The beauty of Kashmir the well-known paradise is known to everyone but you will be forced to believe this fact when you visit Kashmir. The best way to experience the eternal beauty of Himalaya is Kashmir Great Lakes trek. You will across five uttermost lakes of Kashmir. The picturesque scenery of blue water lakes with crystal clear water amidst rugged Mountains with patches of snow and grass and verdant meadows is breathtaking. Spending time besides the shores of the lake with lush green grass and blazing sun on top is the so satisfying and most amazing feeling. At some point, you will find yourself amidst towering maple and pine trees.
You will also come across silver birch trees. Vibrant flora of Kashmir is another thing that will catch your attention, flourishing blue, red, purple flowers in this chilling ambiance look idyllic. Standing on a height that you have never been before and looking down on the small valley, undulating hills and the trail you walked and reached is a dazzling view, sometimes you also get view 2 or 3 lakes together in one frame with snow-clad hills and green meadows. Kashmir Great Lakes trek will give you memories you will never forget from trekking through the jagged paths to eating noodles and omelets to spending nights in the camps, the cap fires, every moment spent here is a delight and unforgettable. You will cherish these moments throughout your life.
About the Trek
Kashmir Great Lakes trek is an adventure which is worth going for, walking on the undulating paths, away from the hassle life, enjoying the heavenly beauty of nature. This trek will not only give you the pleasure of enjoying the nature but It will also give you a chance to explore yourself, the trek will help you know your true potential, there will be instances where you will have to push your limits and move forward. Great lakes of Kashmir trek is considered to be one of the most beautiful treks in India and it is indeed. While on this trek you will meet new people, come across some shepherds and their huts, army camps and checkpoints. The maximum height reached during this trek will be 13,800 feet.
The trek starts and ends at Shitkadi. A total of 72 kilometers will be traversed during Kashmir Great Lakes trek. There will be a lot of ascends and descends during this expedition, rivers and hills will always accompany you. Sometimes hills are lush green and sometimes they craggy and lifeless. Sometimes the trail becomes precipitous but you will overcome it, all you need is to accumulate all your vigor and move forward. As you move forward you will explore something new, the journey never becomes tedious.
Highlights of the Trek
- Considered to be one of the prettiest treks in India and also the most adventurous.
- You will come across five captivating lakes in this trek.
- The scenery around you will always be picturesque and mesmerizing.
- You will always be surrounded by lakes and snow clad mountains and will be lost in the enchanting beauty of Kashmir to such a level that you wouldn’t want to leave.
- You will meet new people who have a very disparate life. You will also come across some shepherds huts and army checkpoints.
- This trek will help you explore yourself, your potential. This trek will check your endurance and determination.
- This is the most thrilling experience you will ever have and a trip that will stay with you for a lifetime.
Keys Facts about Trek
The average temperature during the trek remains between 17°C-20°C during the day and at it is 3°C-4°C. The total distance traversed during the trek is 72 km and the maximum altitude achieved is 13,800ft, which is at Gadsar Pass. The difficulty level of Kashmir Great Lakes trek is considered to be moderate to difficult. The trek starts and ends at Sankri. Sonmarg is our base camp. Jammu is the nearest railway station and Srinagar airport is the nearest airport.
- Trekking Distance: 72km
- Maximum Altitude: 13,800ft
- Difficulty Level: Moderate
- Starting and Ending Point: The trek starts and ends at Shitkadi
- Railway Station: Jammu is the nearest railway station
- Airport: Srinagar Airport
- Base Camp: Sonmarg
Itinerary
Day- 1: Srinagar to Sonmarg
- More than half of the day will be spent in Srinagar. We will leave for sonmarg in evening. Meanwhile, you can explore the beautiful tourist hotspots of Srinagar. Some of the places you can visit in Srinagar are
- Then we will drive to Sonmarg and reach by night, where we will spend the night in a trekking
- You can prepare yourself for a trek that will start from next morning and relax for a while before starting it.
Day- 2: Sonmarg to Nichai via Shekdur
- We will move from Sonmarg to Nichai via Shekdur.
