speaking soft skilled trek leaders raised in cities!

How many people are there in your team?

Please feel free to revert for more queries on your plan.

Hi Namasté, thanks for your reply!
Could you make us an offer for the homestay trip Osla to Har Ki Dun? We are a group of 4 people but only 2 want to prolong to 9 days, 2 people want the original 5-6 day trip. Will you please include the drives from Dehradun up the mountains?
We could depart around April 8.
Looking forward to hearing from you, all the best

Namaste & good evening from India.

So following our earlier discussion 2 of you (say team A) will be following our usual Osla Har Ki Dun homestay trek.  Osla and Har Ki Dun HOmestay trek itinerary. Remaining two members (say team B) will split and spend additional 2 nights in the region. Team A will trace back their steps to Sankri whereas team B will approach Dhatmeer village via Dharkot.

The itinerary extended trip will be:

Day 1: Dehradun to Sankri – 200 Km by car or bus – 10/11 hours. Lodge or homestay accommodation.
Day 2: Sankri to Taluka village – 11 Km by car – 1 hour – Trek from Taluka to Gangar – 9 Km – 4/5 hours. Homestay. Explore the village in the afternoon.
Day 3: Trek to Osla – 5 Km – 2/3 via Powani village. Homestay. Explore Osla village and temple after lunch.
Day 4: Early morning trek to Har Ki Dun – 11 Km – 4 to 5 hours –Stay at Har Ki Dun forest rest house – Explore valley in the afternoon. Witness outstanding sunset view.
Day 5: After sunrise views trek down to Osla – Homestay at Osla,   3 to 4 hours. Either stay here or carry on to Gangar/Dhatmeer etc.
Day 6: Trek from Osla to Dhatmeer, 3-4 hours. Homestay at Dhatmeer.
Day 7: Post breakfast trek to Leka Top. Back for lunch. Homestay at Dhatmeer.
Day 8: Trek to Taluka, 5 hours, by car Sankri – 1 hour. Twin sharing lodge.
Day 9: Drive/bus to Dehradun – 200 Km – 10 hours.

On top of the opposite Ridge of Gangad village is Dharkot. The climb to Dharkot is quite steep but not very long thankfully. From Dharkot two to three hours of gradual ridge walk will reach you the point from where Dhatmeer is only half an hour of descent. From Dhatmeer you will attempt to summit Leka Top for a compelling 360-degree view of the majestic western Garhwal. Also below are few photos of this additional region including Dhatmeer. These snaps are from peak winters, and for indication purpose only. Remaining trails photos and cultural insights are already in our Osla Har Ki Dun homestay trek details page. Hope you’ll find it helpful.

gangad-village-on-the-other-side-of-the-valley
Steep climb to Dharkot
dharkot-village-upper-tons-valley-towards-har-ki-dun
Dharkot village
dhatmeer-village-in-winters-after-snowfall
Dhatmeer village during peak winter
temple-at-dhatmeer-village-tons-river-valley
At Dharmeet village
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