- Distance traveled- 9 km
- Time taken-6 hrs
- Difficulty level-moderate
- 3 hours of ascending and 1 hour descend.
- Trek will start from the morning after having breakfast. We will move from Sonmarg to about 3kms, where you will find last few shops from where you can buy some food items or necessities for the trek. From here you have to move along the Sindh River.
- After moving for a while you will find yourself amidst towering pine and maple tree forest. You will be walking through the dense forest of pine and maple trees with sunrays rushing through the canopy. This place is a kick start for the trek and will give you the full feel of the trek. For next half, an hour will ascend in this pine maple forest. This is the highest point that you will ascend, from here you enjoy the jaw-dropping beauty of songam valley and that was a glacier.
- After this, the trail will be After descending for a while you will reach Shekdur. Shekdur is very beautiful, you will find silver birch trees and here you can see snowcapped hills and beautiful landscape.at shedukar you can spot places where you can have noodles or omelets etc.
- From here we continue our journey towards Nichai following the Nichai River. After reaching Nichai you can have dinner and rest in your camp.
Day- 3: Nachnai to Vishansar
- We will move from nachnai to the Vishansar
- Distance traveled- 12 km
- Time taken-6 hrs
- You will start the trek in the morning and move towards Nichaithe trail is rocky and gets steep at times but mostly it is a decent trek. Nichai pass is at the height of 13,500 feet. You get a complete 360-degree view of the surroundings. You can see the snow clad mountains lined up on one side. Sonmarg valley is also visible from this point. After this point, the trail starts to descend. And you see the scenery changing all along the way, from lush green ridges and meadows to jaggy and lifeless snowcapped ridges.
- Explore the beauty of the green meadows with the regional flora of the place. You can spend some leisure time on the shore of rivers that comes along the way and relish the elegance of the place.
- Spend your night in the camp near vishnusar with its captivating beauty and fresh breeze.
Day- 4: Acclimatization at Vishansar Lake
- Acclimatization at Vishnusar Lake.
- This day is for you to rest a bit and for your body to gather strength for the rest of the expedition as you have a long way to go.
Day- 5: Vishansar Lake to Gadsar
- Distance traveled- 11 km
- Time taken-5 hrs
- Vishansar Lake to Gadsar via Kishansar and Gadsar
- Move along the shore of the river, moving forward there comes a point from where the complete view of Vishnusar Lake can be seen. This pristine lake is a big lake and its blue water shines under the blazing sun.
- The next lake you will come across will be Krishansar Lake, you will lose in the divine beauty of this lake, with lush green meadows and snow-clad ridges lined on its back, its grace is incomparable. The best is yet to come.
- After ascending for around an hour you will be able to see Vishnusar and Kishansar Lake in one frame, the view is spectacular, one of the best scenic you will come across on this trek.
- You ascend further to reach the top of the hill which is at an altitude of 13,800 feet, this is the highest altitude attained in the complete trek. This point is Gadsar
- After this point, you have to ascend downhill. You will come across Yama Lake and one more lake on your downhill.
- After ascending a height of 1300 feet, you finally reach Gadsar. The lake here is idyllic with lush green grass and vibrant and bright colored flowers across its shore.
- After reaching Gadsar complete the formalities required to pass Gadsar at the nearest army post. ID proof is required for this, so don’t forget to carry that.
Day- 6: Gadsar to Satsar
- Gadsar to Satsar
- Distance traveled – 12km
- Time taken-6 hrs.
- Your journey will be a mixture of different terrains from plunging to medium steep to flat.
- After a long trail of 12 km, you will finally make it to satsar lake which is a collection of seven different lakes, it has a splendid view, nestled in snow clad barren ridges and green meadows.
- Again you have to go through the same army procedures, then you rest in your camps besides Satkar Lake.
Day- 7: Satsar to Gangabal twin lakes
- Satsar to Gangabal twin lakes
- Distance traversed- 9km
- Time taken-6 hrs
- If you are thinking that you have become an excellent trekker, then this day might break your misconception. This is the real challenge for the trekkers, this would turn out to be the most difficult part of your entire trek. So be mentally and physically prepared for this day. The trek is undulating and sharp, which makes it difficult to trail on.
- Satsar is the biggest among all the lakes. On your trail on rocky and steep ridges, you will notice the snow-clad hills all around, the ambiance here is quite different from before. From the top of the ridge, you can spot Gangabal and Nundkol. After ascending 13,800 feet you will reach Nunkol Lake, moving further you will reach Gangabal, which will be your campsite.
- After a hectic peregrination, you finally reach Gangabal. Take the much-needed rest and brace yourself for the next day of the trek.
Day- 8: Gangabal to Naranag
- From Gangabal to Naranag.
- Distance traversed-12 km
- Time taken-7 hrs
- This will be tiring trek as it has very steep descends. On your trail
- After walking for a long time on the green meadows you finally reach Narang village, from where you can drive back to Srinagar and reach by evening.
How to Reach
You need to reach Srinagar as that would be the starting point of our trek. You can reach Srinagar either by flight or by train. If you prefer to travel by air taking flight from Delhi to Srinagar would be the best option. There is a no of flights of Air India, Indigo, Jet Airways and many more take you can board.
If you prefer the train. You can take a direct train from Delhi, Banglore, Trivandrum, and Chennai to Jammu. Jammu is the closest railway station to Srinagar. J & K state road transport buses are easily available to travel from Jammu to Srinagar. Jammu to Srinagar is a 10-hour drive. The buses are very convenient and comfortable and comparatively cheaper. You also have an option of hiring a taxi from Jammu that will take you Srinagar at the same time.
Travel
For the first day will mostly be spent at Srinagar where you can spend time visiting the local tourist places at Srinagar, you can visit some interesting tourist spots like gardens, houseboats, and lakes. In evening you will leave for the summary, which is the starting point of the trek. You can take a taxi from Srinagar that will leave you at Sonmarg. The night would be spent here and the trek will start from the next day. On the 8th day of your trek, which would be the last day of the trek, you will end it at Naranag. You can hire a taxi from Naranag which is easily available at affordable prices and move back to Srinagar.
If you want to spend some more time at Srinagar to enjoy its beauty then you can stay back. Otherwise, you can take train or flight to reach back to your place.
Weather Conditions
Weather conditions play a very crucial role, as the temperature and rainfall pattern will decide the most suitable time to go for a trek. The temperature and rainfall have to be kept in mind before going on any trek.
Temperature Conditions of Sitkari
- During the month of July, the temperature in the daytime is around 15-20 degrees and goes down to around 4-9 degrees at night.
- During the month of August, the temperature in the daytime is around 15-20 degrees and goes down to around 4-10 degrees at night.
- During the month of September, the temperature in the daytime is around 12-17 degrees and goes down to around 1-6 degrees at night.
Temperature Conditions of Vishnusar
- During the month of July, the temperature in the daytime is around 13-17 degrees and goes down to around 1-5 degrees at night.
- During the month of August, the temperature in the daytime is around 12-16 degrees and goes down to around 1-5 degrees at night.
- During the month of September, the temperature in the daytime is around 9-14 degrees and goes down to around -2-4 degrees at night.
Temperature Conditions of Gangabal
- During the month of July, the temperature in the daytime is around 13-17 degrees and goes down to around 1-5 degrees at night.
- During the month of August, the temperature in the daytime is around 12-16 degrees and goes down to around 1-5 degrees at night.
- During the month of September, the temperature in the daytime is around 9-14 degrees and goes down to around -2-4 degrees at night.
Rainfall Pattern
This region doesn’t experience much rainfall. But raincoat should always be carried for emergency conditions, you never know when it might start raining. The average rainfall in the region increases from January to March. In January being around 60mm and in March around 100 mm. then it reduces from March to June, from around 80mm in April to around 30 mm in June. Then it again increases from June to August, in July 60 mm which increases to 70 mm in August. Now the rainfall pattern shows a decrease in September i.e. around 30 mm and almost remains constant till December.